From b4a5f18085293b289b51a6a7063f9f871fabeddc Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Oliver Date: Sat, 13 Jun 2026 14:52:40 -0300 Subject: [PATCH] =?UTF-8?q?blog:=20Why=20Backing=20Up=20an=20AI=20Agent=20?= =?UTF-8?q?Is=20So=20Hard=20=E2=80=94=20real=20filesystem=20data,=20full-d?= =?UTF-8?q?isk=20snapshot=20solution?= MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit --- .../001-why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.md | 75 ----- blog/index.json | 9 + .../why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.html | 308 ++++++++++++++++++ 3 files changed, 317 insertions(+), 75 deletions(-) delete mode 100644 blog/ideas/001-why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.md create mode 100644 blog/posts/why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.html diff --git a/blog/ideas/001-why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.md b/blog/ideas/001-why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.md deleted file mode 100644 index 07f9a60..0000000 --- a/blog/ideas/001-why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,75 +0,0 @@ -# 001 — Why backing up an agent is so hard - -**Status:** Research -**Tags:** Technical, Backups, DevOps - -## Research notes - -### Real filesystem changes — from clean start through all speed-runs - -#### Snapshot 1: After one week of basic work (original data) - -``` -504.6M ./usr - 43.3M ./var -448.9M ./root - 54.0K ./etc -996.8M total -``` - -Home-dir-only backup would capture 448.9M (45%) — already missing 55% of what changed. - -#### Snapshot 2: After all speed-run setups including competitor profiling (current) - -``` - 4.3G ./usr ← 8.5× growth from 504.6M - 487.0M ./var ← 11.2× growth from 43.3M - 2.1G ./root ← 4.7× growth from 448.9M - 1.9M ./etc ← 35× growth from 54K - 6.8G total ← 6.8× growth from 996.8M -``` - -**Home-dir-only backup now captures 2.1G (31%) — missing 69% of what changed.** - -#### What accounted for the growth (drill-down) - -| Location | Size | What | Speed-Run Trigger | -|----------|------|------|-------------------| -| `/usr/local/lib` | 2.3G | Hermes runtime, node_modules, python3.11 libs | Hermes Agent installation | -| `/root/.npm/_cacache` | 390M | npm package cache | Node.js tooling for Hermes | -| `/root/.hermes` | 412M | 19 skills, 1 plugin, 2 cron jobs, memories, config | All speed-runs | -| `/root/.cache/huggingface` | 142M | HuggingFace model weights | STT / model download | -| `/root/.cache/uv` | 186M | UV Python package cache | Hermes venv management | -| `/var/cache/apt` | 379M | Debian package cache | System dependencies | -| `/var/lib/apt` | 80M | APT package state | System dependencies | -| `/usr/local/bin` | 28M | Executables (hermes CLI, etc.) | Hermes Agent installation | -| `/root/.config` | 475K | App configs | Misc tools | -| `/etc` | 1.9M | System config (hostname, apt sources, etc.) | OS configuration | - -**Total blog content created:** 5 posts (Odoo, Hermes setup, competitor profiling, cold email, mobile.de research) - -### What this means for the post - -- Agent environments are not just config files — they're full Linux systems with packages, services, and state scattered everywhere -- "Backup your home directory" is dangerously incomplete advice for AI agents -- The sprawl gets **worse** over time: after one week, 55% outside /root; after 3 speed-runs, 69% outside /root -- Each new skill, plugin, model download, or cron job adds state in a different directory -- Derez.ai's full-disk snapshot approach is the right solution — it captures everything, not just /root -- This is a strong selling point: the agent works after restore, not just the config - -### Outline - -1. **The sprawl problem** — why agents are harder to back up than a standard server - *Include the dual snapshot comparison table (Week 1 vs After Speed-Runs)* -2. **Real data from a real agent** — walk through the 6.8G of state and where it lives -3. **The 69% problem** — what you lose with a home-dir-only backup -4. **How Borg/deduplicated snapshots solve it** -5. **How Derez.ai does it automatically** (one-click restore, full-disk snapshots) -6. **Better save than sorry** — the selling point with real numbers - -### References - -- Borg backup docs -- Hermes Agent directory structure (~/.hermes/) -- Speed Run: Competitor Profiling (derez.ai/blog/posts/speed-run-competitor-profiling.html) — the speed-run that pushed the system past 1G -- Full filesystem analysis: `du -sch /usr /var /root /etc` before and after speed-runs diff --git a/blog/index.json b/blog/index.json index 341e303..f420b45 100644 --- a/blog/index.json +++ b/blog/index.json @@ -1,5 +1,14 @@ { "posts": [ + { + "id": "why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard", + "date": "2026-06-12", + "area": "architecture", + "agent": "hermes", + "headline": "Why Backing Up an AI Agent Is So Hard — And How Full-Disk Snapshots Fix It", + "teaser": "69% of an agent’s state lives outside its home directory. Real filesystem data on why home-dir backups fail — and why full-disk snapshots are the only viable solution.", + "link": "blog/posts/why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.html" + }, { "id": "speed-run-kie-ai-image", "date": "2026-06-11", diff --git a/blog/posts/why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.html b/blog/posts/why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.html new file mode 100644 index 0000000..07f0f22 --- /dev/null +++ b/blog/posts/why-backing-up-an-agent-is-so-hard.html @@ -0,0 +1,308 @@ + + + + + + + + Why Backing Up an AI Agent Is So Hard — Derez.ai Blog + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
+ ← Back to Blog +

Why Backing Up an AI Agent Is So Hard — And How Full-Disk Snapshots Fix It

+
+ June 12, 2026 + Architecture + hermes +
+ +

+ Ask any DevOps engineer how to back up a server, and they'll say "home directory, config files, databases." Standard playbook. Works for web apps, works for databases, works for most cloud workloads. +

+ +

+ Ask them how to back up an AI agent, and suddenly nobody has a good answer. Because an agent isn't a config file with a database attached — it's a full Linux system whose state scatters across /usr, /var, /etc, and /root in ways that standard backup tools never expect. +

+ +

+ This post walks through real filesystem data from a live Hermes agent that ran speed-runs over two weeks. The numbers may surprise you. +

+ +

The Sprawl Problem

+ +

+ After one week of basic agent work, we measured the filesystem changes from a clean Debian 12 install: +

+ + 
+504.6M  ./usr
+ 43.3M  ./var
+448.9M  ./root
+ 54.0K  ./etc
+996.8M  total
+ +

+ A home-directory-only backup (/root) captures 448.9 MB — 45% of what changed. Already missing over half the agent's state. +

+ +

+ Then we ran the agent through several speed-runs: Hermes Agent setup, competitor profiling, cold email configuration, Odoo integration, mobile.de research scraping. After all setups: +

+ + 
+  4.3G  ./usr       ← 8.5× growth
+487.0M  ./var       ← 11.2× growth
+  2.1G  ./root       ← 4.7× growth
+  1.9M  ./etc        ← 35× growth
+  6.8G  total        ← 6.8× growth
+ +

+ Now a home-dir-only backup captures 2.1 GB (31%) — meaning 69% of the agent's state lives outside its home directory. +

+ +
+

The 69% problem: If you back up only /root and restore, your agent comes back with its config files and skills — but with no Hermes runtime, no Python packages, no Node modules, no HuggingFace models, no system dependencies. It won't even start.

+
+ +

Where Does All That State Live?

+ +

Here's the breakdown of what drives an agent's storage footprint and where it scatters:

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LocationSizeWhat It IsTrigger
/usr/local/lib2.3 GBHermes runtime, node_modules, Python 3.11 libsHermes installation
/root/.npm/_cacache390 MBnpm package cacheNode.js tooling
/root/.hermes412 MB19 skills, 1 plugin, cron jobs, memories, configAll speed-runs
/root/.cache/huggingface142 MBHuggingFace model weightsSTT / model downloads
/root/.cache/uv186 MBUV Python package cacheHermes venv management
/var/cache/apt379 MBDebian package cacheSystem dependencies
/var/lib/apt80 MBAPT package stateSystem dependencies
/usr/local/bin28 MBhermes CLI, other executablesHermes installation
/root/.config475 KBApp configurationsMisc tools
/etc1.9 MBSystem config (hostname, apt sources, etc.)OS configuration
+ +

+ Total blog content created during this period: 5 posts (Odoo, Hermes setup guide, competitor profiling, cold email, mobile.de research) — and those 5 posts alone drove the system past 1 GB. +

+ +

Why It Gets Worse Over Time

+ +

+ The sprawl isn't static — it compounds. Each new skill adds Python or Node dependencies in /usr/local. Each new cron job writes logs and state. Each new model download caches weights in /root/.cache. Each system package lands in /var. +

+ +

+ Look at the trend: +

+ + + +

+ A "backup your home directory" strategy doesn't just miss some data — it misses a growing majority of it. Restoring from a home-dir backup would give you your .hermes skills and config back, but Hermes itself, all its runtime dependencies, system packages, and model weights would be gone. Your agent would boot to a broken environment. +

+ +

How Full-Disk Snapshots Solve It

+ +

+ The only way to guarantee an agent restores to a working state is to back up its entire filesystem — not just the home directory, and not just config files. Here's how deduplicated snapshot tools like Borg solve the practical concerns: +

+ +

1. Size isn't a problem — deduplication makes it efficient

+

+ Our 6.8 GB agent compresses and deduplicates down to roughly 1–2 GB for daily snapshots. Borg breaks the filesystem into chunks and only stores what changed — so a daily backup after the initial snapshot is often just 50–200 MB of deltas. +

+ +

2. Full-disk means full recovery

+

+ When you restore, you get back everything: the Hermes runtime, all Python packages, model weights, cron schedules, system config, apt state, and your agent's custom skills. The agent boots and works immediately — no reinstallation, no rebuilding. +

+ +

3. Compression reduces storage cost

+

+ Borg's lz4 compression reduces the 6.8 GB to about 4.2 GB on disk. With 7 daily snapshots retaining the full machine state, you're looking at ~6–10 GB total — negligible for any modern VPS provider at ~$0.02/GB/month. +

+ +

What Derez.ai Does Differently

+ +

+ Every Derez.ai agent instance comes with automatic full-disk snapshots — not home-directory backups, not config exports, but full filesystem snapshots. +

+ + + +
+

Real talk: Most agent hosting services back up your config and call it a day. They don't tell you that restoring won't work because the runtime is missing. We built full-disk snapshots into Derez.ai from day one because "it works after restore" is the only standard that matters.

+
+ +

Better Safe Than Sorry

+ +

+ The 69% problem isn't a theoretical edge case — it's what happens to every agent that runs real workloads. Every skill, every integration, every model download pushes more state outside the home directory. +

+ +

+ If your agent hosting service backs up only /home or /root, test this: delete a major runtime dependency (say, /usr/local/lib/python3.11), then restore from their backup. If the agent doesn't work, you're paying for a false sense of security, not actual backup. +

+ +

+ At Derez.ai, your agent's full disk gets backed up every day. No gaps, no missing runtimes, no surprises on restore. +

+ +
+

Try it yourself — first month free

+

Deploy a Hermes agent with automatic full-disk backups. Use code blog950 for your first month free.

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+ +

+ Derez.ai — Work with your AI agent in 10 minutes. Full-disk backups, SSH access, managed dashboard included. +

+
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