How many backups SiteVault Pro keepsPRO
SiteVault Pro deletes old backups automatically so your server and cloud storage do not fill up. This page explains the two numbers that decide how many backups are kept, the backups that are never deleted, when the cleanup runs and what happens to your cloud copies.
Each schedule keeping its own number of backups needs SiteVault Pro 1.7.50 or later. After the update, a one-time notice on the SiteVault screens lists how many backups each of your schedules keeps.
The two numbers that decide what is kept
Every finished backup counts toward exactly one of these limits, depending on how it was made:
| Backups made by | Kept | Where you set it |
|---|---|---|
| A schedule | The newest backups up to that schedule’s own number | Retention when you create the schedule (default 30) |
| Anything else: Backup Now, WP-CLI, the REST API, backups before updates, staging push safety backups, files added with Find Untracked, and backups of a schedule you deleted | The newest backups up to one shared number | SiteVault > Settings > Backup Retention (default 30) |
So a site with a daily schedule that keeps 7 and a weekly schedule that keeps 4 keeps up to 7 daily backups, up to 4 weekly backups, and up to the Backup Retention number of all other backups.
Backups retention never deletes
- The newest finished full backup. Whatever the counts say, you always keep one complete backup of the whole site.
- A backup that has not reached your cloud storage yet, for its first 7 days. While a cloud destination is active, a backup that only exists on your server is kept for 7 days, even when it falls outside its keep count, because it may be your only copy. After 7 days it is deleted like any other backup outside the count.
If backups stay on your server only, check the provider first. The cloud sync failure alerts guide shows how to find and fix a failing destination, so the backups upload before the 7 days run out.
When the cleanup runs
- After each scheduled backup, for that schedule’s backups.
- Once a day, for the backups not made by a schedule.
A backup that is still being made is never touched. Only finished backups count toward the limits.
What happens to cloud copies
By default, retention removes the copy of a backup on your server and leaves its copies in your cloud destinations alone. To have retention clean up the cloud as well:
Open SiteVault > Settings
Find the Cloud Copies row.
Check “Apply retention to cloud copies”, then save
From then on, when retention removes a backup it also deletes that backup’s copies in your cloud destinations. A delete that the provider refuses is retried on the next runs.
Deleting a backup by hand on the Backups page only removes the copy on your server. To clear old files from a cloud destination yourself, use Find Untracked on the Cloud Storage page.
FAQ
Why did some of my older backups disappear?
Retention deleted them. A schedule keeps the number of backups set on that schedule, and backups made any other way (Backup Now, WP-CLI, the REST API, before updates, staging pushes) follow the Backup Retention number in SiteVault > Settings. When there are more than that, the oldest ones are deleted: a schedule's after each of its runs, the others once a day.
Why do I have more backups than the number I set?
The two limits add up: each schedule keeps its own number, and backups not made by a schedule have their own limit on top. Retention also never deletes the newest finished full backup, or a backup under 7 days old that has not reached your cloud storage yet while a cloud destination is active.
Does retention delete my cloud copies too?
Only if you turn it on. By default retention removes the copy on your server. With Apply retention to cloud copies checked in SiteVault > Settings (Cloud Copies), the copies in your cloud destinations are deleted too, and a delete the provider refuses is retried.
How do I change how many backups a schedule keeps?
Create the schedule again with the Retention number you want, then delete the old schedule. The backups the old schedule made then follow the Backup Retention number in Settings.