WebOké Backups: viewing, restoring, or downloading a backup

WebOké Backups is our own backup system. Every night we create a complete backup of your hosting package: your files, databases, mailboxes and settings. We store those backups encrypted on separate storage servers in a separate datacenter, under our own management, so separate from the server your website runs on. You can restore something yourself, for free and without our involvement, from the backups of the past 30 days.

In this article:

• What's in the backup?
• Opening WebOké Backups
• The wizard in six steps
• The four ways of restoring
• Practical examples: individual emails, a WordPress site
• Downloading and uploading
• Previous restores
• Frequently asked questions

What's in the backup?

For each hosting package we store per night:

• all files in your home folder, including your websites;
• your databases, including the database users with their passwords and permissions;
• your mailboxes and the mail settings (aliases, filters, autoresponders);
• the DirectAdmin configuration: domains, subdomains and redirects;
• DNS zones, SSL certificates, cronjobs, FTP accounts and your PHP version.

For a mail package we store the mailboxes and the DirectAdmin settings.

Opening WebOké Backups

1. Log in to my.weboke.nl.
2. In the menu on the left, go to My Products and choose WebOké Backups in the submenu. On every product page, WebOké Backups is also listed in the tab bar at the top.
3. You can also go directly to my.weboke.nl/backups.

At the top of the page you'll see three tiles: the number of hosting packages, the number of previous restores and the number of downloads ready for you. The How it works button opens this article. Below that is the wizard you use to restore, followed by your previous restores, your downloads and uploads, and a brief explanation of the ways of restoring.

The wizard in six steps

The wizard guides you through six steps. Use Next and Previous to move through the steps, and Start over to begin again.

Step 1: Account

Choose the hosting package you want to restore something from. If you have many packages, there's a search field above the list. If you have a reseller package, you then choose which account it concerns: your own account or one of the accounts you've created.

Step 2: Moment

You'll see all available backup moments with date, time and size. By default the most recent one is selected. Choose the moment you want to restore to. Below the dropdown you can see which components are included in that moment.

In this step you can also do two other things:

• Create new backup now: create an extra backup of your account immediately, for example right before a major change to your website. This can be done a maximum of 2 times per day and 15 times per month. Once the backup is finished, the new moment appears in the list. We ultimately keep the last backup of each day, so an extra backup is mainly a restore point for that day itself.
• Upload (the button at the bottom): restore from a backup file (.tar.gz) that you previously downloaded via this screen. The file is automatically deleted again after 48 hours.

Step 3: Components

Check what you want to restore. You can choose one or more components:

• Files (home folder): the entire home folder, or only specific folders and files. If you choose the latter, you browse through the backup like in File Manager, or search by name (minimum 3 characters) and check what you need.
• Databases and Database users (passwords and permissions).
• Email (mailboxes): the account's main mailbox and, per domain, all or individual mailboxes, optionally including the mail settings.
• DirectAdmin configuration, DNS zones, SSL certificates, Cronjobs, FTP accounts and PHP version.

With Complete account you check everything at once. For a mail package you can only choose mailboxes and the DirectAdmin settings.

Step 4: Method

Choose how you want to restore. The four methods are explained further in this article.

Step 5: Confirm

You'll see a summary of your choices. If you choose full restore, you'll first see what will be removed when the account is cleared and what will be recreated. You choose whether we make a safety backup of the current state beforehand (recommended, enabled by default) and enter your password to confirm. Then click Start restore. For a full restore, we'll ask you once more to confirm you're sure.

Step 6: Run

The restore is added to the queue and usually starts within a minute. If a backup is running on the server at that moment, the restore waits until it's finished; for a full restore, we first wait for the safety backup. You'll see step by step what's happening, and the screen updates itself. You can safely close the page: at the top of the WebOké Backups page, the notification A restore is running remains visible with the Follow live button, and you'll receive an email once the restore is finished, or if it fails. You can cancel a running restore with Stop, and start a failed restore again with Try again. As long as a restore is running, you can't start a new one for that account.

The four ways of restoring

• Fully restore: exactly the state at the chosen moment. The account is first cleared and then restored; anything added or changed after the chosen moment (files, emails, tables) is removed. When confirming, you choose whether we first make a safety backup of the current state, so you can always go back. This option is enabled by default.
• Only restore what is missing or changed: the backup is restored, but files, emails and tables that are newer than the backup remain in place. Useful if you accidentally deleted something. For the DirectAdmin configuration, DNS, certificates, FTP and the PHP version, this works the same as a full restore.
• As a copy alongside the current one: nothing changes to your current website, database or mailbox. The backup is added as a copy in a new folder, as a database under a new name (with its own database user) or as a new mailbox. This way you can calmly review what was in the backup. For WordPress, Joomla, Nextcloud and Laravel, we automatically adjust the configuration file of the copy to match the new database. If you want to view the copy under a different URL, enter it. The new database details are shown only once, so save them right away.
• Download: nothing changes on the server. The chosen components are packaged as a tar.gz file that you can download for 48 hours. You can receive an email once the package is ready.

Practical examples

Retrieving deleted emails or a deleted mailbox

1. Under Account, choose the package, and under Moment, choose a backup from before the deletion.
2. Under Components, check only Email (mailboxes), with below it only the mailbox you want back.
3. Under Method, choose Only restore what is missing or changed.

The deleted emails will return to the mailbox. Emails you received after that moment simply remain in place. This also works for a mailbox you deleted in DirectAdmin: it will come back with the mail it contained. If you'd like to take a look first, choose As a copy alongside the current one. The backup will then be added as a new mailbox. This can be done for one mailbox at a time.

Restoring a WordPress site after a failed update or a hack

A WordPress site consists of two parts: the files and the database. Always restore these together, from the same moment.

1. Choose the package and a moment from before the problem occurred.
2. Under Components, check Files (home folder) and choose only the site's folder, usually domains/yourdomain.nl/public_html. Also check Databases with the site's database. You can find out which one in wp-config.php under DB_NAME.
3. Not sure? Then first choose As a copy alongside the current one. We automatically adjust the copy's wp-config.php to match the new database, so you can view the old version without changing anything.
4. If you want to actually restore the site to that moment, choose Fully restore and leave the safety backup enabled. Under Confirm you'll see exactly what will be removed.

Alternative for WordPress: an Installatron backup

If you installed WordPress with Installatron, there may also be an Installatron backup of just that site. Installatron creates one during automatic updates (which remains for one day), and you can create one yourself right before a major change. You restore that in Installatron under My backups. See Creating and restoring backups in Installatron.

Downloading and uploading

Below the wizard is the Downloads and uploads overview. A download package remains available for 48 hours, and the download link only works if you're logged in. You can restore a previously downloaded package again later: in the Moment step, choose Upload, select the file and complete the remaining steps. Uploads are also automatically deleted after 48 hours.

Previous restores

Every restore appears in the Previous restores list with the date, an eight-character restore code, the account, the moment, the method, the components and the status. Click Result to open the report, which shows, for example, how many files were restored and to which folder. If a restore is still running, it shows Follow live. Mention the restore code if you have a question for us about a restore.

Frequently asked questions

How long are backups kept?
There's a backup from every night of the past 30 days.

Will I lose what changed after the backup?
Yes, with a full restore. Not sure? Then choose Only restore what is missing or changed or a copy. For a full restore, leave the safety backup enabled so we can always retrieve the state from right before the restore.

How long does a restore take?
That depends on the amount of files and mail. A single folder or database is usually restored within a minute, while a complete account with a lot of mail can take longer. You don't have to wait: you'll receive an email once it's finished.

My restore failed. What now?
You'll receive an email, and the restore will show the status failed in Previous restores. Open the report with Result: it shows what went wrong. Try again with Try again. If the safety backup beforehand fails, nothing is restored and nothing is removed. If it still doesn't work after that, submit a ticket and mention the eight-character restore code. Then we can look it up right away.

I can't start a new restore.
As long as a restore is running for that account, you can't start a new one. Wait until it's finished, or stop it with Stop.

The hosting account no longer exists on the server.
If you had the account (or the package) deleted, you can't restore it yourself. Submit a ticket or call us, and we'll restore the account using the backup.

I don't see WebOké Backups in my menu.
WebOké Backups is enabled for every hosting package and mail package. If you don't see the item, your account has no active package, or you're logged in as a sub-user without access to products. Log in with the main account or submit a ticket.

Can't figure it out?
Submit a ticket via the Support Center, and we'll help you further.

Also see in the DirectAdmin manual: Which backups are available with WebOké.

Detailed explanation with screenshots: Can this also be done in My WebOké? WebOké Backups in the DirectAdmin manual.