HOSTDOG creates automated daily backups of every shared hosting account. If you need to undo a mistake, recover deleted files, or roll back a database, you can restore from one of these backups directly in your hosting control panel. This guide walks you through the entire process.
Before you begin
- An active shared hosting account with HOSTDOG
- Access to your hosting control panel (how to log in)
Restore from a backup
Navigate to the HOSTDOG homepage and click the Log in button in the top-right corner. From your client area, go to your hosting service and click Login to Control Panel.
In your control panel, find the Files section and click Backup (or Backup Wizard for a guided experience). This page lists all available backup snapshots and the restore options for your account.
The backup tool lets you restore different parts of your account independently. Select the type of restore you need:
| Restore type | What it recovers |
|---|---|
| Home Directory | All website files inside public_html and other directories in your home folder |
| MySQL Databases | A specific database — structure and data (select the database by name) |
| Email Forwarders | Email forwarding rules configured on your account |
| Email Filters | Email filtering rules for your mailboxes |
Choose which backup snapshot to restore from. The available dates depend on your plan's retention policy. Select the date closest to — but before — the incident you are recovering from. For example, if a plugin update broke your site on Tuesday, select Monday's backup.
Click the Restore button to start the process. Depending on the size of your data, the restore may take anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes. Do not close your browser or navigate away until the process completes.
The control panel will display a confirmation message when the restore finishes successfully.
After the restore completes, verify that everything is working correctly:
- Website files — visit your website in a browser and check that pages load as expected. Clear your browser cache if you see outdated content.
- Database — open your application (e.g., WordPress admin panel) and confirm that your content and settings are intact.
- Email — send a test email to and from your restored accounts to verify delivery.
If the site uses caching, clear the application cache after restoring to ensure the restored data is served immediately.
Need an older backup?
The control panel shows only the most recent backup snapshots available for self-service restore. If you need a backup from a date that is no longer listed, open a support ticket and our team will check whether an older snapshot is still available on our infrastructure. Include the approximate date and what you need restored (files, a specific database, email) so we can help you as quickly as possible.
Troubleshooting
If the restore process fails or times out, try again after a few minutes — server load may have caused the interruption. If the problem persists, check that your account has not exceeded its disk quota (a full disk can prevent the restore from writing files). You can view your disk usage on the control panel's main page. If neither of these resolves the issue, open a support ticket and include any error messages you see.
A home directory restore replaces the backed-up files but does not remove files that were added after the backup date. If files appear to be missing, they may not have existed at the time of the backup. Check the backup date you selected — if the files were created after that date, they would not be included. If you believe the backup itself is incomplete, contact support so we can investigate.
If your website shows database connection errors after a restore, verify that the database name, username, and password in your application's configuration file still match the restored database. Restoring a database does not change the database user credentials, but if you recently changed them, the backup may contain an older version. Also ensure that you restored the correct database — if your account has multiple databases, confirm you selected the right one. For WordPress, check wp-config.php; for Joomla, check configuration.php.
If the backup tool shows no available dates, it may mean that the backup cycle has not yet completed for your account (e.g., if the account was recently created). Wait 24 hours for the first automated backup to run. If you still see no backups after that period, contact support — there may be a server-side issue that needs attention.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. A restore replaces the selected data (home directory, database, or email settings) with the backup copy. Any changes made after the backup date will be lost for the restored component. Other parts of your account that you did not restore remain untouched.
You can restore individual databases by selecting the specific database name during the restore process. For individual files, the control panel may offer a file-level restore option depending on the backup system. If not, contact support and we can extract specific files from the backup for you.
The available restore points depend on your plan's backup retention. Shared hosting accounts have access to multiple recent daily snapshots. The exact number of days varies, so check the backup tool in your control panel to see which dates are currently available. For older backups, contact support.
No. Restoring from HOSTDOG's automated daily backups is included with every shared hosting plan at no additional cost. Self-service restores through the control panel and support-assisted restores are both free of charge.