When you set up your blog, you’ll want to back it up on a regular basis. Backups ensure you have a copy of your blog files and data should anything happen to your site. Backing up is also critical if you are going to upgrade or experiment with your site (try new themes, changes to code, etc) , or if you going to change hosts. If something goes wrong with your experiments or changes, you can always restore your site from the backup.
How regularly you back up depends on your general backup tendencies, how frequently you post or update your site, and how distraught you would be if you lost a number of posts or other information. I would suggest you back up at least as often as you post, and just before you change or experiment with your theme, code, or host.
You might also want to keep the three most recent backups, rather than just your most recent backup. Having additional versions of your backup, even if not completely up-to-date, gives you an extra layer of security should the unforeseeable happen and there’s a problem or corruption with your most recent backup. Of course, backups of your backup are a good idea (that really means make certain you back up your computer on a regular basis).
You must back up two areas in order to fully back up your site: Your WordPress files, and your database. Instructions are included for both.
These instructions assume you:
- Have access to the domain host (admin ID and password, and control panel, or c-panel). HostGator is the host I use and is shown in the examples.
- Have a FTP program (I use FileZilla, a free program, which works with both Windows and Mac.)
Backing Up Your WordPress Files
This method is a simple manual backup of the files comprising your site. The files on the web host are copied to a folder on your computer.
Reviewing the situation
1. Log in to the control panel of your web hosting service.
2. Click the File Manager icon.
3. Review the file structure of your site.
If you have one site and one WordPress installation on the main level of the domain, you can back up the entire domain. If you have a number of subdomains, or other sites under your main domain, with WordPress installations on each, you’ll have to decide if you are going to back up each domain separately, or back up all sites at the same time, by backing up the primary domain and all domains/folders under it. Backing up the entire site at once is often the easiest, unless you have many subdomains, each with a lot of content. In this example, all domains are backed up at once.
Backing up the files
4. Create a folder on your computer; this folder will be used to hold your backup files.
5. Open FileZilla and connect to your site. (If you haven’t used FileZilla before, you can learn more about connecting to your site files here).
- In FileZilla, the right side of the screen (Remote site) displays the files on your site.
- The left side of the screen (Local site) displays the files on your computer.
6.In the Local site area, click to navigate to the folder into which you want your backup files to reside (This is the folder created in step 4).
7. In the Remote site area, click to select and highlight the files you want to back up. In this example, the entire site is selected for backup.
8. Right click the highlighted files and select Download. The files will begin downloading. If you are overwriting a previous backup, you may have to choose how to overwrite.
9. Click Overwrite if different size or source newer and click OK to expedite the backup.
10. Review the bottom of the FileZilla window to review the status of the download and ensure all files have successfully downloaded to your computer. (Note: In HostGator, the file ending in .ftpquota does not download as part of the backup – - that’s OK.)
Finishing up
11. Review the file structure on your computer to make certain the files have successfully downloaded to your backup folder.
12. Close FileZilla when you’re satisfied your files have downloaded.
Congratulations: You’ve successfully backed up your files. Now you’ll back up the database.
Backing Up Your Database
The database holds data and information about your site/blog content and users. You don’t need to know how to do anything technical (like write SQL, the language that talks to the database) in order to back up the database. Good web hosting services have a free tool named phpMyAdmin that enables you to backup your database by exporting the data from the database on your web host’s server to a folder on your computer.
You’ll need to know the name of the database(s) you’re backing up. If you have more than one site/blog, you’ll want to know which database goes with each site!
1. Create a folder on your computer; this folder will be used to hold your database backup. If you are backing up more that one database (more than one site), you might want to create a folder for each database/site, although this is not necessary: It just helps you remember which database goes with which site.
2. Log in to the control panel of your web hosting service.
3. Click the phpMyAdmin icon.
You’ll see a window displaying all your databases on the left, and some options on the right.
4. Click the database you want to backup in the list on the left. You’ll see a window displaying the names of tables on the database, as well as some options in the tabs above.
5. Click Check All at the bottom of the list of tables. This signifies that you want to export all tables on the database.
6. Click the Export tab.
You’ll see a window displaying a number of options.
7. Select the following, if they are not already selected:
- Add DROP TABLE
- Complete inserts
- Save as File
- None, for compression, unless your database is very large.
- Leave the other options as they are.
8. Click Go.
9. Save the file into the folder you created in step 1.
10 Repeat steps 4 through 9 for each database/site you want to back up.
11. Review the file structure on your computer to make certain the files have successfully downloaded to your backup folder.
Congratulations: You’ve now backed up your database(s) as well as your WordPress files, and have completed your site backup.
Additional Resources:
WordPress Backups, from the WordPress Codex
FileZilla Download
FileZilla Forum, for help
A bit more technical information about what’s in your database, from the WPBits blog.
Note: After switching my hosting to HostGator, I became an affiliate. If you click on the HostGator link above and then sign up for HostGator services, I receive a small amount of money. If you want to visit the HostGator site and avoid the link, open a new browser window, type hostgator.com, and press return.
