WordPress Site – Backups & Restoration

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Do you have a WordPress site?

Want to ensure you always have access to a backup version of your website?

Don’t worry.

We’ve got you covered.

This blog post is suitable for those that have a WordPress site – this is what the instructions have been tailored to suit. Throughout this blog, we have outlined the steps you need to take to backup and restore your website. 

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    Benefits 

    • There is always the possibility that something could go wrong which could have a negative impact on your site – by following this tutorial, you can ensure you have a rapid back-up. 
    • WordPress will automatically back-up your site at set intervals – ensuring that you always have access to a recent version of your website in the event that something goes wrong. 
    • Setting this up isn’t a lengthy process, but it will have long-term benefits of always providing you with a secure backup that you can choose to store either locally or online. 

     

    Setting Up

    Ensure that on your WordPress site, you have the Updraft” plugin installed.

    1. Go over to the admin panel
    2. Select “Plugins” and then “Add New”
    3. You will need to enter “Updraft” into the search bar – install it, and then select “Activate”.
    4. You will notice that a new option appears on the WordPress admin sidebar – look under your “Settings” to find “UpdraftPlus Backups” 
    5. Once you’ve clicked on the link, you will need to alter the default settings:
      • Select “Settings” and then edit these fields:
      1. Schedule for Files Backup 

    This is how often you want WordPress to back-up your files without your input. 

            • It is important to note that “files” does not mean your website – it is a reference to the files and folders stored on your server – i.e. images. 
            • We would advise that you have a minimum of a monthly backup.
            • When deciding how often you need to backup your website, take into account how often you update the site – i.e. the content.

     

            1. “And retain this many scheduled backups”

    Here you will need to input how many “previous” backups you want to keep stored until they are deleted. 

            • It is suggested that you have a minimum of 2 backups at all times. 
            • Take your scheduling into account – if you are creating a new back-up every day, and have it set that you will only store 3 backups at a time, then you may lose a required backup if you notice an issue which will affect all current backups.

     

      1. Schedule for Database Backup  

    This is how often you want your WordPress to back-up your database.

        • This will include certain features such as Pages (but not the whole website)
        1. “And retain this many scheduled backups”

    You may decide to input the same settings as you did previously in terms of how long you want data to be stored. 

     

      1. Selecting Remote Storage 

    You will now need to choose which cloud storage service you are intending to use. This is where all of your backups will be stored.

        • It is advised to use a different form of storage as if the server fails or is hacked into, then this means any backups can be erased.
        • Also by having your backups on the same server, you will not be able to source them if the files got deleted or corrupted on the server.
        1. You will need to select “Google Drive” 

    (you can choose whichever server you like, however, this is the one we’ve chosen to use in this case)

        1. At the bottom of the page, you will need to select “Save Changes”
        2. Now click the link – this will authorise access to the cloud service – once you’ve done this, you will need to log into your account. 
        3. Now give “UpdraftPlus” access to your account – click “Allow” 
        4. Now you will be presented with an Updraft page – make sure to select “Complete Setup” 
        5. A notification will appear, alerting you to the fact you have authenticated the account.
        6. You have now successfully added automatic backups to your selected cloud service. 

     

    Manual Backup

    1. To do this, you will need to open your Updraft settings – you can do this by selecting “Settings” and then “UpdraftPlus Backups” – this will be an option on the sidebar. 
    2. Now select “Backup Now” – when the notification appears, you will need to click this button again. 
    3. Once the progress bar is full, you will see a message displaying the latest backup date – if you want to download this, then you will need to select “Existing Backups” 
      • Choose the data you want to download – select “Download to your computer” 
      • Now you can locally store these files – ensuring that you not only have an online backup but an offline one too.

     

    Backup Restoration 

    Usually, if your website is less than 200MB, then you should have no issues with restoring your website. There is potentially some risks with restoring backups, this will be affected by the size of the backups as well as server limitations. There is the chance the server will not be able to cope with the entire procedure – meaning some data is recovered, while others are not. 

     

    1. On the sidebar, select “Settings” and then “UpdraftPlus Backups” to open the Updraft settings.
      • If you are experienced issues so complex that you are unable to access your WordPress admin panel, then you will need to re-install WordPress and install Updraft once again.

     

    1. To restore the backup:
      • Select “Existing Backups”
      • Then “Restore”
        • If you find that your backup isn’t there, then you will have to use your local backup, as there is a chance the one on the server has been deleted. 
        • To upload a backup, simply select the “Upload backup” option – to do this, follow these steps:
          1. You will need to ensure that the tickboxes of the components you want to restore are ticked – once you are happy with your choices, select “Restore”
          2. Updraft will now have recovered the backup files – again you will need to select “Restore”
          3. The process will now have started, once it’s finished, you will see the message:

    “Restore Successful!” 

     

    And… you’re done!

    You have now successfully restored your WordPress site using your backups.

    Thanks for reading, we hope that you found this tutorial useful.

    Don’t forget to check us out on social media, so you can keep updated with our latest blog posts.

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