Backups

Automatic backups, copies off the server, and restoring one.

2 min read

Qwest backs itself up. Out of the box it makes a backup every day at 03:00 (UTC) and keeps the last 7. Each backup is one .tar file with the database and the uploads folder.

Change the schedule

Open Instance admin›Backups.
Set How often (every 6 hours, 12 hours, day or week), the time, and Backups to keep (1 to 100).
Click Save.

Click Back up now any time, for example before an update. Old backups are only deleted after a new one succeeds.

Keep a copy off the server

Backups on the server don’t help if the server’s disk dies. Set an off-site copy and each new backup is copied there too.

In Instance admin›Backups›Off-site copy, pick one:

Option	Use it for
Folder	A NAS or second disk mounted on the server, or a folder that Dropbox, Google Drive or OneDrive syncs.
S3-compatible bucket	Backblaze B2, Cloudflare R2, Wasabi, AWS… (see cloud storage for providers). Use a bucket, or a folder in one, for backups only.
rclone remote	Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, SFTP and 70 more, through rclone.

Click Test, then Save. Each backup in the list then shows whether its copy got there.

Set up an rclone remote (Google Drive, Dropbox…)

rclone is included in Qwest. From your qwest folder on the server:

docker compose exec qwest rclone config

Type n (new remote) and name it, like gdrive.
Pick your service from the list (for example Google Drive) and answer the questions. Keep the defaults when unsure.
When it asks to use a web browser to sign in and the server has no screen, answer n. It gives you a command to run on your own computer, where you sign in, and a code to paste back.

Then in Qwest, enter the remote with a folder, like gdrive:qwest-backups.

Download a backup

Instance admin›Backups: click Download next to any backup. Keep one somewhere safe now and then.

Restore a backup

Restoring replaces everything with the backup’s content. Qwest saves the current database and moves the current uploads aside first, so you can undo it.

From your qwest folder:

If the backup isn’t on the server already (like one you downloaded), copy it in:
Terminal window
```
docker compose cp qwest-backup-2026-10-01T03-00-00-000Z.tar qwest:/data/backups/
```
Stop Qwest (the database keeps running):
Terminal window
```
docker compose stop qwest
```

Restore it (use the backup’s file name):

docker compose run --rm qwest bun /app/restore.js /data/backups/qwest-backup-2026-10-01T03-00-00-000Z.tar --yes

Start Qwest again:
Terminal window
```
docker compose up -d
```

To list the backups on the server: docker compose exec qwest ls /data/backups.