In my post, I show you how to backup your WordPress website and database with a free plugin, step by step.
Creating a blog takes a lot of hard work it is essential you backup your blog to prevent you from losing your content.
I once had an issue with my hosting company’s server. The only solution was to delete my site. With a backup, you can restore your website and database.
If you are new to blogging and haven’t backed up your site yet, please do that next. The feeling you get when you know all your work is lost is heartbreaking.
My WordPress blog and database backup guide show you how to.
- Install and activate the free Updraftplus backup plugin
- Schedule a regular backup for your blog
- Connect UpdraftPlus to a free Dropbox cloud storage account
- Run your first backup
- Restore your site from a saved backup
Let’s get started.
How to install and activate the UpdraftPlus backup plugin
To install a plugin on WordPress, hover your mouse over ‘Plugins’ on the left, then select ‘Add New’.
In the WordPress plugin library, type ‘Updraft’ into the search box.
The plugin is called ‘UpdraftPlus WordPress Backup Plugin’. As of April 2021, it has over 3 million installations.
To install UpdraftPlus, select the ‘Install Now’ link.
Once installation is complete, click on ‘Activate’.
Once activated, UpdraftPlus appears under ‘Settings’ on your WordPress admin menu.
Now you can schedule backups for your WordPress blog and database.
Step two – Schedule a regular backup for your blog
Hover your mouse over ‘Settings’ on the left, then select ‘Updraftplus’.
On your UpdraftPlus dashboard, select the ‘Settings’ tab.
The first option is to set how often you want to run a backup of your website and database. You also set how many backups you wish to retain.
Use the menus to set the frequency of your backups and the quantity.
Warning: Running backups uses lots of resources on your website server. If your hosting company has set limits on your account, running a backup could result in your site going offline temporarily.
Therefore, don’t run backups too often. If you work on your website daily, then run a weekly backup. Schedule your backups according to the amount of work you do on your blog.
Make your selection from the menus.
Next, choose your remote storage. Your backup is saved to your website server if you don’t make a selection. If there is an issue with the server, you could lose everything.
I save my backups to Dropbox. With a free account, you get 2 GB of storage. Before you can send your backups to Dropbox.com, you need to create an account.
After you have created your Dropbox account, it is time to connect them.
Step three – Connect Updraftplus to Dropbox
First, select Dropbox from the storage options.
Scroll to the bottom of the page, then click ‘Save Changes’.
Next, authorize UpdraftPlus to connect to your Dropbox account by clicking on the link.
Next, click on the ‘Complete setup’ link.
Once the set up is complete, you receive a confirmation message.
UpdraftPlus and Dropbox are now connected.
Step four – Run your first backup.
I recommend you run a backup of your site as soon as you can. So you have one backup ready in case your site has issues.
To start, select the ‘Backup/Restore’ tab and click on ‘Backup’.
UpdraftPlus asks you to confirm what items you want to backup. The default is everything, your website and databases. To continue, select ‘Backup Now’.
You can check the progress of the backup from your Updraft dashboard.
Once the backup is complete, you receive this message.
The backup was successful and sent to Dropbox.
Step five – How to restore your website and database from a backup
Your Updraft dashboard lists your backup files. To start, select the ‘Restore’ link to the right.
Next, ensure you have selected the correct backup file and then tick the items you want to restore. Finally, select ‘Next’.
UpdraftPlus retrieves the necessary files and asks you to confirm the restoration.
Don’t close the browser tab while the backup is in progress.
Once the restoration is complete, you receive this message.
Click on the ‘Return to UpdraftPlus configuration’ to return to your WordPress admin.
The website and databases restoration is successful.
How to backup your WordPress site video tutorial
Here is a video from my YouTube channel showing you how to backup your WordPress website and database using UpdraftPlus.
Conclusion
To backup your WordPress website and database.
- Install and activate the UpdraftPlus plugin.
- Schedule backups for your site and database.
- Connect UpdraftPlus to an external file saving service.
- Save changes.
You must have a backup of your website and database. I don’t recommend you rely on your hosting company to run backups for you. Always have a backup saved to an external drive. I use Dropbox because they offer 2 GB for free.
UpdraftPlus is a free plugin. Once set up runs backups automatically. Running backups uses a lot of server resources, so only run them when necessary.
UpdraftPlus has a pro version of their plugin that offers extra functions. To find out more, go to www.Updraftplus.com. (Paid link)
Before you return to your blog to install UpDraftPlus, would you kindly spare one minute to leave a comment? Did my blog post help you? Are you having issues with backing up your website and database? I appreciate all feedback.
I have other WordPress tutorials and a YouTube channel. Don’t forget to say hi in the comments.
