How to Save a Copy of Your Website Backup to a Remote Location

A backup that lives only on your hosting account protects you from mistakes inside your website, like a bad update or a deleted file. It does not protect you from a problem with the account or server itself. For that, you need a second copy stored somewhere else: a remote FTP server, a cloud storage folder, or your own computer. This article covers how to send a backup to a remote location in both cPanel and DirectAdmin.

If you haven't created a backup yet, start with the main backup guide first, then come back here to send a copy off-site.

Why you shouldn't rely on one copy

Keeping your only backup on the same account it's protecting means a single incident, such as account-level data loss, can take out both your live website and your backup at the same time. A remote copy breaks that link. It costs a little more effort to set up, but it means you always have a fallback that isn't tied to the same account.

In cPanel

cPanel's Backup Wizard can send a full backup straight to a remote destination instead of just storing it in your account.

1. Log in to cPanel and open Backup Wizard (or Backup, depending on your theme).
2. Click Backup, then choose Full Backup.
3. Under Backup Destination, choose Remote FTP Server (or Remote FTP Server (Passive Mode) if your network blocks active FTP connections).
4. Enter the remote server's address, FTP username and password, and the remote directory where the backup should be saved.
5. Add an email address if you want a notification once the backup finishes, then click Generate Backup.

If you'd rather keep it simple, choose Home Directory as the destination instead, then download the finished backup file to your computer through File Manager or an FTP client once it's ready. Either way, you end up with a copy that isn't only on the server.

In DirectAdmin

DirectAdmin's backup tool also supports sending a backup directly to a remote server.

1. Log in to DirectAdmin and open Backup/Transfer.
2. Select the domain(s), databases, and email accounts you want included, then choose Create Backup.
3. Under the destination options, select FTP instead of the default local save location.
4. Enter the remote FTP host, port, username, password, and the remote directory to save into. Tick Secure FTP if the remote server supports FTPS.
5. Confirm the settings and start the transfer.

DirectAdmin's built-in backup transfer works over FTP or FTPS, not SFTP. If the remote storage you want to use only accepts SFTP, download the backup locally first and upload it separately with an SFTP-capable FTP client.

A few things to check before you rely on it

• Test that the remote destination actually received the file. Don't assume the transfer worked just because no error appeared.
• Make sure the remote FTP account itself isn't stored only in one place. If you lose access to it, you lose access to your off-site copies too.
• Repeat this regularly rather than once. A single old off-site backup is better than nothing, but a current one is far more useful if you ever need to restore.

If you want this to happen automatically rather than remembering to run it yourself, pair a remote destination with a scheduled backup so a fresh off-site copy is created on a regular basis.