Site is ready. So from now on… what precautions should I take?

  • I just lost child theme.. with work of 3 months… And the Server InMotion backup had corrupted files, missing all theme files. So bad luck on top of bad luck.

    I am just an amateur who really likes sites and all kinds of apps.

    So while I rebuild the stuff, I have some questions:

    1) So when you are dealing with many people, do you have an alternative site to test changes? would the local “server” be the place to change and then upload? I am new to WP, and it seems odd to have WP in my computer as the server.

    2) Second: what server do you guys trust? InMotion really messed up.. and lied too much, and never apologised.

    3) Third: is it enough to have one backup per day (supposedly done by the server, but it was useless), one a week, and once a month?

    Anyway, any idea and suggestion will be greatly appreciated.

Viewing 5 replies - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)

  • Hi Gloak.
    1) A test version is always a good idea. You can run a local install using something like XAMPP https://www.apachefriends.org/index.html. Or you could create a subdomain on your host and load another instance of WP there. There are several plugins available to copy your live site to your test site.

    2). There is a hosting page on w.org: https://www.ads-software.com/hosting/
    I would recommend you also search around and check which hosts provide the features and services you need at a price you can afford.

    3) Most hosts will provide one backup per day. Usually that backup is stored on the same server as your site. Unless you’re downloading that backup to another location, both your site and the backup will be gone if the host loses that server. I always recommend using another backup solution. Usually that’s a plugin that allows you to store the backups offsite; sometimes it’s an add-on service that your host provides. Even if you’re doing multiple backups a day they’re only as good as their ability to restore your site. Another reason to have a test site is so you can practice restoring your backup before you actually, if ever, need to.

    Thread Starter Gloak

    (@gloak)

    Hi Bdbrown,
    Thank you so much for your time. I learned a lesson in the last two days. Things do go wrong apparently for no reason. Looks like the haunting server.
    1) Yes, I have Wamp, and I stopped using it since I discovered WP a couple year ago ??
    So I can copy my whole WP site into my computer and that is also a backup anyway.
    1a) What do you prefer: the local server or another subdomain (as just a copy of the main site)? A subdirectory is too confusing for me even though they will have the same configuration in the server.
    2) Thank you, that was handy. I have used Bluehost, inmotion and 1&1. (this last one is something).
    3) blue host is generous here. they offer 3 backups, daily, weekly and monthly. InMotion only one daily and by the time you notice you are down, and try to figure something, too late. They backed up the bad files. In my case, their backup was missing so many things. BlueHost again beats here. You push the backup yourself. Inmotion does for us. And it is not fast.

    Thank you so so much for your insights.

    1a) Personally I use subdomains. I find they’re easy to manage and, when using the test site, you know that it’s in basically the same environment as your live site. I like this plugin to copy the live site to test: https://www.ads-software.com/plugins/duplicator/
    It’s a bit technical the first time through but it does a very good job of getting it right.

    3) I use BackWPup: https://www.ads-software.com/plugins/backwpup/
    It allows you to schedule backups and select several off-site locations for storage.

    1. I have used both XAMP and subdomains, prefer the latter.
    2. Due to a bad experience, I personally stay clear of EIG. (To the best of my knowledge InMotion has a good reputation and is not EIG) Other than that, I have a list of factors that I look for from a host based on my specific use case (Cloud Linux, PHP selector, real cPanel, price of course, etc.).
    3. I always make my own backups – never rely on the host provider. Monthly is enough for my relatively static sites. I keep three copies of each month in separate places (cloud, local drive, usb), and a three-month archive just in case.

    Thread Starter Gloak

    (@gloak)

    Thank you all, bdbrown and aCstudent. Let’s do that.

Viewing 5 replies - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)
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