Secure Homepage - How to create a backup of your website

To be able to restore your own website to its original state in case of data loss or compromise, regular backups are needed. The following article explains how to create a backup of a website to secure your own homepage.

What is the purpose of a backup for your own website?

The exact process to completely secure your own website depends on various factors. Firstly, it is crucial to consider how the website was created. Was your website built using a Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress, Joomla, or perhaps an E-Commerce software, or is it simply a few self-written HTML files? Maybe a website builder provided by the web hosting provider was used to create the content? This determines how a backup of the website can be created. Most Content Management Systems offer the option to automatically backup the entire data set using additional plugins or extensions. The convenience, such as in the case of backing up a WordPress web hosting, is generally not available for a manually created website. In this case, the data must be manually backed up from the server.

Additionally, it is important to consider whether your website, in addition to the actual content, also uses a database. This is usually the case, especially with Business Hosting and Shop Hosting. For a complete backup, not only the content from the respective directory of the web hosting needs to be backed up, but also the entries from the corresponding database. Only when both elements are available together can your website be fully restored.

What type of backup should be created?

Next, one must consider what type of backup should be created. In the realm of backups, there are three different backup concepts: Full backup, differential backup, or incremental backup. While a full backup saves all data of the website, with differential or incremental backups, only the current data that has changed since the last full backup or incremental backup is saved. While normal websites are usually simply backed up with a full backup, the other two methods are particularly useful for extensive or complex online projects where too much data would accumulate with each backup.

How to Secure Your Own Homepage?

The exact process of securing a homepage depends mainly on the factors mentioned above. While creating backups via a plugin in a Content Management System only requires a few clicks, the direct approach is a bit more elaborate. Typically, all website data is downloaded from the webspace using an FTP client and then backed up on another medium. A similar process is followed for backing up databases. Through the hosting's management software, one can access the database via tools like phpMyAdmin and export it as a backup. Many web hosting providers also offer the option to create a backup of the entire website via the Control Panel. Additionally, hosts usually perform regular backups of all web hosting services. However, as one should not rely solely on these backups, taking independent steps to secure your homepage is highly recommended.

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