Restoring from Plesk Backup

Plesks Backup Manager allows you to restore your hosting account from previously created backups. You can perform full or selective restores to recover files, databases, email, and configuration settings.

Accessing Restore Options

1. Log in to your Plesk control panel
2. Go to Websites & Domains
3. Click Backup Manager
4. You will see a list of available backup files with dates and sizes

Full Account Restore

A full restore replaces all account data with the backup contents.

1. In Backup Manager, locate the backup you want to restore from
2. Click the backup file name or the restore icon
3. On the restore page, select All objects for a complete restoration
4. Review the components that will be restored:

- Websites configuration and content

- Databases

- Mail accounts and messages

- DNS zones

- SSL certificates

- Cron jobs

1. Check Suspend domains during restoration for data consistency (recommended)
2. Click Restore to begin
3. Wait for the process to complete — do not navigate away

Tip: A full restore overwrites ALL current data. Create a backup of your current state before restoring if you might need to revert.

Selective Restore

Selective restore lets you recover specific components without affecting others.

Restoring Only Files

1. Click on the backup to open restore options
2. Under What to restore, select Website files
3. Deselect databases, mail, and other components
4. Click Restore

Restoring Only Databases

1. Click on the backup
2. Select Databases only
3. Choose specific databases if you have multiple
4. Click Restore

Tip: When restoring databases selectively, verify that your applications database credentials still match after restoration. Configuration files (like wp-config.php) are part of the files restore, not the database restore.

Restoring Only Email

1. Click on the backup
2. Select Mail configuration and Mail messages
3. Choose specific mailboxes if needed
4. Click Restore

Restoring DNS Settings

1. Click on the backup
2. Select DNS zone settings
3. Click Restore
4. Allow 24-48 hours for DNS propagation

Restoring from a Remote (FTP) Backup

If your backup was stored on a remote FTP server:

1. In Backup Manager, click More Actions > Configure Remote Storage Settings (or similar)
2. Enter the FTP connection details:

- FTP server hostname

- Username and password

- Directory path

1. Click OK to connect
2. Remote backups will appear in the backup list
3. Select the backup and proceed with restoration as normal

Uploading a Backup File

To restore from a backup file stored on your local machine:

1. In Backup Manager, click Upload or Upload Backup Files
2. Select the backup file from your computer
3. Wait for the upload to complete
4. The uploaded backup will appear in the backup list
5. Click on it to start the restoration process

After Restoring

Perform these checks after any restore operation:

1. Website functionality: Browse your site and test all pages, forms, and interactive features
2. Database connections: Verify your CMS or application can connect to the database
3. Email delivery: Send and receive a test email from each restored account
4. SSL certificates: Check that HTTPS works correctly
5. DNS resolution: Ensure your domain resolves correctly
6. Cron jobs: Verify scheduled tasks are running
7. Application caches: Clear all CMS caches (WordPress, Joomla, etc.)
8. CDN caches: Purge CDN cache if you use a CDN service

Important Warnings

• Restoring is destructive: Current data for restored components is overwritten
• Database users: Restored databases may have different user permissions. Verify access.
• Plesk version compatibility: Backups from a newer Plesk version may not restore on an older version
• Disk space: Ensure sufficient disk space for the restore operation
• Domain suspension: Enable domain suspension during restore to prevent visitors from seeing broken content

Troubleshooting

• Restore fails with error: Check available disk space. Ensure the backup file is not corrupted.
• Website broken after restore: Clear all caches. Check wp-config.php or equivalent configuration files for correct database credentials.
• "Backup file is corrupt" error: Re-download the backup if stored remotely. The file may have been partially transferred.
• Database connection errors: After restore, the database user/password in Plesk may differ from what your application expects. Update the credentials in your CMS config file.
• Permissions issues: Reset file permissions to 644 for files and 755 for directories. In Plesk, you can do this from the file manager.

Related Articles

• Creating Backups in Plesk
• Installing SSL in Plesk
• Plesk File Manager Guide

Need help restoring from a backup? Contact {{COMPANY_NAME}} support at {{SUPPORT_EMAIL}} or open a ticket at {{SUPPORT_URL}}.