“Better safe than sorry” is not just an expression. That applies to your digital footprint as well, like a WordPress website. These days, you can’t be too careful about any technical stuff, especially when you stand to lose so much if things go wrong.
Whether it’s a malware attack, a data loss threat, or an accidental delegation of plugins, backing up your WordPress site is more important than ever.
But what’s the proper and safest way to backup your WordPress site?
Does it require a more hands-on approach, or can you do it automatically?
Don’t worry more and let’s dive into this article to learn quick and easy ways to create WordPress backups – both manually and automatically!
What is WordPress Backup?
A WordPress backup is essentially a copy of your entire website. During any unexpected incident either caused by outside threats, humanly error, or during website migration, the backup can be used to restore your website to its previous state.
Think of it the same way you would your WhatsApp chat backup. If you accidentally delete your chats or switch to another device, you can use the backup to regain your chat history and media files.
Nonetheless, since a user can choose what to backup, an ideal WordPress backup should include the following:
- Core WordPress files and folders: All the core files and folders within the main folders must be backed up. This includes the files within the sub-folders as well, like wp-admin, wp-content, and wp-includes. Server root folders and their files, like wp-config.php, .htaccess, user.ini, etc. need to be included too.
- WordPress database: You should also backup your entire WordPress database. Crucial information like customer account details, posted contents, page files, transaction history, and the dynamic relationship of all these data are maintained by your database.
- Media uploads: The WordPress media library contains both owner and user-uploaded images, videos, documents, or any other files. These should be backed up as well.
- Themes & Plugins: Your website backup should also contain custom themes, layouts, and any other component that dictates the aesthetic and functionality of your WP site. Moreover, third-party plugins and custom code file should be part of regular WordPress backup.
- Configurations: Any user-defined settings that are custom-tailored for your site and its functionality.
If you leave out any one or more components while creating a website backup, you may not be able to restore your website when you need to fully.
Missing WordPress components means an incomplete website. So, be careful when to backup your WordPress site.
Why Should You Backup Your WordPress Website?
For every webmaster, it’s important to know the ins and outs of keeping their website safe and secure. Thus, maintaining regular site backups and keeping the WordPres site up-to-date is crucial.
Creating a backup is like creating a restoration point.
If your website faces technical issues and you need to restore it to its previous state, website backup files palys vital role here.
Not to mention, if you want to change the hosting provider for web migration, you’ll need to transfer your entire website to the new host’s server. The only way to do so is by backing up your website and importing that backup to the new host.
Furthermore, think of it as a safety net. Just like any other digital platform, your site can encounter various technical issues. Such issues lead to data loss.
Here are some common causes of data loss and needing of Website Backup for:
- Hacking: If your site gets hacked, you can quickly delete the infected copy and restore a clean version from your backup.
- Malware attack: Creating a backup is an essential step while removing malware from your WP site. We may need to delete our WP site to purge the malware for security reasons. And the only way to get our website back is through restoring the backup files.
- Server failure: Hosting services can sometimes experience downtime or crashes, which can lead to data loss. In this case, a complete website backup will be your best friend!
- Human error: You or your team may unintentionally delete important files or change settings that can break your site.
- Plugin or theme updates: Incompatible or faulty updates to plugins and themes can cause your site to malfunction, but a backup allows an easy rollback.
- Compliance: Some businesses require routine backups to comply with data protection policies.
With backups in place, you can mitigate these risks and secure your WordPress site.
Hence, whether it’s a hacker attack, server crash, or a faulty update, a regular backup ensures you can restore your website quickly with minimal downtime.
How to Backup Your WordPress Site Automatically
Backups can be done automatically or manually. There are also different tools and methods to backup your WordPress site including installing a backup plugin.
However, first, let’s learn the automatic yet the easiest approach.
You can automatically create a backup by installing a WordPress plugin or utilizing the built-in backup option of the hosting platform.
Here’s how:
Method 1: Backup Your WordPress Site Using a Plugin
- Log into your WordPress dashboard.
- Hover your mouse over the Plugins section from the left side panel.
- Click on Add New Plugin. [wp-plugin]
- Search and install the All-in-One WP Migration and Backup plugin.
- Activate the plugin to make it appear on the WP dashboard. If it still doesn’t appear, refresh the current tab. [wp-migration-and-backup-plugin]
- Click on the added plugin from the left side panel and select Export. [wp-plugin-export]
- Click on Export To > File. Wait till the plugin prepares your website’s database files.
- Hit Download and save it to your computer’s local drive. [back-wp-with-plugin]
Done! You’ve just created a backup of your entire website. Keep this file in a safe and easily accessible directory on your offline computer. This is the only thing that’ll protect the work you’ve put into a website and prevent the need to redo large sections if any mistake is made.