https://github.com/linuxmint/timeshift
Timeshift for Linux is an application that provides functionality similar to the System Restore feature in Windows and the Time Machine tool in Mac OS. Timeshift protects your system by taking incremental snapshots of the file system at regular intervals. These snapshots can be restored at a later date to undo all changes to the system.
Timeshift is designed to be flexible. When you configure a new backup location, it doesn't just dump all the files in the root of the drive. It creates a dedicated folder structure that is unique to the operating system it's backing up. This is what makes it safe to use a single external drive for multiple systems.
Timeshift's Magic:
Timeshift is smart enough to see that the timeshift directory already exists on the drive. It will then create a new subdirectory inside of it to store the backups for the second computer.
For example, your external drive's folder structure will look something like this:
Timeshift-Backup/timeshift/
├── hostname1/
│ └── snapshots/
│ └── 2025-10-27_09-30-00/
└── hostname2/
└── snapshots/
└── 2025-10-27_10-00-00/
The hostname1 and hostname2 folders are created automatically by Timeshift to separate the backups for each machine. This ensures there are no file conflicts or overwrites.
Create the First Snapshot: After configuration, create your first snapshot on Computer 2.
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