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Plug-In Suggestion: BD Backup

0

I’m kinda new here but I had a suggestion for a plug-in I think would be useful for all.

On my regular WordPress blogs (when I say “regular,” I mean standard WP, not WPMU), I always use the WP DB Plug-In, which backs up my database quickly, easily and conveniently. It lets you schedule regular back-ups and even e-mails the backed up db to you.

Any chance we could get something like this for WPMU/BuddyPress? Thanks.

Sat, 1 May 2010 14:27:21
  • drmike
    • DEV MAN’s Mascot

    I’m assuming you mean for the entire site and not for individual blogs.

    Very big -1 for this. Considering the size of a typical wpmu database, you should not be using any interface for doing backups. Too easy for the data to be corrupted or incomplete.

    I know my MT blog’s database is about 22 megs. I know I can’t do it through phpmyadmin as it times out.

    You should be doing site backups from the command line.

  • Mason
    • DEV MAN’s Sidekick

    Drmike,

    I’d like to understand more about how the data could be corrupted or incomplete. I have used backupbuddy (from ithemes) with success on wpmu installs. You are correct that the file size can get quite large, but there are all sorts of advantages to having this kind of functionality. I have created wpmu sites on a dev server for example, and been able to migrate them to a live server with this plugin with just a few clicks. Saved me hours of work.

    I’m not saying you’re incorrect, just pointing out that it can work and that I don’t understand the downsides. Thanks

  • drmike
    • DEV MAN’s Mascot

    Going out the door for some more volunteering. Some quick google’ing just pulls this up but I;m short on time:

    http://bloggista.com/2009/12/20/how-to-restore-big-mysql-databases-when-phpmyadmin-fails/

    php.ini has file size limits that are normally set rather low. Usually just a few megs. Backups are usually bigger than those. Also you run into the max time allowed (Can’t think of the name of it) setting that will stop an export if you hit that time period.

    edit: Also: http://www.bluehostforum.com/archive/index.php/t-3881.html

    reedit: I think we’ve talked about this a couple of times on the mu forums as well.

  • curiozities
    • New Recruit

    Dr. Mike,

    Thanks for the response. Yes, I was talking about the entire site/DB. I’m not very technically inclined but I have dabbled in phpmyadmin and have been able to backup my WP databases from standard WP (as opposed to WPMU) blogs in the past. Until I discovered a DB back-up plug-in for WP that worked like a charm and was much easier to use than phpmyadmin.

    When you say to back up the DB from the “command line,” what do you mean? I don’t know what a command line is–as I mentioned, I’m not very technically inclined.

  • Aaron
    • Ex Staff

    I agree with Dr. Mike on not doing this via a plugin. WPMU is server level software and it is way to buggy to try to do it via php. Regular WP blogs is fine as their dbs are usually smallish. For a large WPMU install you are talking about GB size sql files, not including all the uploaded files. Way too much for php to handle.

    http://codex.wordpress.org/Backing_Up_Your_Database

    Most server control panels have a db backup option thats user friendly. Or just use the million or so tutorials online to roll your own dumps via cron jobs.

    On my server I have a daily cron job to backup the db, bzip2 it, then upload a copy to Amazon S3 along with an rsync of files to S3.

  • lightbeam
    • Design Lord, Child of Thor

    hi guys, i found this thread because i wanted to ask what the recommended back up system for mu installs is. i have been using this one, but just read how Lester is not supporting it any more.

    http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-dbmanager/

    for something so drastically important, i find it pretty funny that there is no defacto choice or system built right into wpmu. can this group come to an consensus on the best practice for backing up wordpress mu databases big or small? certainly there must be an answer to this.

    thanks!

    justin

  • Aaron
    • Ex Staff

    The best way is with most hosts you can schedule db backups right in your hosting control panel. Otherwise follow some of the many tutorials out there on backing up mysql.

    RE builtin: backups are more of a server/hosting owned thing than the software running on it. It is too buggy and limited to do backups for enterprise level software like wpmu through php.

  • drmike
    • DEV MAN’s Mascot

    WPMU is server level software and it is way to buggy to try to do it via php.

    I forgot to mention this but I had a client that came from a CPanel host a few years back with a (Oh I forget the name of it. Starts with an L.) install but they only had a CPanel site backup. We quickly discovered that all this time that their host was doing backups, CPanel couldn’t handle the database and was putting zero sized files into the backup zip.

    Lovely dealing with that.