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Backing Up and Restoring Account Data

Last modified: 2026 July 24

Overview

Generate a full backup of your account, restore files from an existing archive, or download individual components, like your databases or email configuration, on their own.

To generate a backup or a restore, go to the Files hub and select the Backups tab.

Note:

To view the Backups tab, your hosting provider must enable the Backup Manager feature in WHM’s Feature Manager interface (WHM » Home » Packages » Feature Manager).

Generate a full backup

A full backup archives your entire account, including your home directory, active databases, email configurations, and DNS zone files. Your backup saves as a timestamped TAR file inside your home directory. For example, /home/user/backup-7.10.2026_12-00-30_user.tar.gz.

To generate a full backup, perform the following steps:

  1. Click Generate Full Backup.
  2. Enter an email address in the Notification Email textbox to receive an alert when the backup completes. You can leave this field empty to bypass notifications.
  3. Click Generate Backup to start the process.

This process may require several minutes to generate your archive file. You can safely leave the Backups tab and check again later. When backup generation is complete, the Available Backups section will list your archive files by generation date, total file size, and standard archive name.

Restore files from a backup

To roll back changes or restore missing files using an archive file, perform the following steps:

  1. In the Available Backups section, click Extract.
  2. Enter a path to the archive file. You can copy the path to the file from the Available Backups section.
  3. Enter a destination path. Your file data restores to this directory.
    Warning:

    Always restore backups to an isolated subdirectory first. For example, /home/user/restored. Restoring archives directly to the /home/user directory can overwrite active configuration files and disrupt critical system permissions.

  4. Click Extract File to start the process.

Download individual components

If you don’t need a full backup, the Individual Components section lets you download a single part of your account:

  • Home Directory — Download all of the files, scripts, and media in your home directory, as a .tar.gz file.
  • Databases — Download a specific database table, as a .sql.gz file.
  • Email Forwarders — Download the mail routing rules for a domain, as a .gz file.
  • Email Filters — Download the active mail sorting parameters and inbox blocking rules, as a .gz file.

Click Download next to any item to save that file to your local machine.

Additional Documentation