Backup and restore

Backups are for owners only. Open Backup and restore (/admin/backup), or select Open backup page in the Maintenance section of Customize.

What a backup contains

A backup is a .tar.gz archive with:

• the database rows and schema
• app icons
• the branding logo
• the avatar cache
• plugin files
• the Frontdoor version and commit that produced it

Backups contain personal data (user names and emails, group memberships, access and audit logs). Store them like any other sensitive file, and consider encrypting them with a passphrase.

The export reads one consistent snapshot of the database without blocking writes, so Frontdoor keeps working while it runs.

Create a backup

1. In Create a backup, optionally tick Leave out access and audit logs for a smaller file.
2. Optionally enter an Encryption passphrase and repeat it. The backup is then encrypted (.tar.gz.enc). The passphrase must be at least 12 characters, and the file is encrypted with AES-256-GCM. Frontdoor does not store the passphrase: if it is lost, the backup cannot be restored.
3. Select Download backup.

Frontdoor shows the progress of each stage (database, icons, branding, avatars) and offers the download link when it is done.

Check a backup

Select a file with Choose backup file and use Check backup: Frontdoor describes what the archive contains without changing anything. For an encrypted backup, enter its passphrase.

Restore a backup

1. Choose the backup file and, if it is encrypted, enter the passphrase.
2. Select Restore backup and confirm.

The restore is atomic: either all of it applies, or nothing changes. It also takes the backup's version into account. Older .json.gz backups can still be checked and restored.

Restoring replaces the current data, so check the backup first.

Download the raw database

Under Advanced options, Download database file (.db) gives you an exact copy of the SQLite file while Frontdoor is running.

Large backups

Uploads for checking and restoring are streamed to a temporary file, so their size is limited by disk space rather than memory. The largest accepted file is set by BACKUP_MAX_UPLOAD_MB (default 1024). If a reverse proxy sits in front of Frontdoor, it needs a matching body size limit. See Configuration reference.

Before an upgrade

Always download a backup before you upgrade. Operators can also rehearse the upgrade on a copy of the backup and decrypt encrypted backups from the command line: see Upgrade and rollback.