Backing up a WordPress website is very important irrespective of the kind of site you are running. Whether it is a personal blog or for your large e-commerce brand, backup ensures that all your content and data remain safe from any unexpected failures, cyber-attacks, or human errors. But how to back up the site? Are there any roles of WordPress development services to do so? Let us find answers to all these related questions in this guide today.
Understand WordPress Backup Components
A complete WordPress backup consists of two main components. These are as follows:
Files
The files include core WordPress web design files, themes, plugins, and media uploads.
Database
On the other hand, the database includes all your posts, pages, comments, and site settings.
Now, to back up the data of the WordPress website, there are several effective methods available. Each comes with its own advantages and drawbacks. However, in this blog post today, we will cover the backup process through manual backups, using plugins, and backups through your hosting provider.
Manual Backups
If you go with manual backups, there are two ways to keep your data and information safe for both files and databases. Let’s start by shedding light on how to manually back up your WordPress files.
Firstly, we have the option of FTP/ SFTP. To back up using FTP/ SFTP, follow these steps:
Step 1: Connect to your website using an FTP client (such as FileZilla) or SFTP if your host supports it.
Step 2: Navigate to your WordPress root directory (usually public_html or www).
Step 3: Download all files and folders to your local computer. This includes wp-admin, wp-content, wp-includes, and all other WordPress files.
Now, there is one more way to back up WordPress web development files through the cPanel file manager. Follow the given steps below to do so:
Step 1: Log into your hosting account’s cPanel.
Step 2: Open the File Manager and navigate to your WordPress root directory.
Step 3: Select all files and folders, then choose the option to compress them into a ZIP file.
Step 4: Download the ZIP file to your local computer.
Now, let us talk about how to back up the database of WordPress websites. Again, there are two ways to do so: either using phpMyAdmin or Command-Line.
Let’s first understand how to back up the WordPress database using phpMyAdmin below:
Step 1: Log into your hosting account’s cPanel and open phpMyAdmin.
Step 2: Select your WordPress database from the left-hand menu.
Step 3: Click the “Export” tab. Choose the “Quick” export method and the “SQL” format.
Step 4: Click “Go” to download the database file to your local computer.
After this, you can back up the database using the Command line as well. But keep in mind that this option is for advanced users. Follow the given steps to do so:
Step 1: Access your server via SSH.
Step 2: Use the mysqldump command to export your database:
mysqldump -u your_db_username -p your_db_name > backup.sql
Step 3: Transfer the backup.sql file to your local computer using SCP or another method.
Using WordPress Backup Plugins
Yes, you can perform backups using various plugins coming under WordPress development services. Some of the most used ones are UpdraftPlus, BackupBuddy, VaultPress (Jetpack), etc. But before going with this option, it is important to understand how much does it cost to build a website. Especially if you are choosing WordPress, this approach will help you add up to the overall cost as some plugins come with subscriptions.
Let us try to understand one by one how to use these plugins for WordPress backup.
UpdraftPlus
Follow the given steps to back up your WordPress website’s data using the UpdraftPlus plugin:
Step 1: Install and activate the UpdraftPlus plugin from the WordPress plugin repository.
Step 2: Go to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups.
Step 3: Click the “Backup Now” button to create a backup. You can configure scheduled backups and remote storage options in the settings.
BackupBuddy
Apart from UpdraftPlus, there is another plugin available to help you back up your WordPress site, i.e. BackupBuddy. You can follow the given steps to take back-ups using this plugin:
Step 1: Purchase, install, and activate BackupBuddy from the iThemes website.
Step 2: Go to BackupBuddy > Backup.
Step 3: Click “Complete Backup” to create a full backup of your site. Configure backup schedules and remote storage in the settings.
VaultPress (Jetpack)
Last but not least, VaultPress can also help with WordPress site backup by following the steps mentioned below:
Step 1: Install and activate Jetpack from the WordPress plugin repository.
Step 2: Subscribe to a VaultPress plan.
Step 3: Connect VaultPress to your WordPress site and configure backup settings.
Backing Up Through Hosting Provider
You can take back-ups of your WordPress web design using many hosting providers as well. Yes, they provide built-in backup options to make the process easier for you. Let’s understand the two ways below.
Using cPanel Backup Wizard
Step 1: Log into your hosting account’s cPanel.
Step 2: Find and open the Backup Wizard.
Step 3: Select “Backup” and then “Full Backup” to create a complete backup of your site. Download the backup file to your local computer.
Managed WordPress Hosting (e.g., WP Engine, Kinsta)
Step 1: Log into your hosting account dashboard.
Step 2: Locate the backup section (often found in the site management area).
Step 3: Create a manual backup or restore from an existing backup. Managed hosts typically offer automated daily backups as well.
Although there are many more alternative options available to help you take safe backups of your WordPress website, the three discussed above are the most reliable ones.
Storing Your Backups
No matter whether you use plugins coming within WordPress development services or go with manual backups, storing them is a non-skippable option. However, we recommend storing your important data in multiple locations for more safety and redundancy. You can consider storing your data via the following options:
Local Storage
First of all, as you have a local computer, save the backups there. Or else if you have an external hard drive, you can save the data there as well. This gives easy access to your backup information and data but it might not be the safest option to consider. Why? Think to yourself what will you do if your hardware fails. Everything will crash and you won’t have any traces of data left to you.
Remote Storage
To safeguard WordPress web design and development data from hardware failures, remote storage is here. By remote storage, we mean cloud storage devices like Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3, or a dedicated backup service. You can find many backup plugins that support automatic uploads to these services. They offer a safer and more reliable solution as compared to the local storage.
Offsite Storage
The third way to store your important backups is to keep their copies in a different physical location. This step will give an extra layer of protection in case of natural disasters or other local issues.
Automating Your WordPress Backups
While dealing with backups, you need to understand that the process of manually backing up your site can be time-consuming and prone to errors. So, what to do now? You can automate the process to ensure that your WordPress site gets backed up regularly without needing your regular attention. Let’s understand how you can achieve the automation of WordPress backups. Firstly, there are backup plugins available that do the work on their own. They provide scheduling options using which you can keep the timings of back-ups as per your convenience. Whether you want the backup daily, weekly, or monthly, the plugins will make sure to upload your backups to remote storage on their own. Secondly, you can use a WordPress hosting provider that offers the advantage of automated backup solutions. Using these, you can have daily back-ups with easy restoration options. Last but not least, there is an option for cron jobs for advanced users. You can set up cron jobs on your WordPress server and automate the backup process. It provides many useful commands to schedule regular file and database check-ups.
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Conclusion
Overall, you should not overlook the importance of the WordPress website’s back-up. After back-ups, it is equally very important to store your important data and information safely. By understanding the potential and effective methods available, you can ensure that your WordPress web design and development data remains safe and recoverable in the face of unexpected issues.
Do you still require more assistance on back-ups of WordPress websites? You can connect with the Digital Care Agency. We are available to answer all your concerns anytime. Also, as a web design company, we offer comprehensive web design services as well with the help of our dedicated and hardworking WordPress developers in Bakersfield, Los Angeles, Edmonton, Miami, San Diego, and Orange County. Please feel free to reach out to us! We can help you get the quickest and most reliable solutions to your problems.
