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Duplicator Documentation

Documentation, Reference Materials, and Tutorials for Duplicator

How to handle recovery install setup/launch issues?

Issue AI need to restore my site from a crash or other major issue.

You need to restore your site from a previous backup. Before doing so consider that purpose of your restore. For example if your site has been hacked, has crashed or something has gone wrong, what are your options?

Solution 1Recovery Point Restore
This option which is only available in Duplicator Pro and allows users to restore from a specific recovery point or simply a URL link. For full details onthis process please visit the following articleHow to Quickly Restore Your WordPress Site using a “Recovery Point”.

Solution 2Manual Restore
If you choose to restore a site here are some recommended steps to take. We recommend cleaning out the directory and starting with a brand new database, this way you can be sure the issue you where having before will not show back up due to a corrupted file or database table. Starting with a clean environment always helps to lower your risk for issues. Follow these steps to restore a site.

  1. Clean out Directory: Delete all the exiting files of your WordPress site. If your not sure contact your host.
    Its not required but having your host backup all the current files and database is a good idea.
  2. Copy Package: Place the archive.zip/daf file and the installer.php file inside of the directory you just cleaned out.
  3. Run Installer: Open a web browser and browse to http://yoursite/installer.php and run through the setup.

Solution 3Professional Restore
Depending on the severity of your site going down there are alternatives you can take before trying to restoring a previous backup. It is recommended to take these approachesfirst because you won’t loose any data that may have been added to your site since the previous backup. In some cases if you do restore of a previous backup that may not fixthe issue permanently.

For example in the case of a hacked site if the security patch was not applied to the back up you want to restore then the securitybreach can easily happen after the site is restored if the threat is not properly identified. Below are some options to consider before trying to restore a site.


Issue BHow to handle a notice or error message when running the recovery restore mode.

Common Error Messages

Duplicator cannot set Recovery Point because on this Server it isn’t possible to execute PHP scripts in folder:
– /var/www/htdocs/wp-content/backups-dup-pro/recover

Option 1Server Permissions
If you see a permission error in the log consider visiting this FAQ for solving various permission issues. I get an error/warning about file permissions what should I do?

Option 2Security Plugins
Many security plugins including iThemes Security, Securi, WordFence along with several others can create hardening rules that lay down .htaccess files which prevents execution of phpfiles in the wp-content directory. This has the effect of blocking the creation/execution of recovery points. If you know this to be the case then check the settings in yoursecurity plugin and temporarily disable it or rename the .htaccess temporarily while you perform the action that is generating the warning/error.

Option 3Host Admins
In general if you cannot run a PHP file it is always a good thing to ask your host. If it is not possible to solve the situation there then the standard install modesare still available.Remember that if the package you try to install was created in the same place where you install it, thebackup restore installation is activated by default, which is practically identical to the recovery point.

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