How to Take Backups in DirectAdmin

Backups are essential for maintaining a secure and reliable online presence. Whether you’re making updates or recovering from an unexpected issue, having a dependable copy of your data ensures you can quickly revert to a stable version.

With DirectAdmin, creating backups is simpler than ever, thanks to its in-built tools and additional features like Softaculous, which is usually bundled with hosting packages.

This guide will walk you through two ways to back up your DirectAdmin hosting plan:


1. Softaculous Automatic Backups

If you’re using the Softaculous Apps Installer bundled with your hosting plan, you can easily set up automatic backups to safeguard your installations. Here’s how:

  1. Open the Softaculous Auto Installer page under the Extra Features section.
  2. Go to the All Installations page and click the edit icon next to the installation.
  3. Scroll down to the backup settings on the installation’s edit page.
  4. Locate the Automated Backups dropdown and choose a frequency: daily, weekly, monthly, or a custom schedule.
  5. Your backup files will now be generated and saved in your chosen location.

This feature ensures that your data remains secure without constant manual intervention.


2. DirectAdmin User Backups

DirectAdmin allows you to create a complete backup of your user account, including domain names, databases, and web data. Follow these steps to back up your account:

  1. Navigate to the Create/Restore Backups page under the Advanced Features section in DirectAdmin, or use the search box to find it quickly.
  2. Once on the page, customise the backup settings according to your needs.
    • Website Data: Files in your website’s public directory
    • Domains Directory: All user files for all domains
    • Subdomains List: A list of subdomains for each domain
    • Email Accounts: Names and passwords for all email accounts
    • Email Data: Inbox messages, IMAP folders, and webmail data
    • Email Settings: Filters and catchall addresses
    • Forwarders: All forwarding addresses
    • Autoresponders: Configurations and messages
    • Vacation Messages: Scheduled vacation replies
    • FTP Accounts: Configurations for all FTP accounts
    • Database: SQL database files
    • Database Settings: Users and database configurations
  3. After selecting the appropriate options, click on the Create Backup buton.
  4. Your backup will be generated and stored in the /user_backups/ directory.

This guide has been updated to reflect current standards while preserving the practicality of its original version, first archived in July 2020.

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