.. Original article at http://text.maze.io/2010/02/08/make-ubuntu-a-mac-file-server-and-time-machine-volume
   
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    |___/___/   /___/____|________|___   |  |_|  |___|_____/
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   (c) 2010 Wijnand 'maze' Modderman - http://maze.io/


Make Ubuntu a Mac file server and Time Machine volume
=====================================================
  
.. image:: http://i.maze.io/8096217b.png
   :align: right
   :alt: Mac Ubuntu file sync

The folks at `Kremalicious <http://www.kremalicious.com/2008/06/ubuntu-as-mac-file-server-and-time-machine-volume/>`_ have written an excellent article about how to setup an AFP-fileserver on your Ubuntu server. If you have your storage attached to an Ubuntu server like me, this is an excellent solution for hassle-free Time Machine backups in OSX.

To summarize, building netatalk with SSL support to allow for encryption required by your Mac::

  user@pc ~$ mkdir ~/src/netatalk
  user@pc ~$ cd ~/src/netatalk
  user@pc netatalk$ sudo apt-get  build-dep netatalk
  ...
  user@pc netatalk$ sudo apt-get install cracklib2-dev fakeroot libssl-dev
  ...
  user@pc netatalk$ apt-get source netatalk
  user@pc netatalk$ cd netatalk-2*
  user@pc netatalk-2.0.x$ DEB_BUILD_OPTIONS=ssl dpkg-buildpackage -rfakeroot
  ...
  user@pc netatalk$ cd .. ; dpkg -i netatalk_2*.deb
  ...
  user@pc netatalk$ echo "netatalk hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections

Configure AFP::

  user@pc ~$ sudo vi /etc/default/netatalk
  ...
  ATALKD_RUN=no
  PAPD_RUN=no 
  CNID_METAD_RUN=yes
  AFPD_RUN=yes
  TIMELORD_RUN=no
  A2BOOT_RUN=no
  user@pc ~$ sudo vi /etc/netatalk/afpd.conf
  ...
  - -transall -uamlist uams_randnum.so,uams_dhx.so -nosavepassword -advertise_ssh
  user@pc ~$ sudo vi /etc/netatalk/AppleVolumes.default
  ...
  ~/ "$u" allow:username1,username2 cnidscheme:cdb
  /home/username/TimeMachine	 TimeMachine allow:username1,username2 cnidscheme:cdb options:usedots,upriv
  user@pc ~$ sudo /etc/init.d/netatalk restart

Install and configure Avahi (Multicase DNS)::

  user@pc ~$ sudo apt-get install avahi-daemon
  ...
  user@pc ~$ sudo apt-get install libnss-mdns
  ...
  user@pc ~$ sudo vi /etc/nsswitch.conf
  ...
  hosts: files mdns4_minimal [NOTFOUND=return] dns mdns4 mdns
  ...
  user@pc ~$ sudo vi /etc/avahi/services/afpd.service
  <?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=Xserve</txt-record>
  </service>
  </service-group>
  $ sudo /etc/init.d/avahi-daemon restart
  ...

Enable networked Time Machine volumes on your Mac::

 user@mac ~$ defaults write com.apple.systempreferences TMShowUnsupportedNetworkVolumes 1
 user@mac ~$

.. image:: http://i.maze.io/159932b7.png
   :align: right
   :alt: Time Machine

Enjoy your Time Machine Volume! Your server should pop up in Finder as an Apple X-Server and your should be able to access the volumes after successful authentication.

If you have any issues, head over the the `Kremalicious <http://www.kremalicious.com/2008/06/ubuntu-as-mac-file-server-and-time-machine-volume/>`_ article for tips and tricks. Most of the issues you may come across are explained elaborately. I had to use the `Sparse Bundle Hack <http://www.kremalicious.com/2008/06/ubuntu-as-mac-file-server-and-time-machine-volume/#sparsebundle>`_ myself, after creating an empty sparse volume in Disk Utility, Time Machine started synchronising like a charm!