You can use the BackupSheep plugin to create a complete (files and database) backup of your WordPress website.
Please Read Carefully
Using backup plugins on very large websites does involve some risks. So please read the caution section before you proceed.
Our WordPress plugin integration doesn't work with WordPress Multisite setup.
Step-1 - Install required plugins & checks.
To integrate your website with BackupSheep you must install the following plugins.
BackupSheep WordPress Plugin (download here)
UpdraftPlus WordPress Plugin (download here) (why this is required)
Confirm if WordPress REST API is enabled(It's usually enabled by default).
You can do this by visiting {your-website-url}/?rest_route=/
You can use the free version of the UpdraftPlus plugin. Both plugins must be in an active state. No other configuration is required in the UpdraftPlus plugin.
Step-2 - Setup Integration in BackupSheep
To integrate your website with BackupSheep you must install the following plugins.
2.1 - Click on the integration button on the top right side.
2.2 - Scroll and find the SaaS & CMS Applications section and then click on the WordPress box.
2.3 - On the next page click on the box which says Setup WordPress Integration.
2.4 - A popup will appear and you will need to enter your WordPress URL, select the endpoint and the custom name of your integration. Also, copy the WordPress Key for the next step.
2.5 - Copy the WordPress Key and save it in the WordPress Key box on your BackupSheep plugin page in your WordPress.
2.6 - Once the integration is configured then you will see a table with your integration listed. Click on Create WordPress Node button.
2.7 - On the node setup page, you just need to name your node for now and then hit Create New Node button.
2.8 - That's it. Now you can create on-demand backups and add schedules for your backups.
Why UpdraftPlus backup plugin is required:
Our goal was to make the integration process quick and easy for our WordPress users so they can connect their websites with BackupSheep and control everything from their BackupSheep dashboard.
Creating a good WordPress backup plugin is difficult because you have to account for all different hosting platforms, restrictions, PHP versions, and hosting/server limitations. There's a lot of time and commitment that goes into creating such a plugin.
So instead of creating a dedicated WordPress plugin for BackupSheep we decided to create more of a connector plugin and selected UpdraftPlus.
UpdraftPlus is the most popular backup plugin for WordPress and they have done an incredible job of creating stable backups for WordPress.
The setup works like this.
BackupSheep APIs/Dashboard is connected with the BackupSheep plugin
When you run a backup then BackupSheep APIs call the BackupSheep plugin which then calls the UpdraftPlus plugin to initiate a full-website backup.
BackupSheep APIs monitor the status of backups initiated by UpdraftPlus
When the backup completes then BackupSheep APIs download files to the endpoint server and deletes them from your WordPress website.
Then backups are uploaded to storage locations you selected in your schedule or on-demand backup.
Everything is managed from your BackupSheep dashboard. So you don't have to do any settings after you enable both plugins.
Frequently asked questions:
Can I use a different WordPress plugin to integrate with BackupSheep?
No. Our integration with WordPress requires that you must install the UpdraftPlus plugin and activate it.
Can I use multiple backup plugins?
Yes. You can install any other backup plugin as long as UpdraftPlus & BackupSheep plugin is installed.
Where do I manage backups?
In BackupSheep dashboard. Everything is managed from your BackupSheep dashboard. You can create a schedule and run on-demand backups.
Where backups are stored?
Backups are stored in BackupSheep Free Storage or any other storage you select in your backup schedule or when doing an on-demand backup.
What's included in the backup?
Everything. We create a full website backup using UpdraftPlus. It will include all your files and database backup.
How to Restore WordPress:
You can find steps by steps guide on how you can restore WordPress backups created using the BackupSheep plugin.
Caution:
Using a plugin for WordPress backups is quick and easy to configure. However, on very large websites backup plugins may cause high CPU and memory usage, which can lead to an unresponsive website during backup.
This is because WordPress backup plugins use your server/hosting resources to compile backups.
You also need enough storage space on your server/hosting to store backups while BackupSheep downloads them to your selected storage locations.