Config backups

Every time a firewall's configuration changes, the collector uploads the new config.xml and Revo keeps it as a new version. Nothing is uploaded when nothing changed.

History and diffs

Config backups on a firewall lists every version, newest first, with:

• who made the change and what pfSense recorded about it (for example Firewall: Rules - saved/edited a firewall rule);
• a summary of what changed: rules, port forwards, aliases, users, VPNs, certificates, packages, interfaces, gateways and key settings (added, removed, changed);
• Diff: a line-by-line comparison with the previous version (for very large configurations, the lines added and removed);
• View: the whole configuration.

Secrets are always shown as [redacted] in the viewer and diffs: password hashes, private keys, pre-shared keys, API keys, SNMP communities and similar.

Each change also appears in the customer's Change history.

Restore a configuration

1. Open the version, then Download → Restorable copy (owners and admins only; the download is recorded in the audit log).
2. On the firewall, open Diagnostics → Backup & Restore, choose the file under Restore Backup and restore.

The redacted copy is for review and sharing: it can't restore a firewall.

How backups are protected

• Uploads are signed by the firewall's own key and sent over HTTPS.
• Each version is encrypted at rest (AES-256-GCM) with Revo's master key and stored separately per workspace.
• Only the viewer and diff (always redacted) are shown in the app; restorable downloads need an owner or admin.

If you'd rather not store the firewall's secrets in Revo, install with the Back up the full configuration switch off in the Add firewall dialog (--no-config-backup). The collector then removes the secrets on the firewall before uploading: analysis, history and diffs still work, but those backups can't restore the firewall.

Retention

The 200 newest versions of each firewall are kept; older ones are deleted unless pinned (the running one is never deleted). Each firewall can hold up to 512 MiB of history (when full, its oldest unpinned versions make room) and upload up to 128 MiB a day; a workspace holds up to 50 GiB, making room from removed firewalls' kept history first. Real firewalls never come close to these. Pin a version (Download menu) to keep it forever, for example a known-good configuration before a big change. Removing a firewall deletes its backups unless you choose to keep them.