timeshift issue
I just checked that the graphical interface of timeshift, does not seem to complete the manual backup (although it does occupy a space that can be seen even within its directory), but if you run timeshift --check in terminal, it says that there are incomplete copies and deletes them, freeing space…
Is there a bug?
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Just ran a manual timeshift backup in the gui and it completed after a few minutes without any problems.
If you can’t fix it yourself, you might have to provide more information to help analyse this problem.
I confirm a Timeshift problem. After the update, no backups created after the update appear here at XFCE. The problem is also reported at KDE in the German Manjaro forum.
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I have the same issue using Cinnamon. The snapshot seems to have been processed normally, but there is a file named info.json missing in the snapshot directory. Copying the file from a previous snapshot and modifying the “created” entry causes TimeShift to show the snapshot. Not sure if it’s complete/working, but deleting the snapshot with TimeShift works at least.
The problem is rsync. Downgrade rsync solves TimeShift problem. This is not the best solution, as the new version of rsync introduces significant security fixes. Maybe the next version of TimeShift will be compatible with rsync 3.2.4?
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I’ve read that too. But I’m currently wrestling with the uncertainty of whether Manjaro really keeps what it promises. It cannot be that such a serious and well-known bug is still included in a stable update. My trust in Manjaro is gone, even if they keep telling me it’s not their fault.
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The great irony of this “stable” update is that you cannot even create a new system snapshot to safeguard against the next update breaking something. 
I’m actually thinking of just skipping this “stable” update on my primary laptop, while I wait for the next one to be released. Leap-frog style. 
“You should have used Btrfs!” or “Just downgrade the rsync package!” are not appropriate solutions.
Those either require you to completely shift your paradigm or do something that is discouraged (and non-user-friendly), such as downgrading and freezing packages.
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You probably should really consider whether a rolling distribution is the right choice for you. What you are complaining about here has absolutely nothing to do with Manjaro or their release model. It is 100% an issue with upstream software (TimeShift in this case) Manjaro doesn’t have control of when TimeShift is going to fix their product to work with the latest version of rsync. But this is the “bleeding edge” part of being on a rolling distribution is that occasionally a software package that a lot of other packages rely on is going to be upgraded and until all the other packages update their software things can get broken. Manjaro’s stable branch is incredibly stable, so much so that people tend to forget just how close to the bleeding edge the excellent team manages to keep us at while still providing a very stable environment.
As for downgrading or freezing packages “completely shifting your paradigm” then that tells me a rolling release may not be the right choice for you because downgrading or freezing packages should very much be a normal part of “your paradigm” in a rolling release or at least know how to do those things. Those mechanics are there for a reason, and the reason is that sometimes they need to be used. The Manjaro team has made it very easy to do with the tools they provide.
You have to remember pretty much everyone’s system is unique collection of the software packages they they use. What is broken for one isn’t broken for another, with a rolling release there are times that just too many things are “broken” for your configuration for what you consider to be stable then there is nothing wrong with waiting or skipping a release.
As for downgrading rsync package as not acceptable, only you can determine what is acceptable for your system but downgrading the rsync package would allow you to continue to get your backups done until the timeshift developers fix the issue on their end if everything else works then that is the solution that would “fix the issue of you not getting backups while being on the latest stable release”.
The wiki gives excellent easy to follow step by step directions on how to downgrade a package:
Then in the pamac gui (known as Add/Remove Software) just go in and go into the preferences
- Click the advanced tab
- Down under ignored upgrades click the + button
- Start typing rsync and then select it from the list when you see it appear
Now you are all set and rsync will be “frozen”. When timeshift finally fixes their software and that package has been updated all you have to do is go into back into the advanced settings and click the “-” next to the rsync package and your system will once again update rsync to the latest version.
As I finished reading through the forums it looks like timeshift already fixed their problem and the awesome manjaro team has already pushed the new package. Which I guess brings me to a final point in a rolling release is that if you require a more stable environment it is usually a good idea to not jump on the releases the instant they are released, give it a few days for the small issues like this to be recognized and corrected. I typically wait about 3-5 days and update my laptop and when that goes good then I update my primary desktop which I do all my work on a few days later usually at about the 1 week point. For my purposes this provides me with an extremely stable environment and has done so for the past several years now.
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The simple fix has been in the stable repo for three days. 
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