One of the most important aspects of running a Minecraft server is ensuring your worlds are properly backed up. In this guide, we'll explore best practices for creating and managing backups.
Why Backups Matter
Server worlds can be lost due to:
- Hardware failures
- Corrupted world files
- Accidental deletion
- Server crashes
- Player griefing (if not caught in time)
- Active servers with frequent player activity
- Servers where recent progress is critical
- Development or testing servers
- Servers with predictable activity patterns
- When you want backups during low-traffic periods
- Conserving disk space with fewer backups
- You want guaranteed data consistency
- Brief downtime is acceptable
- Maximum reliability is required
- Zero downtime is required
- Players are always online
- You accept slightly less reliability
- Max Files: Keep only the last N backups (e.g., keep last 10 backups)
- Max Days: Delete backups older than N days (e.g., delete backups older than 30 days)
- Both: Combine both policies for optimal space management
- Create backups before major updates or world modifications
- Test your backup restoration process periodically
- Store backups on a separate drive or external storage
- Keep multiple backup jobs for critical servers (hourly + daily)
- Monitor disk space to ensure backups can be created
Regular backups ensure you can always restore to a previous state if something goes wrong.
Backup Scheduling
The wrapper supports two scheduling options:
Interval Scheduling
Backups run at regular intervals (e.g., every 60 minutes). This is ideal for:
Daily Scheduling
Backups run at a specific time each day (e.g., 2:00 AM). This is ideal for:
Backup Methods
Stop/Backup/Restart
This is the most reliable method. The server stops, creates a complete backup, then restarts. Use this when:
Save Hold/Query/Resume
This method creates backups while the server continues running. Use this when:
Retention Policies
Configure how long to keep backups:
Best Practices
Remember: A backup isn't useful if you can't restore it. Periodically test restoring backups to ensure they work correctly.