Skip to main content

Manual cPanel to cPanel complete Backup

Dan Weber

Hi,

I have cPanel installed on an AlmaLinux server with 30 cPanel accounts and around 200GB of data. Unfortunately, the OS has become corrupted and is no longer bootable. I managed to boot the server in rescue mode and can access the data.

I need guidance on manually backing up the necessary data so I can perform a fresh OS installation and restore all accounts, including PHP, Apache configurations, and other related files. Could you please guide me on which folders, directories, and files I should back up to ensure a complete recovery?

Thank you!

Comments

6 comments

Date Votes
  • cPRex Jurassic Moderator

    Hey there!  While the purpose of this guide is for unsupported OS migrations, it will provide you with all the information you're looking for to get things moved:

    https://docs.cpanel.net/knowledge-base/transfers-and-restores/how-to-manually-migrate-accounts-to-cpanel-from-unsupported-control-panels/

    Let me know if you need anything else!

    0
  • Dan Weber

    I have already gone through the guide, but it doesn’t address my specific concerns. For example, it doesn’t explain how settings like my Apache php modules, firewall configurations, and other system settings will be preserved during the backup and restoration process.

    Could you please guide me on how to ensure these settings are backed up and restored correctly?

    0
  • Dan Weber

    Hi,

    I need help taking a MySQL backup in my specific case. Here's the situation:

    • I checked the /home/cpanel-user directory, but I could only find website and email files—there’s no mysql folder.
    • In the /var/lib/mysql/cpanel-user directory, I found files with .ibd, .MYD, and .MYI extensions only.

    How can I back up the MySQL user account and restore it in this scenario? I would appreciate your guidance.

    Thank you!

    0
  • cPRex Jurassic Moderator

    For the Apache settings, those don't get backed up and restored - you would just recreate them through EasyApache on the new server.

    cPanel has never had a tool that has backed up firewall settings, so that isn't something we would have available even on a working machine.

    There isn't going to be much good news about MySQL either - typically you would have a backup where the files are dumped into .sql files, such as what cPanel creates as part of our backups.  If MySQL is running in rescue mode you could perform mysql dumps manually with the "mysqldump" command https://support.cpanel.net/hc/en-us/articles/360041291913-MySQL-backups-with-mysqldump and then import those into a newly-created database on the new server.  If all you have is the flat files, you may need to get a professional MySQL administrator involved to get those restored.

    0
  • Dan Weber

    Hi thanks for the earlier response, 

    But somehow I was able to boot into my main OS - AlmaLinux8 but still I am experiencing critical issues with my server where essential services are not functioning as expected. Below are the details of the problems and steps I have taken to troubleshoot:

     

    1. PowerDNS:
    • PowerDNS is failing to start with the following error:

     

    • Steps Taken:
      • Reinstalled PowerDNS and its related backend modules multiple times.
      • Tried custom builds from source (e.g., PowerDNS version 4.9.2).
      • Attempted to resolve missing libraries and dependencies, but the error persists.
      • Verified pdns.conf exists at /etc/pdns/pdns.conf and is correctly configured.
      • Checked for missing or undefined symbols using nm and ldd commands on backend libraries.
      • Adjusted symbolic links and library paths but could not resolve the startup error.

     

    1. Dovecot:
    • Dovecot is not starting correctly and logs errors like:

     

    master: Error: service(auth): command startup failed master: Error: service(stats): command startup failed

    • Steps Taken:
      • Reinstalled Dovecot multiple times.
      • Verified the configuration file at /usr/local/etc/dovecot/dovecot.conf.
      • Manually checked and attempted to resolve missing dependencies or misconfigurations.

     

    1. WHM/cPanel:
    • WHM and cPanel are not loading even though cpsrvd was working.
    • Attempted to restore WHM using the following command:

    /usr/local/cpanel/scripts/upcp

    However, this did not resolve the issue.

    •  
    • Steps Taken:
      • Tried restarting cPanel services using /scripts/restartsrv_cpsrvd.

     

    Current Access:

    • WHM and cPanel are not loading.
    • The only available access to the server is via SSH.

     

    Request:

    Please assist in resolving as I have spent considerable time troubleshooting these issues and suspect it may require deeper investigation or intervention at the system level.

     

    0
  • cPRex Jurassic Moderator

    Dan Weber - I agree - at this point it would be best to create a ticket as those issues and the severity of the damage to the server are beyond the scope of troubleshooting over the Forum.

    0

Please sign in to leave a comment.

Didn't find what you were looking for?

New post