Backups are the single most important safety net for your WordPress website. Whether it's a hacked site, a failed plugin update, accidental content deletion, or a server issue, a recent backup means you can restore your site quickly. This guide covers multiple backup methods available to SakuraHost customers, from automated plugin solutions to manual cPanel backups.
What a WordPress Backup Includes
A complete WordPress backup consists of two parts:
- Files: WordPress core files, themes, plugins, uploads (images, media), and configuration files like
wp-config.phpand.htaccess - Database: All your posts, pages, comments, settings, user accounts, and plugin data stored in MySQL tables
Method 1: Automated Backups with UpdraftPlus
UpdraftPlus is the most popular WordPress backup plugin with over 3 million active installations. It supports scheduled backups to remote storage including Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3, and more.
Go to Plugins > Add New, search for "UpdraftPlus", install and activate it. Navigate to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups.
Click the Settings tab and set:
- Files backup schedule: Weekly (retain 4 backups)
- Database backup schedule: Daily (retain 14 backups)
The database changes more frequently than files, so backing it up daily provides better protection.
Select a remote storage destination. We strongly recommend Google Drive or Dropbox for Tanzanian businesses — both offer generous free tiers. Click the icon for your preferred storage, authenticate, and grant UpdraftPlus access.
Return to the Backup / Restore tab and click Backup Now. Select both files and database. Your first backup may take several minutes depending on site size.
Method 2: cPanel Backup via SakuraHost
Your SakuraHost cPanel provides built-in backup tools that operate at the server level.
In cPanel, navigate to Files > Backup. Click Download a Full Account Backup. This creates a compressed archive of your entire hosting account including all files, databases, email accounts, and settings. Download and store this on your local computer or external drive.
The same Backup page allows you to download individual components:
- Home Directory Backup: All files in your public_html folder
- MySQL Database Backup: Individual database dumps in SQL format
- Email Forwarder/Filter Backup: Your email configuration
Method 3: Softaculous Backup
Softaculous maintains its own backup system specifically for auto-installed applications like WordPress.
In cPanel, open Softaculous. Click All Installations at the top. Find your WordPress installation and click the backup icon (circular arrow). Softaculous creates a snapshot of both files and the database. You can also configure automatic Softaculous backups by editing the installation settings.
Method 4: Manual Database Backup via phpMyAdmin
For a quick database-only backup, use phpMyAdmin:
- Log in to cPanel and open phpMyAdmin
- Select your WordPress database from the left sidebar
- Click the Export tab
- Choose Quick export method and SQL format
- Click Export to download the .sql file
Method 5: WP-CLI Backup via SSH
If you have SSH access to your SakuraHost account, you can use WP-CLI for command-line backups:
Backup Best Practices
The 3-2-1 Backup Rule
Follow this industry-standard approach:
- 3 copies of your data
- 2 different storage media (e.g., server + cloud)
- 1 off-site copy (e.g., Google Drive, Dropbox, or local download)
When to Create Manual Backups
Always create a fresh backup before:
- Updating WordPress core to a new major version
- Installing or updating plugins and themes
- Making changes to
wp-config.phpor.htaccess - Migrating to a new server or domain
- Running database optimization queries
Restoring from a Backup
Restoring with UpdraftPlus
Navigate to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups, scroll to Existing Backups, and click Restore next to the backup you want. Select which components to restore (plugins, themes, uploads, database) and follow the prompts.
Restoring from cPanel Backup
Upload your backup file via cPanel > Backup > Restore. For database-only restores, use phpMyAdmin: select your database, click Import, upload the .sql file, and execute.
For more on WordPress data management, see the WordPress Backup documentation.