wp-backup

name	wp-backup
description	Full WordPress site backup via SSH — database dump + wp-content/ archive. Stores backup on server with rotation, optionally downloads locally. Use before any destructive operation or on a maintenance schedule.
triggers	["backup site","backup WordPress","create backup","export database","backup before update"]

Skill: wp-backup

Creates a timestamped backup of a WordPress site: MySQL dump + wp-content/ archive

• wp-config.php copy. Handles rotation and optional local download.

What is backed up

Component	File created
MySQL database	wp-backup-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS-db.sql.gz
wp-content/	wp-backup-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS-files.tar.gz (cache excluded)
wp-config.php	wp-backup-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS-wp-config.php

Backup is stored in ../wp-arsenal-backups/ relative to the WP root by default.

Usage

# Full backup (DB + files)
python scripts/management/wp-backup.py --config config/config.yaml

# Download backup to local machine
python scripts/management/wp-backup.py --config config/config.yaml --output-local ./backups/

# DB-only (faster, smaller)
python scripts/management/wp-backup.py --config config/config.yaml --no-files

# Files-only (no DB)
python scripts/management/wp-backup.py --config config/config.yaml --no-db

# Custom rotation (default is 7 sets)
python scripts/management/wp-backup.py --config config/config.yaml --keep 14

# Custom backup directory on server
python scripts/management/wp-backup.py --config config/config.yaml --backup-dir /backups/mysite

When to run

• Before any cleanup operation (wp-shell-nuke, wp-harden, etc.)
• Before WordPress updates (wp-update.py)
• Before plugin changes
• On a weekly cron schedule for all managed sites

Cron automation (weekly backup)

# Add to crontab or IONOS scheduled tasks:
0 2 * * 0 /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/wp-arsenal/scripts/management/wp-backup.py \
    --config /path/to/config/config.yaml \
    --keep 4 >> /var/log/wp-arsenal-backup.log 2>&1

Restore from backup

# Restore database
gunzip < wp-backup-20260615-020000-db.sql.gz | mysql -u USER -pPASS DB_NAME

# Restore wp-content/
tar -xzf wp-backup-20260615-020000-files.tar.gz -C /path/to/wordpress/

Before every destructive operation

wp-backup → wp-forensics → wp-shell-nuke → ...
↑ always first