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Backups at RedHosting: what's automatic and what's your responsibility

September 2, 2026
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Backups only get noticed at two moments: when you set them up or when you need them. The second is too late to find out they didn't exist. This article separates, plainly, what's already done from what's still yours.

1. The split, in one table

WhatWhoseNote
Daily automatic backup of the serviceRedHostingIncluded, nothing to configure
Redundant power, network and coolingRedHostingTier III datacenter
Copy before a big changeYoursDeploy, update, migration
Database exportYoursOnly consistent with mysqldump
Keeping a copy outside RedHostingYoursIt's what survives an account problem
Testing that restore worksYoursAn untested backup is an assumption

2. What the automatic backup covers

Every service has a daily automatic backup. It's the safety net against the unexpected: hardware failure, corruption, the file deletion nobody wanted.

Two characteristics matter for knowing when it helps:

  • It's daily. The worst possible loss is one day's work. If your service changes hour by hour, a day is a lot.
  • It covers the whole service. It's for going back to yesterday's state, not for recovering one specific file without touching the rest.
⚠️The point people miss: The automatic backup protects against infrastructure failure. It doesn't protect against a wrong decision of yours if you only notice the mistake after the next day's copy has already run over it. Before a big change, the copy is yours.

3. Why your own copy is still necessary

It's not distrust of the infrastructure — these are scenarios no provider backup covers well:

  • You want only part of it. Restoring the whole service to recover one table undoes everything done since yesterday.
  • The mistake is old. A bug that corrupted data two weeks ago has already gone through every daily backup.
  • The problem is the account. Cancelled service, forgotten invoice, lost access — the copy kept elsewhere is the one that remains.
  • You just want to look. Comparing how things were before without restoring anything.

4. How to make yours, by service

cPanel hosting

cPanel generates a complete archive under Files → Backup → Download a Full Account Backup. It includes files, databases, email accounts and settings. Download the file instead of leaving it on the server itself — a copy kept in the same place as the original isn't a copy.

Just the database, which is what changes most: phpMyAdmin → select the database → Export tab → Quick method, SQL format → Go. The full walkthrough is in How to create a MySQL database in cPanel.

VPS

On a VPS with root access, these are the things to copy:

mysqldump -u USER -p --all-databases > backup.sql
tar czf site.tar.gz /var/www
tar czf config.tar.gz /etc/nginx /etc/letsencrypt

And bring them to your computer:

scp root@YOUR_IP:~/backup.sql ./
💡Tip: Export the database with mysqldump, never by copying the data folder while the service is running — the file comes out inconsistent, and you only find out when you try to restore.

Minecraft and Discord bots

Using the panel's file manager, compress the server folder and download it. In Minecraft, the irreplaceable part is the world folder: plugins and configuration can be redone, a built world can't.

If the bot comes from a Git repository, the code is already versioned — what's left to keep is what's not in the repository: environment variables, tokens and database. See Linking a Git repository to your bot.

5. When to do it

Moments when the copy is worth more than the time it takes

✓Before reinstalling the VPS operating system — reinstalling wipes the whole disk.
✓Before updating a CMS, plugin, theme or dependency.
✓Before migrating hosts, and before pointing the domain to the new destination.
✓Before touching the database directly with SQL.
✓Periodically, as often as you could stand to lose the work: daily if it changes every day, weekly if it changes every week.

6. A backup that was never restored isn't a backup

It's an assumption. The file may be truncated, the export may have stopped halfway, the .sql may be missing a table — and none of that shows up until the day you need it.

Test it at least once: load the copy in a separate environment and check that the application opens and the recent data is there. On a VPS, a small temporary server does it; on cPanel, a test subdomain.

Need to restore?

To restore from the automatic backup, open a ticket at financeiro.redhosting.com.br or message us on WhatsApp at +55 11 98833-3902, stating the service and the date you want to go back to. The sooner the request arrives, the more date options there are.

Frequently asked questions

Does RedHosting back up my service? +
Yes, a daily automatic backup, included and with nothing to configure. It's the safety net against infrastructure failure.
If there's an automatic backup, do I need to make my own? +
Yes, for the cases the automatic one doesn't cover well: recovering just one part without undoing the rest, going back before an old mistake that has already passed through every daily backup, or situations where the problem is access to your own account.
How often should I back up? +
As often as you could stand to lose the work: daily if the service changes every day, weekly if it changes every week. And always before a big change — reinstall, update, migration.
How do I back up in cPanel? +
Under Files → Backup → Download a Full Account Backup, which includes files, databases, email and settings. Download the file instead of leaving it on the server: a copy kept in the same place as the original isn't a copy.
Can I copy the MySQL folder instead of exporting? +
Not while the service is running — the file comes out inconsistent, and you only find out when restoring. Use mysqldump.
How do I request a restore? +
Open a ticket stating the service and the date you want to go back to. The sooner the request arrives, the more date options there are.
What's most important to save on a Minecraft server? +
The world folder. Plugins and configuration can be redone; a built world can't.