SOPS WP

Updraft Backups: Installation, Settings, and Website Restoration

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by

FunkAd
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The goal of this SOP is to guide you through the process of installing and configuring the UpdraftPlus plugin for WordPress. By following these steps, you’ll be able to create manual backups of your website, restore it from a backup when needed, and manage old backup files like a pro.

Scope

This SOP covers the installation and activation of the UpdraftPlus plugin on a WordPress website. It also includes instructions on adjusting backup settings, initiating manual backups, restoring your website from a backup file, and managing old backup files.

Roles

Main Role(s):

  • Website Administrator: The person responsible for managing the WordPress website. They will install and configure the UpdraftPlus plugin as well as initiate backups and restore the site when necessary.

Supporting role(s):

  • Hosting Provider Support Team: They may assist in troubleshooting issues related to server configurations or permissions that could affect the functionality of UpdraftPlus.

Prerequisites

Required Resources:

  • A WordPress website with administrative access.
  • An active hosting account with sufficient storage space for storing backups.

Skills/Knowledge:

  • Basic understanding of WordPress dashboard navigation.
  • Familiarity with installing and activating plugins in WordPress.

Procedure

Step 1: Install & Activate UpdraftPlus Plugin

  1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Plugins > Add New.
  3. In the search bar, type “UpdraftPlus” and hit Enter.
  4. Locate the UpdraftPlus WordPress Backup Plugin in the search results and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate to enable the plugin on your website.

Time: 10 minutes

Step 2: Configure UpdraftPlus Backup Settings

  1. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups.
  2. Click on the Settings tab.
  3. Choose your preferred file backup interval (e.g., daily, weekly) and set the number of backups to retain.
  4. Do the same for database backup intervals and retention settings.
  5. Scroll down to “Choose your remote storage” section and select a remote storage option (e.g., Google Drive, Dropbox) for storing your backups offsite.
  6. Follow the instructions provided by UpdraftPlus to authenticate and connect your chosen remote storage account.

Time: 20 minutes

Step 3: Initiate a Manual Backup

  1. Go to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups in your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Click on the Backup Now button at the top of the page.
  3. In the pop-up window, choose whether you want to include both files and database in your backup or just one of them.
  4. Check “Send this backup to remote storage” if you want to store it offsite as well (recommended).
  5. Click on Backup Now again to start the manual backup process.

Time: 10 minutes

Step 4: Restore Your Website from a Backup

  1. Navigate to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups in your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Click on the Existing Backups tab.
  3. Locate the desired backup file from the list and click on its corresponding “Restore” button.
  4. Choose which components (plugins, themes, uploads, others, and database) you want to restore from the backup.
  5. Click on the Restore button again to initiate the restoration process.

Time: 10 minutes

Step 5: Manage Old Backup Files

  1. Go to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups in your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Click on the Existing Backups tab.
  3. To delete an old backup file, locate it in the list and click on its corresponding red “Delete” button.
  4. Confirm your decision by clicking “Delete” again in the pop-up window.

Time: 10 minutes

Step 6: Migrate Your Website to a New Server using UpdraftPlus Free

Substep 6.1: Prepare the New Server

  1. Set up a new WordPress installation on your new server.
  2. Install and activate the UpdraftPlus plugin following Steps 1 and 2 in this SOP.

Time: 30 minutes

Substep 6.2: Import Backup Files to the New Server

  1. Navigate to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups on the WordPress dashboard of your new server.
  2. Click on the “Upload backup files” link and select the backup files you downloaded from your old server.

Time: Depends on file size and internet speed

Substep 6.3: Restore Website on the New Server

  1. Once your backup files are on the new server, go to the Existing Backups tab.
  2. Locate the backup you want to restore and click on the corresponding “Restore” button.
  3. Choose which components (plugins, themes, uploads, others, and database) you want to restore from the backup.
  4. Click on the Restore button again to initiate the restoration process.
  5. Follow the prompts and wait for the restoration process to complete.

Time: 15-30 minutes, depends on the size of your website

Substep 6.4: Update the Site URL

  1. Login to your new server’s phpMyAdmin.
  2. Navigate to the wp_options table in your WordPress database.
  3. Find and edit the siteurl and home options to your new domain.

Substep 6.5: Install Better Search Replace

  1. Login to your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Plugins > Add New.
  3. In the search bar, type “Better Search Replace” and hit Enter.
  4. Click Install Now and Activate.

Substep 6.6: Replace Old URLs

  1. Go to Tools > Better Search Replace.
  2. In the “Search for” field, enter your old site URL.
  3. In the “Replace with” field, enter your new site URL.
  4. Select all tables.
  5. Run the replace function.

Note: Be careful with this step. Run as a ‘dry-run’ on your first try and read the results, if it doesn’t look right double check your urls (no trailing slash, check http(s))

Substep 6.7: Update Permalinks

  1. Go to Settings > Permalinks.
  2. Click Save Changes to refresh your permalinks.

Substep 6.8: Regenerate CSS & Data

  1. Go to Elementor > Tools.
  2. Under the “General” tab, click “Regenerate Files”.
  3. Under the “Replace URL” tab, input your old and new URLs, then click “Replace URL”.

Time: 30 minutes

Step 7: Migrate Your Website to a New Server using UpdraftPlus Premium

Follow the same steps as in Step 6, but with the following changes:

Substep 7.2: Import Backup Files to the New Server

  1. Navigate to Settings > UpdraftPlus Backups on the WordPress dashboard of your new server.
  2. Click on the Migrate / Clone tab.
  3. Click on the “Rescan remote storage” link. This will pull in the list of all available backups.

Substep 7.3: Restore Website on the New Server (Continued)

  1. Choose which components (plugins, themes, uploads, others, and database) you want to restore from the backup.
  2. If you’re migrating to a new domain, check the “Search and replace site location in the database” box.
  3. Click on the Restore button again to initiate the restoration process.
  4. Follow the prompts and wait for the restoration process to complete.

Time: 15-30 minutes, depends on the size of your website

Substep 7.4: Update Permalinks

  1. Go to Settings > Permalinks.
  2. Click Save Changes to refresh your permalinks.

Substep 7.5: Regenerate CSS & Data

  1. Go to Elementor > Tools.
  2. Under the “General” tab, click “Regenerate Files”.

Time: 10 minutes

Troubleshooting Tips:

  • If your website appears broken after migration, try clearing your browser cache and any WordPress caching plugins you have installed.
  • If you encounter any issues during the restoration process with UpdraftPlus, check the UpdraftPlus log file for error messages. This can be found in the UpdraftPlus Backups > Settings > Expert Settings.
  • If you’re unable to access your new site after migration, check your .htaccess file for any potential issues.
  • If Better Search Replace fails to replace all URLs, try running the search and replace operation again. If the issue persists, it may be due to server timeout, in which case you might need to increase your server’s max execution time.
  • If the website looks strange after replacing URLs with Elementor, try to clear Elementor’s cache by navigating to Elementor > Tools > General > Regenerate CSS then click “Regenerate Files”.

Key Points

Best practices:

  • Regularly test your backups by restoring them to a staging environment or a local setup, ensuring they work as expected.
  • Keep multiple backups stored offsite using remote storage options like Google Drive or Dropbox for added security.

Efficiency tips:

  • Schedule automatic backups at a time when your website traffic is low to minimize any potential performance impact during the backup process.

Common mistakes:

  • Not testing backups before relying on them for disaster recovery, which could lead to discovering that they’re corrupted or incomplete when it’s too late.

Safety & Considerations

Risks:

  • Accidentally deleting important backup files while managing old backups.
  • Restoring a corrupted or incomplete backup, causing further issues with your website.

Mitigation:

  • Double-check before deleting any backup files and ensure you have multiple copies stored offsite.
  • Test your backups regularly and maintain a clean, organized backup system to minimize risks associated with restoration errors.

tl;dr

This SOP guides you through installing and configuring UpdraftPlus plugin for WordPress, allowing you to create manual backups of your site, restore it from a backup when needed, and manage old backup files like a boss. By following these steps and best practices, you’ll be well-equipped to handle any website disasters that come your way.

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