What is `plakar server`, and why should I use it?

Last reviewed: 2025-09-02 / Plakar v1.0.3

The plakar server command creates a proxy on top of a Kloset store.
This proxy exposes the store over HTTP, allowing you to interact with it just like any other Plakar store.

How it works

Assume you have a store at /var/backups. You can list its contents directly with:

1plakar at /var/backups ls

If you start a proxy on this store:

1plakar at /var/backups server

Plakar launches a server (by default on http://localhost:9876).

To interact with it over HTTP, first install the http integration:

1plakar pkg add http

Then you can list snapshots from the proxy:

1plakar at http://localhost:9876 ls

By default, the proxy does not allow delete operations for safety.
If you want to enable them, pass the -allow-delete flag:

1plakar at /var/backups server -allow-delete

For a full list of options, run:

1plakar help server

Use cases

The primary use case for plakar server is to expose a local Kloset store over HTTP.

For example, you could share a Kloset store hosted on a NAS, making it accessible via HTTP from other machines.

It is also possible to chain proxies. For instance, you can run:

1plakar at http://<host>:<port> server -listen <host>:<newport>

This creates a new proxy pointing to the original one.

Considerations and limitations

No access to decrypted data

The proxy only exposes the encrypted store. Clients must provide the passphrase when running commands.

No TLS support

The proxy does not support TLS natively. If you need secure connections, set up a reverse proxy (e.g., Nginx).