Provider guide

Back Up a Mac to MinIO

MinIO is S3-compatible object storage you can run yourself. Azivault can use a MinIO bucket as a backup destination when the endpoint is reachable from the Mac during backup runs.

When this setup makes sense

Users who want self-hosted object storage, local control, or a private storage service inside their own network.

What to enter in Azivault

In Azivault, choose Create New Plan, select the source folder, then go to Storage. Set Destination type to S3 compatible.

Bucket name: the bucket dedicated to the Azivault repository.
Region: Use the region configured for the MinIO deployment, or the region value your MinIO-compatible tooling expects.
Custom endpoint: Use the HTTPS endpoint for your MinIO deployment. For local testing this might be a LAN hostname or IP address; for production, prefer a stable DNS name and TLS.
Use path-style requests: Azivault turns this on by default when a custom endpoint is present, unless you manually change the toggle.
Access key ID and secret access key: Use a MinIO access key with permissions limited to the Azivault bucket where possible.
Session token: optional. Use it only if the provider issued one for the credentials.

Setup checklist

Create a private bucket dedicated to Azivault.
Confirm the MinIO endpoint is reachable from the Mac on the network where backups run.
Use HTTPS with a trusted certificate for unattended backup reliability.
Document how to recover both the MinIO service and the Azivault recovery password.
Click Test in Azivault and wait for a healthy result before adding the plan.
Finish the schedule and recovery password steps, then add the plan.

What the storage test verifies

Azivault's S3 test is a real read/write check. It writes a small object under .azivault-health-check/, confirms the object exists, lists that prefix, reads the object back, and deletes it. If the test fails, review the bucket, region, endpoint URL, credentials, path-style setting, and network access.

Restore and disaster recovery

Existing backups remain restorable even if a subscription expires, but you still need the repository data, provider access, and the Azivault recovery password or synced Keychain key. For S3-compatible storage, plan how you would hydrate or copy the remote repository objects to a local folder, then import that repository folder into Azivault for restore browsing.

MinIO backup risks

Object lock support: MinIO can support object retention and legal holds when configured for it, but the protection is only as strong as the deployment, versioning, time sync, root credentials, and administrative controls around the server.
Lifecycle rules: Lifecycle expiration on a self-hosted bucket is easy to misconfigure and can silently age out repository objects. Keep lifecycle rules off until you have a measured retention policy and a restore test that spans the oldest retained backup.
Egress costs: There may be no provider egress bill for a LAN restore, but internet bandwidth, VPN transfer, colo traffic, or cloud-hosted MinIO networking can still become the bottleneck or cost center.
Regional durability: MinIO durability depends on your disks, erasure coding, replication, monitoring, and site design. A single server, single NAS, or single building is not an offsite backup by itself.
Access key scope: Use a MinIO access key and policy limited to the Azivault bucket. Do not put root console credentials into a backup app configuration.
Restore gotchas: A disaster restore may require rebuilding DNS, TLS certificates, storage pools, and MinIO credentials before Azivault can even reach the bucket. Write those steps down while the system is healthy.

Provider notes

A MinIO server in the same building is not offsite backup by itself.
Your storage durability depends on the MinIO deployment, disks, replication, and operational backups.

Provider details can change. Check MinIO documentation before creating a production backup plan.

FAQs

Can Azivault back up to MinIO?

Yes. Azivault can use MinIO as an S3-compatible backup destination with the bucket, region, endpoint, and access credentials described on this page.

Are files encrypted before they reach the provider?

Yes. Azivault encrypts repository contents locally before repository objects are written to folder or S3-compatible destinations.

What does Azivault's S3 test button check?

For S3-compatible destinations, Azivault writes a small health-check object, confirms it exists, lists the health-check prefix, reads it back, and deletes it.

How do I recover if the original Mac is gone?

Keep the provider account, storage credentials, and Azivault recovery password available. For remote S3-compatible repositories, hydrate or copy the repository objects to a local repository folder before importing it into Azivault.