Hey guys, yeah I’ve got myself into this trend on writing pieces on “WordPress” these last couple days, but I’m pretty sure you’re loving the archive. So here’s another addition to the collection that says ” How to backup WordPress Database.”
Well yeah I already know what you’re searching for, you’re searching for a solution to backup your WordPress Database’s, right? Why else would you be on this post? So that’s exactly what I’m giving out on a plate to you.
But as my habit goes, let me first get into a bit of the basics maybe?
What is a Database?
The reason a lot of you still have to google about stuff like this is, the internet has made things more than just “easier. You can obtain a backup of your WordPress Database, or even the whole site in a matter of seconds by using just about any kind of plugin available out there.
That makes things easier and saves time no doubt, but that also kills the learning curve. If you don’t know what the Database is, well then no matter how many times you back it up, there’s always be a void between your knowledge and career.
So yeah let me just explain to you in brief, about what exactly a database is.
A Database is a “base” for data. Let’s say a Database is where your data is stored, in an organized, structured format. If you take your Database to be a drawer, the different cabinets of the database can be termed as the “tables”.
Whenever you need the data regarding a certain thing, you just have to look into that specific table, and you get your file, right? That saves you time from going through each and every table and file in the drawer. And that’s exactly what the database does for you.
The WordPress you run your sites uses MySQL as the database software. (Which apparently is the most popular database management software on this planet!). WordPress is a very complex platform and hence needs lots of data and tables.
And that’s the reason why you need to have this database thing so that the data can be kept organized.
An SQL Database primarily consists of three parts:-
- The host:- Your MySQL server needs to be hosted somewhere, right? So the computer or the system where it’s hosted is called the host. Most of the time, “localhost” is the default host! Unless of course, your server company has different things in mind.
- Tables:- Just as I said, the tables are where the data is stored. It’s like an easier and faster way to store, organize and find data. These tables are where your data is stored.
- SQL query: – So now you have a host and database, but how would you command it? You can’t just be like “Hey database, please tell me where this file is”, right? That’s where the SQL queries come in, they are the language you can speak to your databases in and issue-specific commands.
How to Backup WordPress Database:-
This article specifically deals with backing up WordPress’s “database” and not the whole WordPress website.
Okay so let’s get down to business.
#1:- Backup Your WordPress Database Using Cpanel:-
This is my favorite method as it’s the simplest one to backup the WordPress Database.
Login to your Cpanel, and search for Backup> Backup Wizard.
Once on the next page, just click on the Backup button.
On the next page, just click on the Mysql Databases option.
This would take you to the page which has all your “databases”. Just click on the database you want to backup.
Done! You’ll get a .sql.gz file downloaded on your browser! Which you can use to restore your SQL database anytime. (I’ll show you how in the next piece, and then I’ll update this link, so do check back, that’s like in 24hours!)
Done! This was one of the easiest ways to backup your WordPress database. But wait, I’ve got other recipes for you too.
#2:- Backup Using a Plugin:-
There’s this tiny little light-weight plugin called Wp-Db-Backup you can use to backup your database on WordPress. (Nope I’m not affiliated to, or in partnership with the product or the owner in any way. I’m just listing it here cause it does the job!)
- Download Wp-Db-Backup.
- Install and activate it on your WordPress installation.
Then, log in to your WordPress dashboard, and click on Tools>Backup!
Now just click on the Backup Now button to backup your WordPress Database.
So well yeah that’s like a two-click process to get your WordPress database backed up! Guess what; you can even get the backup E-mailed to you! And of course, you can download it.
If that wasn’t enough for this free of cost plugin, it also lets you schedule your WordPress Database Backups!
Final Words:-
So that was it folks on How to Backup WordPress Database! I’m sure I didn’t leave anything out, and I made this process as simple as possible.
If you still got a question, just make use of the comment box! I’m all ears.
