How to use automated backups on a VPS

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Find out how to use the Automated backup option in the OVHcloud Control Panel to secure your data

Objective

The Automated backup option for VPS offers a convenient way to have complete system backups available from your OVHcloud Control Panel without having to connect to the server to create and restore them manually. Another advantage is that you can also choose to mount a backup and then access its files remotely.

This guide explains the Automated backup option for your OVHcloud VPS.

Info

Before applying a backup strategy, we recommend consulting the product pages and FAQ for pricing comparisons and further details.

Requirements

  • An active Virtual Private Server in your OVHcloud account
  • Administrative access (sudo) via SSH to your VPS (optional).

OVHcloud Control Panel Access

  • Direct link:
  • Navigation path: Bare Metal Cloud > Virtual private servers > Select your VPS
Warning

This feature is currently unavailable for Virtual Private Servers in Local Zones.

Instructions

Content overview

When you order a VPS, a single daily Automated backup is included as a free service option. This standard backup option allows you to:

  • Mount and restore the daily backup.
  • Set the time of day this backup will be created.

For more flexibility with your backups, you can activate the Premium Automated Backup option.

How to subscribe to Premium Automated Backup

The Premium Automated Backup option creates a backup of your VPS every 24 hours at the specified time.
You will have access to all daily backups of the last 7 days. Once 7 backups are created, each new backup will replace the oldest one.

Click the Automated backup tab in the horizontal menu.

Click the link Order a premium backup (for services ordered from 7 AUG, 2025) or the button Enable Automated backup.

autobackup vps2025autobackup vps

In the next step, note the pricing information, then click Order. You will be guided through the order process and receive a confirmation email.

How to configure the backup time

You can change the time of day at which the backup will take place.

After selecting your VPS, click on the Automated backup tab in the horizontal menu.

Click on ... above the table and then on Edit.

autobackupvps

In the window that appears, edit the time of day (24-hour UTC time standard). Click on Confirm.

autobackupvps
Info

Once confirmed in the Control Panel, the change will come into effect after 24 to 48 hours.

How to restore a backup from the OVHcloud Control Panel

After selecting your VPS, click on the Automated backup tab in the horizontal menu.
Click the button ... next to the backup you would like to restore and select Restoration.

autobackupvps

If you recently changed your root password, make sure to tick the option "Modify the root password on restoration" in the popup window to preserve your current root password and click on Confirm. You will receive an email as soon as the task is complete. The restoration might take a while, depending on the disk space used.

Danger

Please note that the automated backups will not include your additional disks.

How to mount and access a backup

It is not necessary to completely overwrite your existing service with a restoration. The "Mounting" option allows you to access the backup data to retrieve your files.

Information regarding OVHcloud service administration and how to find appropriate assistance

When using OVHcloud guides, please be aware of the following conditions:

  • User instructions aim to provide as many details as possible but cannot cover individual use cases. You might need to adapt the pertinent actions to your requirements.
  • The OVHcloud ecosystem is built for flexibility and freedom of choice. Customers are therefore responsible for the secure and proper configuration of their services. To prevent data loss, we strongly recommend to apply backup strategies to all your important data.
  • Our guides and tutorials may reference third-party software or services in combination with OVHcloud solutions. The technical support provided by OVHcloud does not include the configuration of systems or products outside of our responsibility. This includes but is not limited to:
    • Operating systems and user interfaces (Windows, Debian, Plesk, etc.).
    • Any other third-party software (FTP clients, email software, etc.).
    • Services offered by other providers (DNS, APIs, user interfaces, etc.).

To receive the appropriate assistance for any issues you might experience, follow these guidelines:

  • You seek personalized advice or you would like to discuss a topic that is not covered in detail by our documentation?
    Join the OVHcloud Community to search for your topic and reach out to other users.
  • You need to report an incident regarding your OVHcloud service or you are experiencing difficulties in the OVHcloud Control Panel?
    Create a support request in our Help Centre.
  • You require professional assistance for your project or you need help with tasks outside our support scope?
    Visit our partner portal to search for experts who are familiar with OVHcloud solutions.
  • You are looking for more detailed information regarding our support levels and Professional Services?
    Please visit our web pages for OVHcloud support levels and OVHcloud Professional Services.

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After selecting your VPS, click on the Automated backup tab in the horizontal menu.
Click on ... next to the backup you need to access and select Mounting.

autobackupvps

When you use this option, a read-write copy of the backup is created and mounted. The original backup will remain available unchanged for future restorations.

After the process is completed, you will receive an email. You can now connect to your VPS and access the partition where your backup is located.

Using Secure Shell

First, connect to your VPS via SSH.

You can use the following command to verify the name of the newly attached device:

lsblk

Here is a sample output of this command:

NAME    MAJ:MIN RM  SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
sda       8:0    0   25G  0 disk 
├─sda1    8:1    0 24.9G  0 part /
├─sda14   8:14   0    4M  0 part 
└─sda15   8:15   0  106M  0 part 
sdb       8:16   0   25G  0 disk 
├─sdb1    8:17   0 24.9G  0 part 
├─sdb14   8:30   0    4M  0 part 
└─sdb15   8:31   0  106M  0 part /boot/efi

In this example, the partition containing your backup filesystem is named "sdb1".
Next, create a directory for this partition and define it as the mountpoint:

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/restore
sudo mount /dev/sdb1 /mnt/restore

You can now switch to this folder and access your backup data.

Remember to unmount the backup once you have finished using it. Click on the button Unmount the backup in the Automated backup tab, then confirm in the popup window.

unmount

Using Windows

Establish an RDP connection to your server.

Once logged in, right-click on the Start Menu button, and then click Disk Management.

disk management

When the disk management tool opens, your mounted backup will appear as a basic disk with the same storage space as your main disk.

mounted backup

The disk will appear as Offline, right-click on the disk and select Online.

online backup

Once done, your mounted backup will be accessible in the File Explorer.

file explorer

Remember to unmount the backup once you have finished using it. Click on the button Unmount the backup in the Automated backup tab, then confirm in the popup window.

unmount
Warning

Please note that a server reboot will occur when the backup is unmounted.

Best practice for using Automated backups

The Automated Backup functionality is based on VPS snapshots. We recommend following the steps below to prevent any issues before using this option.

Configuring the QEMU agent on a VPS

Snapshots are instantaneous images of your running system ("live snapshot"). To ensure the availability of your system when the snapshot is created, the QEMU agent is used to prepare the filesystem for the process.

The "qemu-guest-agent" agent is not installed by default on most distributions. Moreover, licensing restrictions may prevent OVHcloud from including it in the available OS images. Therefore, it is best practice to verify and install the agent if it is not activated on your VPS. Connect to your VPS via SSH and follow the instructions below, according to your operating system.

Debian-based distributions (Debian, Ubuntu)

Use the following command to check whether the system is properly set up for snapshots:

file /dev/virtio-ports/org.qemu.guest_agent.0

The expected output is:

/dev/virtio-ports/org.qemu.guest_agent.0: symbolic link to ../vport2p1

If the output is different, for example "No such file or directory", install the latest version of the package:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install qemu-guest-agent

Reboot the VPS:

sudo reboot

Start the service to ensure it is running:

sudo service qemu-guest-agent start
Redhat-based distributions (Centos, Fedora)

Use the following command to check whether the system is properly set up for snapshots:

file /dev/virtio-ports/org.qemu.guest_agent.0

The expected output is:

/dev/virtio-ports/org.qemu.guest_agent.0: symbolic link to ../vport2p1

If the output is different, for example "No such file or directory", install and enable the agent:

sudo yum install qemu-guest-agent
sudo chkconfig qemu-guest-agent on

Reboot the VPS:

sudo reboot

Start the agent and verify that it is running:

sudo service qemu-guest-agent start
sudo service qemu-guest-agent status
Windows

You can install the agent via MSI file, available from the Fedora project website: https://fedorapeople.org/groups/virt/virtio-win/direct-downloads/latest-qemu-ga/.

Verify that the service is running by using this PowerShell command:

PS C:\Users\Administrator> Get-Service QEMU-GA
Status   Name               DisplayName
------   ----               -----------
Running  QEMU-GA            QEMU Guest Agent

Go further

How to use snapshots on a VPS

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