Automating Website Backup?

[Aaron]

I don't know about you but I just don't trust my web host with my website data. Over the past few years I've had my website dissappear quite a few times and I've had to upload a backup copy.

Backing up my website can be a pain and I'm lazy, so I don't do it as often as I should.

So I thought I'd look into a way of backing it up automatically.

My initial idea was to use a batch file and the built-in FTP software in Windows (XP), scheduling the batch file to be run every week:

backupwebsite.bat

@Echo Off
@Echo Deleting old copy
del BACKUP_DRIVE_LETTER:\Website
@Echo Backing up current version
ftp -s:backup.txt

backup.txt:

open MY_HOST
USERNAME
PASSWORD
lcd BACKUP_DRIVE_LETTER:\Website
mget *
quit

But it just hangs on the mget * command.

Does anyone know what I'm doing wrong? Could someone possibly suggest another (free and simple) way to backup my website, please?

Cheers.

[herulach]

Is it just a simple site? (No cgi etc?) If so then you could just use the firefox spider plug in (cant recall the name) and just run that as often as you like. WOuldnt help with dynamic content though.

[Moby-Dick]

if you enter those commands locally would they work ?
I'd have thougth it woudl be 8.8 ( but I'm probably wrong )
you might wan tto set type binary as well ?

[Aaron]

My website is just a Wordpress-powered blog and some photos really. Nothing fancy.

If I try the commands manually, I get the same result. Setting the mode to binary sadly doesn't help either. ls returns "200 PORT command successful" and then hangs too, so maybe it's just Microsoft's ftp client being rubbish? Are there any alternative command line ftp clients that anyone would recommend?

[TiG]

I'm also assuming the content on the web site must be changing without you uploading changes?. Otherwise backing up the web version seems odd?.

anyway the mget * is interactive meaning you need to say "yes" to each file.

I don't think standard ftp has an Non interactive Mget option....

TiG

[Aaron]

Yes, it will be changing since it's mainly a blog where I write posts online, rather than writing them offline and uploading them.

I've found a piece of software called "MoveIt Freely", which advertises itself as a drop-in replacement for Windows' ftp client - with better security and features. Perhaps this will work.

Cheers for the help everyone.

[Iain]

http://www.gnu.org/software/wget/wget.html

Command line options you can call to do FTP operations

[Paul Adams]

anyway the mget * is interactive meaning you need to say "yes" to each file.

I don't think standard ftp has an Non interactive Mget option....

"prompt" should work?

It might depend on the FTP server you talk to.
I just did a test the worked for 2 files in a folder:

open ftp.x.x.x
username
password
cd folder1\folder2\folder3
prompt
bin
hash
lcd c:\
mget *
close

Didn't test it with a script but it should be the same principle methinks.

[Aaron]

Thanks everyone. I think my main problem was that I didn't set it to passive mode.

The beers are on me if there's ever a Hexus meet in London.

[bobbyzero]

Don't forget to backup your database for WP!
http://wordpress.org/development/200...s-backup-week/

[robg1701]

small suggestion - try to work it in so that you download the new backup before deleting the current one....cant count the number of times ive heard of people delating a backup of somthing to then back it up again and not realise somthigns gone wrong and infact theyve gone and deleted the only decent copy

[Twigman]

good plan stan!

[Nick F]

Does your cpanel not offer this kind of thing? I can do actomatic backups on my site.