Nitrado Server Backups Explained: A Comprehensive Overview

Building your ideal server takes time and effort, and protecting that progress ensures your world remains exactly as you left it. Backups play a crucial role in preserving your server data, allowing you to recover your world if something goes wrong. Understanding how backups work helps ensure that your progress is never permanently lost and that your game saves remain protected in case of technical issues, mistakes, or unexpected problems. In this Nitrado article, we explain how server backups and self-restore features work so you can confidently manage, secure, and restore your data whenever needed.

Complete Backups

Complete backups safeguard your entire server setup and MySQL data. Use this option to restore your server exactly as it was archived.

Key Features

• Availability: Supported for all games (excluding Dune: Awakening).
• Timestamps: Recorded in the local timezone of your selected data center.
• Frequency: Restore your server as many times a day as desired.
• Access: This is a fully self-service feature. Our Support team uses this exact interface to restore backups. Note that you cannot download these specific archives to your local machine.

Creation and Retention Cycle

Backups are managed in dynamic cycles to ensure data integrity and efficient storage.

• Backup Creation: The system automatically creates a backup once per day. The window opens at 3:15 AM local time, but the exact creation happens dynamically within the following 24 hours based on available resources, server load, and queue order.
• Backup Cycle: Each cycle begins with one full “master” backup. This is followed by four smaller, incremental backups that only save changes made since the last master backup.
• Retention Policy: We keep up to two full backup cycles at any given time. This grants you access to roughly 6-10 days of history depending on where you are in the cycle. When a third master backup begins, the oldest cycle and its incremental backups are automatically deleted.

Reasons for Backup Failure

Sometimes network variables get in the way. Here is what can cause a complete backup to fail:

Map Save Backups

Map save backups restore your exact game state. This typically includes the map, player positions, creatures, structures, and item data. If you need to restore your entire game server, including all configuration files, use Complete Backups instead.

Key Features

• Availability: Designed for map-based games like ARK:SA, ARK:SE, and Palworld.
• Startup Control: Navigate to Settings > General and choose which map save your server should start with after a restart.
• Timestamps: Recorded in the local timezone of your data center.
• Frequency: Restore as many times a day as desired (with minor game-specific exceptions).
• Access: A fully self-service feature. You can easily download these backups via FTP or the web interface File Browser.

Creation and Retention

• Backup Creation: The map save system manages its own backups. You configure how often these are created in-game. Because they only generate while the server is running, you might see gaps in the dates of available saves.
• Retention Policy: Retention rules depend on the specific game. You can always view the latest available map save under the Restore Backup section or in Settings > General.

Reasons for Map Save Backup Failure

World Manager Backups

For specific supported titles, the World Manager handles your saves directly within its own ecosystem.

Key Features

• Availability: Supported for games utilizing a world manager, such as Minecraft (including all versions), Valheim, and Core Keeper.
• Creation: You can manually trigger a backup in-game at any given time.
• Retention Policy: You can view all available saves directly within the World Manager interface.
• Access: You cannot download these backups directly.

MySQL Backups

Use MySQL backups when you need to specifically restore your database files without rolling back the entire server configuration.

Key Features

• Availability: Support for the majority of our games.
• Timestamps: Follows the local timezone of your selected data center.
• Frequency: Restore your database as many times a day as you like.
• Access: A fully self-service feature. You cannot download these specific database archives.

Creation and Retention Cycle

• Backup Creation: Just like Complete Backups, these generate automatically once a day starting from the 3:15 AM local time window.
• Retention Policy: The system retains up to 5 days of database backup history, depending on your current place in the cycle.

Reasons for Database Backup Failure

FTP Manual Backups

FTP manual backups give you ultimate control, allowing you to secure your data locally. Use this option to store a safe copy of your server data directly on your own machine for total peace of mind over your game world.

Key Features

• Availability: Supported for most games, excluding console titles and Dune: Awakening.
• Access: You can download and upload these backups, restoring them as often as you like throughout the day.
• Self-Service: This requires hands-on management. Our Support team cannot trigger or manage FTP backups for you.

Reasons for FTP Backup Failure

A Safety Net for Your Server

Understanding how these automated and manual systems operate empowers you to experiment with server settings without the fear of losing your hard work. Always verify your most recent backup timestamp in the web interface before making major changes to your server files. This ensures you have a reliable restoration point if your new configuration causes issues. Take advantage of these powerful tools to protect your progress, invite your friends, and play without fear.