1. Description

This blog post encompasses how to install and use RSYNC between a client and a server. The server in this case is a Windows 11 desktop computer with the desired drive D:/, and the client in this case is a Raspberry Pi 3B+, with a 1 TB micro SD card as storage. RSYNC allows for the server folder of choice to be updated on the client side at given intervals, such as this case whenever the desktop computer is turned on.

2. Required skills

• Basic Linux terminal commands (cd, ls, wget, pip, etc…)
• How to install and manipulate python
• How to edit environment variables on windows
• Basic higher-level windows commands (cmd, startup, etc…)

3. Software to install

On the windows 11 desktop computer:

• Git

  • https://git-scm.com/downloads

• Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) (see 5, below, for detail)

  wsl --install
  

On the Raspberry Pi:

• Enable SSH

  sudo systemctl enable ssh
  sudo systemctl start ssh
  

4. SSH setup

1. SSH into the RPI and find the hostname

   hostname -I
   

2. Create a folder to sync to on the RPI

   mkdir -p ~/synced_folder
   

3. On the desktop, open Git Bash and generate a SSH key and save it to the provided location. Don’t bother with the passphrase, it will not be needed later.

   ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096
   

4. Test the generated key to SSH into the RPI, without using the RPIs password. If the username of your RPI is something other than pi, then replace that throughout the process.

   ssh-copy-id pi@pi-ip-address
   

   Possible issues to counter:

   • ssh-copy-id: command not recognised. Make sure you are using Git Bash, and not windows cmd or powershell. If it still doesn’t work, ask A.I.

   • CAUTION: may take some time to load! Do not fret, give it time.

   • Once loaded, it will say “The authenticity of host '192.168.1.120 (192.168.1.120)' can't be established.” Simply type ‘yes’ and continue.

   • If it states another error, follow the instructions it gives and try again.

   • If the RPI refuses to connect, you may need to copy the public key over to the RPI.

     • Option 1: (may error)

     cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub | ssh pi@pi-ip-address 'mkdir -p ~/.ssh && chmod 700 ~/.ssh && cat >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys && chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys'
     

     • Option 2: (multi-step, should work better)

     On the windows desktop (Git Bash still):

     scp ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub pi@pi-ip-address:/tmp/
     

     Then, SSH into the RPI and run these commands to install the key:

     ssh pi@pi-ip-address
     
     mkdir -p ~/.ssh
     cat /tmp/id_[YOUR_FILE_NAME].pub >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
     chmod 700 ~/.ssh
     chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
     rm /tmp/id_[YOUR_FILE_NAME].pub
     

     You will have to replace the id_xyz.pub with whatever you named your file in step 4.3. Afterwards, retest the password less SSH into the RPI with the below line.

     ssh pi@pi-ip-address
     

5. WSL and RSYNC setup

Test for WSL compatibility: