Site loss is catastrophic. Backups are your insurance policy. Learn proper backup and recovery procedures that actually work when you need them.
Backup Frequency and Types
Daily backups are the minimum for active sites. Implement incremental backups to save storage space. Full backups should be created weekly. Different backup types serve different purposes: file backups, database backups, and complete site backups.
Backup Plugins
UpdraftPlus, BackWPup, and BackupBuddy are reliable backup solutions. Configure automatic daily backups to multiple destinations: cloud storage (Google Drive, Dropbox, AWS S3), email, or FTP. Redundancy is key.
Off-Site Storage
Never store backups solely on your hosting account. If your account is compromised, backups become useless. Use cloud storage services for automatic, secure backup storage. Test restoration from cloud backups to verify they work.
Restoration Procedures
Know your restoration procedure before disaster strikes. Test restoration in a staging environment. Practice restoring database backups and file backups separately to understand your specific restore workflow.
Monitoring and Testing
Schedule monthly restoration tests. Verify backup integrity by actually restoring to a staging site. Document your complete disaster recovery procedure and keep it accessible even if your main site is down.
Backups aren’t exciting until you need them. Invest time now to set up proper backup systems that work reliably.