Plesk can back up both configuration and content — website files, mailboxes, databases and DNS settings — and restore them when needed.
Creating a backup
- Log in to Plesk and open Websites & Domains → Backup & Restore.
- Click Back Up.
- Choose what to include: configuration only, or configuration together with user files and databases.
- Select where to store the backup — on the server, or in remote storage if you have configured it.
- Click OK. The backup runs in the background; large sites take a while.
When it finishes, the backup appears in the list on the same page, where you can download it or use it to restore.
If you administer the whole server rather than a single subscription, the server-wide backup tools are in Tools & Settings → Backup Manager. From there you can back up the entire server, including Plesk's own configuration, not just one subscription.
Scheduled backups
Use Schedule on the same page to have backups created automatically. Worth setting up: a backup you have to remember to make is one you will eventually forget.
Choose how many backups to keep. Each copy occupies disk space within your subscription quota, and a full disk causes problems of its own — so keep a sensible number rather than the maximum.
Remote storage
A backup stored on the same server as the site protects you against your own mistakes and against a broken update. It does not protect you against loss of the server itself — if the server is gone, the backups stored on it are gone too.
For anything important, keep backups off the server: either download them, or configure remote storage in Plesk. Our Backup Stor service is intended for exactly this and connects over FTP — see Подключение услуги Backup Stor Pro по протоколам SMB/CIFS и FTP/FTPS.
Before a risky change
Make a backup before updating your CMS, changing the PHP version or installing an unfamiliar extension. It takes a few minutes and turns a potential disaster into an inconvenience.
To restore data from a backup, see Restoring a backup in Plesk.
