The Ultimate Guide to Setting Up Daily Backups in cPanel

Why Daily Backups Are Essential for Your Website

Imagine waking up to find your website hacked, crashed, or accidentally deleted. Without recent backups, you could lose:
✅ Months of content
✅ Customer data
✅ SEO rankings
✅ Revenue from sales

Daily backups in cPanel ensure you always have a fresh restore point.

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How to Set Up Daily Backups in cPanel

Method 1: Using cPanel’s Native Backup Tool (If Available)

1. Log in to cPanel (yourdomain.com/cpanel)
2. Go to “Backup” → “Backup Configuration”
3. Enable “Automatic Backups”
4. Set frequency to “Daily”
5. Choose storage:

• Local Server (Fast but risky if server fails)
• Remote FTP (Best for security)

1. Click “Save Settings”

Note: Not all hosts offer this feature. Check with your provider.

Method 2: Using JetBackup (If Installed by Host)

1. In cPanel, search for “JetBackup”
2. Click “Backup Jobs” → “Create New Job”
3. Set:

• Frequency: Daily
• Backup Type: Full
• Storage: Remote (FTP/SFTP/Google Drive)

1. Save & activate

Method 3: Manual Daily Backups via Cron Jobs

For advanced users:

0 3 * * * /scripts/pkgacct username

This runs a full backup at 3 AM daily.

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Where to Store Daily Backups Securely

🚫 Never store only on your server! (Defeats the purpose if hacked)

Best Backup Storage Solutions:
🔹 Google Drive/Dropbox (Free for small sites)
🔹 Amazon S3/Backblaze B2 (Cheap cloud storage)
🔹 External NAS or Hard Drive (Physical copy)
🔹 Remote FTP Server (Separate from hosting)

✅ Follow the 3-2-1 Rule:

• 3 copies
• 2 different media types
• 1 offsite backup

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How to Restore From Daily Backups

1. Files/Folders:

• Use File Manager or FTP
• Upload backup ZIP → Extract

1. Database:

• Go to phpMyAdmin
• Import your .sql backup

1. Full cPanel Restore:

• Contact your host (most provide 1-click restoration)

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Top Backup Plugins for WordPress Users

If your host doesn’t offer daily backups:

1. UpdraftPlus (Schedule daily backups to cloud)
2. Jetpack Backup (Real-time backups)
3. BlogVault (Malware scanning + backups)

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5 Critical Backup Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Only keeping 1 backup copy
❌ Never testing restores
❌ Storing backups on same server
❌ Ignoring database backups
❌ Using weak passwords for backup files

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Final Checklist for Daily Backups

✔ Enabled daily backups in cPanel or JetBackup
✔ Stored copies in 2+ locations (cloud + local)
✔ Tested restoration process
✔ Set email notifications for backup status

💡 Pro Tip: Many hosts offer free daily backups – check your plan!

📌 Bookmark this guide for future reference
🔄 Share with other website owners to keep their data safe

Need help setting yours up? Ask below! 🚀