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Backup wp-content Only

In many WordPress restores and migrations, the only unique files are under wp-content/ (themes, plugins, uploads). WordPress core can be reinstalled from upstream. This approach can reduce backup size and restore time, but it still requires a database backup.

Quick Summary
  • Back up wp-content/ + database.
  • Also capture wp-config.php (treat as a secret).
  • Reinstall WordPress core during restore.
  • Validate by restoring into staging.

When this is a good idea​

  • You have a reproducible WordPress core (same major/minor version).
  • You want faster transfers for a large site.
  • You are comfortable rebuilding server config (nginx/php-fpm) from docs.

When this is a bad idea​

  • You need a full forensic snapshot (include everything).
  • The server has custom code outside wp-content/.
  • You are not sure what is unique on disk.

Create the wp-content archive​

backup-wp-content-tar-zst.sh
sudo mkdir -p /backups

sudo tar -C /var/www/html \
  --exclude='wp-content/cache' \
  --exclude='wp-content/*/cache' \
  -cf - wp-content \
  | zstd -3 -T0 -o "/backups/wp-content-$(date +%F).tar.zst"

Create the database dump​

backup-db-for-wp-content-only.sh
mysqldump --single-transaction --quick --routines --events --triggers \
  --column-statistics=0 wordpress \
  | zstd -3 -T0 -o "/backups/wp-db-$(date +%F).sql.zst"

Capture wp-config.php (as a secret)​

backup-wp-config-as-secret.sh
sudo install -m 700 -d /backups/secrets
sudo install -m 600 /var/www/html/wp-config.php "/backups/secrets/wp-config-$(date +%F).php"

Restore workflow (high-level)​

  1. Install WordPress core (same version).
  2. Restore wp-content/.
  3. Restore database.
  4. Restore or recreate wp-config.php.
  5. Fix permissions.
warning

Restoring into /var/www/html can overwrite production files. Use a staging directory first.

restore-wp-content-to-staging.sh
sudo rm -rf /tmp/restore-test
sudo mkdir -p /tmp/restore-test

sudo tar --use-compress-program=zstd -xf /backups/wp-content-2026-03-01.tar.zst -C /tmp/restore-test
sudo find /tmp/restore-test -maxdepth 2 -type d -name uploads -print

Next steps​

  • Secrets handling: opt/docker-data/apps/docusaurus/site/docs/server/linux-server/10-backup-disaster-recovery/backup-env--wpconfigphp.mdx.