Take a snapshot

Let's take a quick look at how IPFS can be used to take basic snapshots of files — an action that enables you to access those files later in the same state as they were when you "snapshotted" them.

Save your directory:

ipfs add -r ~/code/myproject

Note the hash:

echo $hash `date` >> snapshots

Or all at once:

echo `ipfs add -q -r ~/code/myproject | tail -n1` `date` >> snapshots

(Note: the -q makes the output only contain the hashes, and piping through tail -n1 ensures that only the hash of the top folder is output.)

Make sure to have the placeholders for the mount points:

sudo mkdir /ipfs /ipns
sudo chown `whoami` /ipfs /ipns

You will need to have FUSE (Filesystem in Userspace) installed on your machine in order to be able to mount directories from the IPFS. You can find instructions for how to install FUSE in the go-ipfs docs (opens new window).

View your snapshots live:

ipfs mount
ls /ipfs/$hash/

# Or

cd /ipfs/$hash/
ls

Through the FUSE interface, you'll be able to access your files exactly as they were when you took the snapshot.