Ubuntu as Time Machine server

This guide will help you to install and configure the netatalk servise on an Ubuntu server so it can function as a Time Machine backup server for your Mac OS machines.

First install the necessary packages:

sudo apt-get install netatalk avahi-daemon libnss-mdns

Open the netatalk default configuration file:

sudo vi /etc/default/netatalk

Modify the lines:

ATALKD_RUN=yes
PAPD_RUN=no
CNID_METAD_RUN=yes
AFPD_RUN=yes
TIMELORD_RUN=no
A2BOOT_RUN=no

Edit the atalkd.conf file:

sudo vi /etc/netatalk/atalkd.conf

add to the bottom

eth0

Edit the AppleVolumes.default file:

sudo vi /etc/netatalk/AppleVolumes.default

add to the bottom:

/backups/timemachine "Time Machine" allow:@admin cnidscheme:cdb volsizelimit:200000 options:usedots,upriv,tm

The example above also limits the size shown to OS X as 200 GB (the number is given in MiB, so it's 200,000 times 1024 in the real world)

Edit the afpd configuration file:

sudo vi  /etc/netatalk/afpd.conf

add to the bottom:

- -transall -uamlist uams_dhx.so,uams_dhx2.so -nosavepassword -advertise_ssh -mimicmodel TimeCapsule6,106 -setuplog "default log_warn  /var/log/afpd.log"

Create a configuration file for the avahi afpd discovery:

sudo vi  /etc/avahi/services/afpd.service

and enter the following into it:

<?xml version="1.0" standalone='no'?><!--*-nxml-*-->
<!DOCTYPE service-group SYSTEM "avahi-service.dtd">
<service-group>
 <name replace-wildcards="yes">%h</name>
 <service>
 <type>_afpovertcp._tcp</type>
 <port>548</port>
 </service>
 <service>
 <type>_device-info._tcp</type>
 <port>0</port>
 <txt-record>model=MacPro</txt-record>
 </service>
</service-group> 

Restart the services:

sudo service netatalk restart
sudo service avahi-daemon restart