Hey there! As a WordPress site owner, you know how important it is to keep your site backed up. But did you know that over 30,000 websites get hacked every day, and WordPress sites are a common target?
Having an up-to-date backup of your WordPress database is crucial for quickly restoring your site if anything ever goes wrong. And while backup plugins are great, knowing how to manually back up your database is a key skill every WordPress user should have.
In this guide, I‘ll walk you through the exact steps to manually back up your WordPress database using phpMyAdmin or cPanel. I‘ll also share some pro tips for storing and securing your backups.
By the end of this post, you‘ll be able to confidently create manual database backups whenever you need them. Let‘s dive in!
Why You Should Manually Back Up Your WordPress Database
According to a recent security report, WordPress databases are a prime target for hackers. A compromised database can bring your whole site down or even let attackers steal sensitive user data.
That‘s why having a fresh backup of your WordPress database is so important. It‘s like an insurance policy for your site. If your database gets corrupted or hacked, you can quickly restore it to a working state.
While WordPress backup plugins are the go-to solution for most sites, manual database backups give you an extra recovery option. Here are a few key benefits:
- You can quickly create a database snapshot before making major site changes
- You have a backup even if your backup plugin fails or gets disabled
- You can restore just your database without overwriting your WordPress files
- You can use a database backup to migrate your site to a new host or dev environment
Bottom line – manually backing up your WordPress database is a valuable skill to have in your toolkit. It‘s not a full replacement for backup plugins, but it‘s an important complementary method.
How to Manually Back Up Your WordPress Database with phpMyAdmin
phpMyAdmin is a web-based tool for managing MySQL databases. Most WordPress hosts include phpMyAdmin in their control panel, so it‘s a convenient way to back up your database.
Here‘s a step-by-step walkthrough of the process:
- Log in to your WordPress hosting control panel and open the phpMyAdmin tool.
- In the left sidebar, click to select your WordPress database. It‘s usually named after your site, like "wordpress" or "mysite_db".
- With your database selected, click the "Export" tab at the top of the page.
- On the Export page, choose "Custom – display all possible options". This lets you configure your backup settings.
- In the Tables section, leave all your WordPress tables checked to include them in the backup.
- Scroll down to the "Output" section and configure it like this:
- Select "Save output to a file"
- For compression, choose "zipped"
- Leave the format as "SQL"
- Finally, click "Go" at the bottom to generate your backup file. phpMyAdmin will prompt you to download it as a .zip file.
That‘s it! You now have a complete backup of your WordPress database. I recommend saving the file somewhere secure, like a cloud storage service or an external hard drive. You may also want to rename it to include the backup date.
The exact steps may vary a bit depending on your host, but the basic process is the same:
- Select your WordPress database
- Choose the "Export" or "Backup" option
- Configure the settings to save the output to a zipped .sql file
- Download the generated backup file
If you‘re more of a visual learner, here‘s a helpful video walkthrough of the process:
Alternative Method: Backing Up Your WordPress Database with cPanel
Some hosting control panels, like cPanel, have a dedicated backup tool that you can use as an alternative to phpMyAdmin. Here‘s how it typically works:
- In your hosting dashboard, look for the "Backups" or "Backup Wizard" section.
- If there isn‘t a current backup, generate a new one. This may take a few minutes.
- Once the backup is ready, scroll down to the "Partial Backups" list and find the entry for your database. It will usually be a .sql or .sql.gz file.
- Click to download the database backup file. Save it somewhere safe on your computer or upload it to cloud storage.
Using the cPanel backup tool is a quick way to grab a database backup without messing with phpMyAdmin. However, it‘s a bit less flexible since you can‘t configure the export settings.
Tips for Storing and Securing Your Manual Database Backups
Creating a manual backup of your WordPress database is just the first step. You also need to think about how you‘ll store and secure those backup files. Here are some tips:
- Always save your database backups in a separate location from your live WordPress site. Don‘t just leave them on your server!
- Upload the backup files to a cloud storage service like Google Drive, Dropbox, or Amazon S3. This protects you in case something happens to your computer.
- Password-protect your backup files or store them in an encrypted zip archive for extra security.
- Periodically test restoring your manual backups to make sure they aren‘t corrupted. You don‘t want to discover a bad backup when you really need it.
- Delete older backup files after some time to free up space. Just keep the most recent few backups.
By following these best practices, you can ensure that your manual database backups will be there when you need them most.
Manual WordPress Database Backups vs Backup Plugins
You might be wondering – if manual database backups are so useful, why bother with a WordPress backup plugin at all? Great question!
While manual backups are a handy tool, they have some key limitations. Here‘s a quick comparison table:
| Manual Database Backups | WordPress Backup Plugins |
|---|---|
| One-time snapshots | Automatic scheduled backups |
| Database only | Full site backups (files + database) |
| No restore interface | One-click restore process |
| Requires technical knowledge | User-friendly for all skill levels |
| Backups stored locally | Backups stored remotely |
As you can see, backup plugins are much more comprehensive and beginner-friendly. They‘re the best option for most WordPress sites. Manual database backups are more of a complement to backup plugins for specific scenarios.
For example, you might create a manual backup before updating a plugin or troubleshooting an issue. But you‘d still rely on your backup plugin for your daily scheduled backups.
Ideally, a robust WordPress backup strategy includes both:
- An automated backup plugin for full site backups on a schedule (e.g. UpdraftPlus or VaultPress)
- Manual database backups before major site changes or for quick recovery
This way, you get the best of both worlds – the convenience of backup plugins with the flexibility of manual database backups.
Start Backing Up Your WordPress Database Today
Now that you know why manual database backups are important and how to create them, it‘s time to take action. Don‘t wait until you need a backup to start thinking about it!
Set aside a few minutes today to walk through the steps in this guide and manually back up your WordPress database. Then, make a plan for regularly creating manual backups going forward. Your future self will thank you.
Remember, your WordPress database contains everything that makes your site unique – your posts, pages, settings, and more. Protecting it with manual backups is one of the best investments you can make in your site‘s security and longevity.
Additional Resources
Want to learn more about WordPress backups and security? Check out these helpful resources:
- WordPress Backups (WordPress.org)
- Hardening WordPress (WordPress.org)
- WordPress Security Guide for Beginners (WPBeginner)
- 7 Best WordPress Backup Plugins Compared (WP Kube)
These guides go into even more depth on WordPress backup and security best practices. When it comes to protecting your site, knowledge is power!
If you have any questions about manually backing up your WordPress database, feel free to leave a comment below. I‘m here to help.
Here‘s to keeping your WordPress site safe and sound!
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