Using Backuply for Automated Backups
GoZen backs up your site daily to an offsite server. You can also set up your own backups to Google Drive, S3, or SFTP.
GoZen Host runs Backuply on all shared hosting and managed cPanel VPS plans. It handles daily automated backups to an offsite server in a different datacenter, so your data survives even if the primary server has a catastrophic failure.
On top of GoZen’s automatic backups, you can also set up your own backups to external destinations like Google Drive, Amazon S3, Dropbox, or an SFTP server.
What GoZen Backs Up Automatically
| Component | Backed Up | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Website files | ✓ | Daily |
| MySQL databases | ✓ | Daily |
| Email accounts | ✓ | Daily |
| cPanel settings | ✓ | Daily |
| Cron jobs | ✓ | Daily |
Automated backups are stored on a separate server in a different datacenter. This means your backup survives disk failures, server outages, and other infrastructure-level problems on your primary server.
GoZen’s automated backups are a safety net, not a replacement for your own backup strategy. Always keep at least one copy of your data that you control.
Setting Up Your Own Backups
Backuply is available in your cPanel. You can use it to create additional backups and send them to your own storage.
Accessing Backuply
- Log into cPanel
- Look for Backuply in the main dashboard (usually under Files or its own section)
- Click Backuply to open the backup interface
Supported Destinations
You can back up to any of these:
| Destination | Use Case |
|---|---|
| Google Drive | Easy setup, generous free storage (15 GB) |
| Amazon S3 | Best for large sites, very reliable, pay-per-use |
| Dropbox | Simple, works well for smaller sites |
| OneDrive | If you’re already in the Microsoft ecosystem |
| SFTP | Your own remote server (most control) |
| FTP / FTPS | Legacy option, use SFTP instead when possible |
| WebDAV | Compatible with many self-hosted storage solutions |
| Local | Stored on the same server (not recommended as your only backup) |
Connecting Google Drive
- In Backuply, go to Backup Location or Settings
- Select Google Drive as the destination
- Click Authorize - you’ll be redirected to Google’s consent screen
- Log in with your Google account and grant Backuply access
- Choose a folder name for your backups (e.g.,
gozen-backups) - Save the configuration
Connecting Amazon S3
- In your AWS console, create an S3 bucket (e.g.,
mysite-backups) - Create an IAM user with S3 access and note the Access Key ID and Secret Access Key
- In Backuply, select Amazon S3 as the destination
- Enter:
- Access Key ID - from IAM
- Secret Access Key - from IAM
- Bucket Name - the bucket you created
- Region - the AWS region of your bucket (e.g.,
us-east-1)
- Save and test the connection
Connecting SFTP
- In Backuply, select SFTP as the destination
- Enter:
- Hostname - your remote server IP or domain
- Port - usually
22 - Username - SSH user on the remote server
- Password or SSH Key - authentication method
- Remote Path - where to store backups (e.g.,
/home/backups/mysite/)
- Test the connection and save
Creating a Manual Backup
To take an immediate backup:
- Open Backuply in cPanel
- Click Backup Now or Create Backup
- Choose what to back up:
- Full Backup - files + databases + email + settings
- Files Only - just your
public_htmland other files - Database Only - just MySQL dumps
- Select the destination (local, Google Drive, S3, etc.)
- Click Start Backup
Progress is shown in real time. Backup size and duration depend on your site.
Scheduling Automated Backups
Set up recurring backups to run automatically:
- In Backuply, go to Scheduled Backups or Cron
- Select the backup type (full, files only, database only)
- Choose the frequency:
- Daily - recommended for active sites
- Weekly - fine for sites that don’t change often
- Monthly - minimum recommended frequency
- Select the destination
- Set a retention policy (how many backups to keep before old ones are deleted)
- Save the schedule
Recommended Setup
| Site Type | Frequency | Destination | Retention |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active WordPress / WooCommerce | Daily | Google Drive or S3 | 14 days |
| Portfolio / brochure site | Weekly | Google Drive | 4 weeks |
| Development / staging | Before each deployment | Local + offsite | 3-5 copies |
Restoring from a Backup
From GoZen’s Automated Backups
If you need to restore from GoZen’s daily backups:
- Open a support ticket
- Tell us what you need restored (files, database, or both)
- Include the approximate date/time you want to restore to
- Our team handles the restore, usually within a few hours
From Your Own Backuply Backups
- Open Backuply in cPanel
- Go to Restore or Backup History
- Find the backup you want (by date and destination)
- Select what to restore:
- Full restore - replaces everything
- Files only - restores just the file system
- Database only - restores just the database
- Click Restore and confirm
Restoring overwrites current data. If you’ve made changes since the backup, those changes will be lost. Consider taking a fresh backup of the current state first, just in case.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| Backup fails with timeout | Large sites may exceed PHP execution time. Try backing up files and database separately |
| Google Drive auth expired | Re-authorize the connection in Backuply settings |
| S3 “Access Denied” | Check IAM permissions. The user needs s3:PutObject, s3:GetObject, and s3:ListBucket |
| SFTP connection refused | Verify the host, port, and credentials. Check if the remote server’s firewall allows connections from your GoZen server IP |
| Backup too large | Exclude large directories (like /wp-content/cache/ or /wp-content/updraft/) from file backups |
| Restore fails | Check disk space in cPanel. You need enough free space to extract the backup |
What to Do Next
- Understanding Your GoZen Hosting Stack - how backups fit into GoZen’s infrastructure
- Managing VPS Snapshots - server-level snapshots for VPS plans
- How to Get Support - request a restore from GoZen’s automated backups
Last updated 07 Apr 2026, 00:00 +0200.