Keeping a recent copy of your website, mail, and databases means you can recover quickly from a bad update, a compromised file, or an accidental deletion. Plesk includes a built-in Backup Manager that lets you create, schedule, and restore backups for a subscription without any extra software. This guide shows you how to configure local backups (stored on the server) for a subscription on Noiz hosting.
Local backups are for fast rollbacks, not disaster recovery. Because they live on the same server as your website, they will not help if the server itself is lost. Pair local backups with an off-server copy using remote storage (see the related articles at the end).
Last reviewed: 27 July 2026, against Plesk Obsidian 18.0 (latest stable). This guide is written for Noiz hosting and is kept current against Plesk. It complements, and does not replace, the official Plesk documentation linked below.
Official Documentation Reference
- Plesk Obsidian Customer Guide: see the "Backing Up and Recovering Websites" section for the full reference on the Backup Manager, on-demand backups, and scheduled backup settings.
Prerequisites
- A hosting subscription on a Noiz Plesk server, with the login details from your Noiz welcome email.
- Access to the Plesk panel, usually reached on port
8443, for examplehttps://yourdomain.com:8443(replaceyourdomain.comwith your own domain). - Enough free disk space in your subscription quota. Local backups are stored on the server and count towards your subscription's disk usage.
Accessing the Backup Manager
Log in to your Plesk panel and go to Websites & Domains. On the card for the domain you want to back up, open the Dashboard tab and click Backup & Restore. This opens the Backup Manager, where every backup task for the subscription is listed and managed.
Creating an on-demand backup
An on-demand (manual) backup is the quickest way to capture a known-good state just before you make a risky change, such as updating a theme, a plugin, or the PHP version.
- In the Backup Manager, click Back Up.
- Under Back up the subscription, choose what to include:
- Configuration: the hosting and service settings for the subscription.
- Mail messages: the contents of the mailboxes.
- User files: the website files and content.
- Databases: all databases attached to the subscription.
- Under Store in, select Server storage to keep the backup locally.
- Choose the Type:
- Full: backs up everything you selected, every time.
- Incremental: backs up only the web and mail data that changed since the last backup. Databases are always backed up in full.
- (Optional) Add a Comment to label the backup so it is easy to identify later.
- (Optional) Enable any of the following:
- Exclude log files to reduce the backup size.
- Exclude specific files from the backup to skip chosen paths.
- When a backup task is completed, send a notification email to, then enter an address for status updates.
- Click OK to start the backup. It appears in the Backup Manager list once it finishes.
Scheduling automatic backups
A schedule protects the subscription without you having to remember. Set it once and Plesk runs it in the background.
- In the Backup Manager, click Schedule.
- On the Scheduled Backup Settings page, tick Activate this backup task.
- Under Run this backup task, choose how often it runs:
- Daily: set the hour and minute, and confirm the timezone is correct.
- Weekly: pick the day (or days) of the week and the time.
- Monthly: pick the day of the month and the time.
- Choose the backup type:
- Use incremental backup: stores only what changed since the previous run.
- Leave it unticked to perform a full backup on every run.
- Set Maximum number of full backup files to store. This is your retention limit: once it is reached, Plesk removes the oldest backup as it creates a new one. Plesk also enforces a server-level cap, shown on screen, and your value must be equal to or less than it.
- Under Back up, select what to include (configuration, mail messages, user files, databases).
- Under Store in, select Server storage for local backups.
- (Optional) Enable Exclude log files, Exclude specific files from the backup, or If errors occur during the execution of this backup task, send a notification email to.
- Click OK to save the schedule.
Restoring from a backup
Restoring overwrites the current data with the contents of the backup, so make sure you have selected the right one before you confirm.
- In the Backup Manager, find the backup you want to use.
- Click the backup date to open its details.
- Choose what to restore: the entire subscription, or only the files, mail, databases, or configuration.
- Click Restore and confirm.
Best practices for local backups
- Keep several recent backups so you can roll back to more than just the latest state.
- Combine full and incremental backups to balance storage use against restore speed.
- Check your available disk space regularly. Local backups count towards your subscription quota, and a full quota is the most common reason a backup task fails.
- Use clear comments when creating backups so the right one is easy to find at restore time.
- Always keep at least one off-server copy as well (see the remote backup options below). Local backups on their own will not protect you if the server is lost.
Troubleshooting
- Backup fails with a disk space or quota error: local backups are stored inside your subscription and count towards its disk quota. Free up space, lower the retention limit, or enable Exclude log files.
- A scheduled backup did not run: confirm Activate this backup task is ticked, and check the time and timezone set on the schedule. Add a notification email so Plesk can alert you if a run fails.
- Cannot raise the retention number: Plesk caps the maximum number of stored full backups at server level, and your value cannot exceed the limit shown on screen.
Local backups are a first line of defence, but they are only half of a safe backup strategy. If you would like Noiz to help set up off-server backups or advise on a retention policy for your subscription, contact the Noiz support team through your client area.
