Restoring Domain Accounts and Server Config Files with WHM / cPanel
This article describes how you can restore domain accounts on your server or VPS. It also describes how to restore configuration files using the WHM / cPanel native backup/restore system.
When it comes to restoring your domain accounts or configuration files, the WHM / cPanel restore system is pretty much straight forward and easy to use. Log into your WHM account and access the Backup section. The available options are:
- Configuration File Rollback
- Configure Backup
- Restore Backups
- Restore Multiple Backups
- Restore a Full Backup/cpmove file
Configuration File Rollback:
This option allows you to view, and to restore either the httpd.conf (Apache configuration file), named.conf (BIND/DNS configuration file), and/or the proftpd.conf (ProFTP configuration file). This option is used if you upgraded the server software mentioned and something went horribly wrong. This option can be a life saver, but should be your last resort when fixing a problem. Select the file you need to restore, and the current configuration file will be displayed on the screen. At the bottom you will have the option to scroll between the file’s revisions, viewing its date stamp, and having the option to restore it if necessary.
This option allows you to view, and to restore either the httpd.conf (Apache configuration file), named.conf (BIND/DNS configuration file), and/or the proftpd.conf (ProFTP configuration file). This option is used if you upgraded the server software mentioned and something went horribly wrong. This option can be a life saver, but should be your last resort when fixing a problem. Select the file you need to restore, and the current configuration file will be displayed on the screen. At the bottom you will have the option to scroll between the file’s revisions, viewing its date stamp, and having the option to restore it if necessary.
Configure Backup:
You should visit this option as soon as you have a new server and configure it appropriately. Without doing this, you will not have backups. No backups and you will be heading towards a disaster at one point. Here is a screenshot of the available options.
You should visit this option as soon as you have a new server and configure it appropriately. Without doing this, you will not have backups. No backups and you will be heading towards a disaster at one point. Here is a screenshot of the available options.
Restore Backups:
This option allows you to restore either a daily, weekly, or monthly backup of a domain account. The backup will directly run from your default backup storage location. Select the type of backup you need to use (daily, weekly, monthly), and a list will appear containing all backups of accounts that are available for restore.
This option allows you to restore either a daily, weekly, or monthly backup of a domain account. The backup will directly run from your default backup storage location. Select the type of backup you need to use (daily, weekly, monthly), and a list will appear containing all backups of accounts that are available for restore.
Restore Multiple Backups:
This option is very similar to the one above. It just adds the extra functionality to restore more than one account at the same time.
This option is very similar to the one above. It just adds the extra functionality to restore more than one account at the same time.
Restore a Full Backup/cpmove file:
As defined by WHM / cPanel, this feature will restore full backups, cPanel backups and cPanel move files in the format of: cpmove-user.tar.gz, user.tar.gz, backup-date_time_user.tar.gz. A user can create a full backup file from the domain account cPanel as an example. Important: For the restore the files must be in one of these directories on the server:
As defined by WHM / cPanel, this feature will restore full backups, cPanel backups and cPanel move files in the format of: cpmove-user.tar.gz, user.tar.gz, backup-date_time_user.tar.gz. A user can create a full backup file from the domain account cPanel as an example. Important: For the restore the files must be in one of these directories on the server:
/home
/usr/home
/web
/home2
/home3
/root
/usr
Backups are an essential piece of your business. It does not matter if you host your own websites or websites for others. Backups should be done as often as feasible. You should also test the restores once a quarter or at least once every 6 months to make sure you recover from backup. This is critical for large accounts as it gets more difficult the bigger an account is. You should also consider to have off-side backups available in case your server provider goes belly up.
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