Create backups with the WordPress plugin Updraft Plus

Updraft Plus – Your WordPress plugin for reliable data backup management!

For every person or entity that manages data or processes it in a value-adding way – and these are not just companies in the constitutional sense, but also operators of websites, Internet portals and online shops – regular data backup measures are elementary. Because of incorrect operation, hardware defects, security gaps exploited by hackers, faulty programs, willful destruction and server crashes, important data, as well as complete (WordPress) websites, can be irretrievably lost or irreparably damaged. In addition, inconsistent web hosting or cloud computing quickly leads to inconsistencies in stored data. Read here how you can use Updraft Plus, a WordPress plugin for data backups, to effectively protect your data from such threats.

What is Updraft Plus?

In principle, we recommend backing up the entire database with a professional backup medium such as Updraft Plus on a weekly basis and backing up the database daily. This ensures that if irregularities occur, compromised data stocks can be quickly replaced with consistent data from the current backup medium. As an open-source WordPress plugin, Updraft Plus closes a gap here, as this program simplifies the process of backing up and restoring data enormously.

Installed over two million times, Updraft Plus is the world’s most used data backup plugin. Files, WordPress databases, plugins, themes and other data are stored on an FTP server or in the cloud directly on Dropbox, Google Drive, Amazon S3, UpdraftVault, Rackspace Cloud, DreamObjects, Openstack Swift and other digital storage media are backed up and one-click restoreable. Data backups with Updraft Plus also allow reliable timing of the backups, so that no backup run can be forgotten.

Brief performance description of Updraft Plus

Updraft Plus is one of the highest rated and most popular plugins out there. It not only offers comprehensive functions and useful features, but also an easy and intuitive user interface. The large Updraft user community guarantees quick and effective assistance from experienced users.

The most important functions in detail
Backup and restore

The program reliably performs manually initiated or timer-automated backups of WordPress files, WP databases, plugins, themes, designs and all user cloud options. A separation in terms of time or content of individual backup components or objects is just as possible as a separate backup of the database and files. If necessary, the created data backup can be restored directly via the WordPress control panel (dashboard) either completely, by individual databases or by file or component (e.g. all plugins). Common backup media such as Amazon s3, Dropbox, Google Drive, Rackspace, encrypted FTP and SFTP can be used.

Automatic data backup according to a specified schedule

In contrast to the standard version of the backup and migration plugin Duplicator, Updraft backup runs can be scheduled hourly, daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly using a timer, which noticeably facilitates the use of a generation concept for data backup. Complex websites can be divided into several archives for backup purposes. Each backup and reload process is fully logged in debug mode. If a complete or correct backup of the data is not possible at the scheduled time (e.g. due to a system shutdown), the failed or interrupted backup process is automatically repeated at the next possible point in time, and all aborts are noted in the internal backup log.

Quality-assured backup system with high data throughput rate

The software has been systematically tested at numerous locations and is characterized by above-average performance, which means that the required data stocks can be restored quickly.

Compatibility

In addition to the current PHP versions, Updraft Plus is also supported by the PHP releases 5.2 – 7.x.

The premium version of the plugin

Would you like extended functionalities and additional add-ons? In that case, our Updraft Plus Premium version is the right choice! The key features and benefits of this premium upgrade are listed below:

Backup manager including restore function

The program backs up WordPress websites, plugins, themes, WP cores and WP & non-WP files/databases to multiple remote destinations, it can also backup WordPress multisites and entire networks. Updraft Plus Premium backs up to Microsoft OneDrive, Microsoft Azure, BackBlaze, Google Cloud Storage, B2, SFTP, SCP, WebDAV and other popular storage media. If there are problems with the restoration, an Updraft Premium backup can also be restored from other WP plugins. Incremental data backup allows the user to only back up those file changes that have been made since the last backup.

Data backup via timer

Backup runs are carried out automatically according to specific schedules, with the time interval (hourly, daily, weekly or monthly rhythm) as well as the scope of the backup (programs, databases, plugins, transaction data, complete network) being freely selectable.

Duplicating, cloning and migrating websites

The UpdraftMigrator clones your WordPress site in a flash and moves it directly to a new domain or host while preserving the original website, of course.

Database encryption and password protection

Creating an updraft authorization system with user-specific encrypted passwords prevents unauthorized access to your data backups. Encrypting access to sensitive databases (e.g. customer information or passwords) is also possible with Updraft Plus Premium.

Statistics & Reporting

Meaningful reporting and statistics functions are available.

Optimized performance

Commands can now be edited directly in the Updraft command line, and the output is detailed on the monitor.

Free expert support

Licensed users get help and support from experienced Updraft developers whenever needed. This know-how transfer usually also takes place with older program versions for which updates are no longer available.

Freedom of Ads

Updraft Plus Premium is characterized by a high level of interface homogeneity and runs on all common network or IT environments.

frequently asked Questions
What are the benefits of upgrading to Updraft Plus Premium?

If you want advanced features and functionality and a high degree of compatibility with non-WP plugins is important to you, you can purchase our UpdraftPlus Premium version, which offers a number of advantages over the freeware version. Thus, using a dedicated migrator, it duplicates and migrates web pages and non-WP files and databases to multiple remote destinations through different cloud storage capabilities (e.g. WebDAV, MS OneDrive, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, Backblaze B2, SFTP/SCP, encoded FTP) restored. If problems arise, backup files can also be restored by other WP plugins such as BackWPUp, Dropbox-Security or BackupWordPress. The upgrade also offers its own module for creating meaningful reports and statistics and reliably encrypts sensitive databases and information channels. The premium plugin is compatible with practically all networks and IT platforms via digital interfaces and is available in 16 languages.

Who do I contact if I have questions or problems with UpdraftPlus or Updraft Premium?

If you have problems working with Updraft plugins, you should first make sure that you are using the latest version of the plugin and then work through the frequently asked questions (FAQ) in the tutorial. If this does not lead to the goal, there is a separate WordPress support forum for UpdraftPlus Premium. Always state the PHP version used and the URL of your website and try to describe any error that has occurred in as much detail as possible, for example by repeating the error message according to the backup log. This can be found on the UpdraftPlus Premium settings page. Alternatively, you can also search for the error message in the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), which is stored in the wp-content/updraft directory. In addition, it has proven helpful in many cases to send the “error_log” log file from the “wp-admin” folder to support.

What can I do if I have problems backing up large amounts of data?

This may be because your web space is from a discount host and does not have sufficient disk space resources. Irregularities can therefore occur when backing up data, although both UpdraftPlus and UpdraftPlus-Premium technically support the repetition of aborted backup runs.

Possible solutions include upgrading the web hosting package to a product that has sufficient web space or reducing the file size from which zipped files are divided into different archives in the “expert settings”. This should also fix the problem.

In principle, the backup under UpdraftPlus or Updraft-Premium also runs reliably when web space with a capacity of several gigabytes is to be backed up.

What can I do if UpdraftPlus backup stops working for some reason?

Since UpdraftPlus is free and therefore not licensed software, there is unfortunately no warranty or guarantee. It is the user’s responsibility to regularly check the proper functionality of the data backup.

How long can I access updates?

Already installed software can be used forever, regardless of whether new updates are downloaded or not. With each purchase, you receive a 12-month right to install current Updraft Plus versions free of charge, whereby the user can extend access for a fee after the 12 months have expired. If this is rejected, the software already installed can still be used.

Can I use Updraft Plus to migrate my site to a different address?

In order to be able to use this function and thus manage two copies of a website, you need to upgrade to Premium. Once the premium version is installed, simply click the “Clone/Migrate” button and follow the on-screen instructions.

Can Updraft Plus be used to migrate a WooCommerce site?

This is easily possible. Because both WooCommerce and Updraft Plus are WordPress plugins and therefore compatible with each other in terms of database information in the WordPress database and all files and objects in the WordPress media library.

Summary

Supported by all current PHP versions, the open source version of UpdraftPlus performs manual or scheduled backups of all WordPress files, WP databases, plugins and themes present on the disk to be backed up and publishes them directly via the WordPress Dashboard restored. The user can choose from various cloud storage options, including backups to Dropbox, Google Drive, Amazon S3, DigitalOceanSpaces, UpdraftPlusVault, RackspaceCloud, FTP, DreamObjects or Openstack Swift. The backups are downloaded directly from the WP overview panel and, depending on their complexity, are divided into several archives to ensure optimal access times. A separate timer enables the forward-looking planning of periodically recurring data backups.

The free upgrade package “Updraft-Premium” is ad-free and contains numerous additional functions and add-ons, such as incremental data backup and functions for encrypting databases and passwords.