What are VPS backups and snapshots?

VPS backups and snapshots are copies of your server that let you get it back when something goes wrong. A backup stores a copy of your data and settings somewhere else, so you can restore them after a crash, an attack or a mistake. A snapshot captures the whole server at one moment, so you can roll back quickly when an update fails. You'll probably want to use both.

What is a VPS backup?

A VPS backup is a copy of your server's files, databases and settings from the moment the backup ran. If something goes wrong, you restore the backup and the server returns to that state.

A backup stored only on the server it protects is lost when that server fails. So whatever you run on your VPS, the copy that saves you is the one kept somewhere else.

Full, incremental and differential backups

Backups differ in how much they copy each time. That changes how much storage they use, how long they take and what you need to restore one. Incremental and differential backups save time and storage because they build on a full backup instead of copying everything again.

Because full backups take time and space, run them only now and then and add smaller backups in between. If your provider makes a full backup for you every day, you don't need to plan this yourself.

What is a VPS snapshot?

A VPS snapshot records the state of the whole server at one moment, including the system configuration, installed applications and stored data. A full backup holds much the same. You take a snapshot yourself, though, just before you change something, so you have a quick way back if the change fails.

How long a snapshot is kept depends on the provider. Some keep it until you delete it, others only for a day.

Snapshot or backup: which should you choose?

Choose a snapshot when you're about to change something and want a quick way back. Use backups for ongoing protection against the problems you don't see coming.

Our advice: use both, because each does a different job. Backups protect you every day, while a snapshot is a restore point for one change, not a replacement for regular backups.

When a backup or snapshot saves you

Which copy saves you depends on what went wrong.

• A failed update. If you use your VPS for game server hosting, a big update can go wrong and break the server your players rely on. The snapshot you took just before the update puts the server back as it was.
• An attack on your website. If a cyber attack damages your website and the email on your server, a backup from before the attack lets you restore both. Act while that backup is still kept, and close the gap the attacker used before you go back online.
• A server error at a busy time. After a crash, the online shop on your server loses recent orders and customer data. Restoring the latest backup brings back everything up to the moment that backup ran, so orders placed after it need to be added again.
• A change that breaks your code. You test a customer's app on your server, and a bug crashes the whole system. The snapshot or the last backup gives you a stable version again.

Backups and snapshots on our VPS

Our VPS is unmanaged, so you look after its backups, just as you look after updates and security.

With our snapshots, you capture your whole server in a few seconds from your VPS dashboard. You can keep one snapshot at a time, and it's stored for 24 hours unless you delete it sooner.

You can restore any of these backups whenever you need to, for four days after each one is made. You can add the Backups add-on to your VPS. Keep a copy of your own away from the server as well, so your data never depends on a single service.

Restoring a snapshot overwrites all current data on the server and cannot be undone. Restoring a backup also overwrites all existing data, and your server is unavailable until the restore is done. You get an email when it's complete.

With Managed VPS, we look after the server for you, from security updates and software patches to performance monitoring. Automatic daily backups are included, and they're kept for 7 days in a separate data centre. Our guide to the difference between a VPS and a Managed VPS helps you weigh up which suits you.

Get full root access on a server you manage yourself. Take a snapshot from your dashboard before any change, and add daily backups with the Backups add-on.

How to take a snapshot before you change your server

Take a snapshot before an update, an install or a configuration change on your VPS. The closer to the change you take it, the more of your latest data it holds.

1. Go to your VPS dashboard and open the server you're about to change.
2. Create a snapshot of the server.
3. Wait for the message in the dashboard that the snapshot is ready. It usually takes a few seconds.
4. If the change goes wrong, restore the snapshot within 24 hours. Restoring overwrites everything currently on the server, including anything saved since the snapshot, such as new orders, and cannot be undone.

Good habits for VPS backups

Build these habits into how you back up your VPS.

• Keep a copy away from the server, as the 3-2-1 rule asks: three copies of your data, on two types of storage, with one off-site. Download your data to a separate drive over SFTP now and then, or run a backup tool such as restic on the server to send a copy to online storage on a schedule.
• Match your backups to how often your data changes. Back up a busy shop more often than a site you rarely update.
• Test a restore now and then, on a test setup. It shows that you know how to run a restore and that the backup really holds everything you need.

Backups are one part of securing your VPS, next to measures such as updates, a firewall and malware protection.

Take a snapshot before each change, keep daily backups and store a copy of your own elsewhere. Then a failed update or a lost file is a quick restore instead of a rebuild. If you're starting a new project, compare our VPS plans to find the server that fits it.