Your WordPress database contains every content, every link, and every comment you have on your website or blog. If your database gets corrupted or erased, you stand to lose everything you’ve written. There are many reasons why this could happen and you may not be able to control everything. But by backing up your database, you can save yourself stress down the road.
Luckily, backing up your database and files is easy, especially when there’s cPanel to help you out. This popular control panel has a backup feature that you can use to back up your WordPress database.
Here’s what you need to do if you want to do a WordPress site backup using cPanel:
Step 1:
Log in to your cPanel.
Once you’re logged in, scroll down to Databases then click on Backup Wizard.
Step 2:
From Backup Wizard, click on the Backup button.
If you click on MySQL Databases, look for the WordPress backup for the specific website found on the Databases section.
Step 3:
If you’re not familiar with the databases, you can check simply by clicking on the Home button.
Under Files, go to File Manager, then locate the wp-config.php file.
Step 4:
Click on Code Editor, then Edit.
Here, you’ll see all the configuration settings, and all other important information that should be kept safe and secure.
Step 5:
On top of the screen, you’ll be able to find the database name for the WordPress backup.
Once you’ve located the name, go back to the Backup Wizard and locate the specific WordPress backup for the database that relates to your WordPress website.
Step 6:
Click to download, save it, and make sure to remember where you saved the file.
If you want to back up the WordPress website itself in terms of the files, themes, plugins, etc., here’s what you need to do:
Step 1:
Go to Backup Wizard >> Backup/Restore >> Backup.
Step 2:
From here, you can either click on Full Backup or Home Directory.
For Full Backup, it will generate an archive that will sit on your website.
Generally, a web hosting company should be able to keep backups, either daily or monthly. In this case, you will be able to keep a copy yourself. So if anything were to happen to your database as you’re updating, you have the peace of mind knowing that you have a copy of the database and the full backup sitting on your domain.
100