Spatie Laravel Backup – Backup management

Spatie Laravel Backup is a powerful package that helps manage backups for your Laravel application. It simplifies the process of creating, storing, and restoring backups of your application’s files and database. With built-in support for various storage systems, scheduling, and notification capabilities, this package is ideal for ensuring your application’s data is safe and recoverable.

Key Features of Spatie Laravel Backup:

Database and File Backups: Backup both your database and application files easily.
Multiple Storage Options: Store backups on various cloud services (e.g., AWS S3, Google Drive) or local disks.
Backup Scheduling: Use Laravel’s task scheduler to automate backup creation.
Notifications: Get notified via email or Slack when a backup fails or succeeds.
Backup Cleanup: Automatically delete old backups based on your configuration.

Installation

To get started with Spatie Laravel Backup, follow these steps:

Require the Package: Install the package using Composer:

composer require spatie/laravel-backup

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composer require spatie/laravel-backup
Publish the Configuration: Publish the configuration file by running:

php artisan vendor:publish --provider="Spatie\Backup\BackupServiceProvider"

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php artisan vendor:publish --provider="Spatie\Backup\BackupServiceProvider"

This will create a config/backup.php file where you can customize your backup settings.

Configuration

Open the config/backup.php file to configure the package. Here are some important settings you can adjust:

Backup Destination: Specify where backups should be stored. You can set up multiple destinations.
Database Configuration: Specify which databases to backup and their connection settings.
Backup Frequency: Define the frequency of backups (daily, weekly, etc.).
Cleanup Settings: Configure how many backups to retain.

Example Configuration

return [

    'backup' => [
        'name' => 'my-app',
        
        'source' => [
            'files' => [
                '/path/to/your/application',
            ],

            'databases' => [
                'mysql',
            ],
        ],

        'disks' => [
            'local',
            's3',
        ],

        'notifications' => [
            'slack' => [
                'webhook_url' => env('SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL'),
                'channel' => '#backups',
            ],
        ],
    ],

    'cleanup' => [
        'strategy' => 'default',

        'default' => [
            'keep_all_backups_for_days' => 7,
            'delete_backups_older_than_days' => 30,
        ],
    ],
];

return [

'backup' => [

'name' => 'my-app',

'source' => [

'files' => [

'/path/to/your/application',

'databases' => [

'mysql',

'disks' => [

'local',

's3',

'notifications' => [

'slack' => [

'webhook_url' => env('SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL'),

'channel' => '#backups',

'cleanup' => [

'strategy' => 'default',

'default' => [

'keep_all_backups_for_days' => 7,

'delete_backups_older_than_days' => 30,

];

Running Backups

You can create backups manually or automate them using the Laravel task scheduler.

Create a Backup Manually: To create a backup, run the following command:

php artisan backup:run

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php artisan backup:run
Automate Backups: To automate backups, add a task to your app/Console/Kernel.php file:

protected function schedule(Schedule $schedule) { $schedule->command('backup:run')->daily(); }

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protected function schedule(Schedule $schedule)
{
$schedule->command('backup:run')->daily();
}

Notifications

To set up notifications, configure your notification channels (like Slack or email) in the config/backup.php file. When a backup fails or succeeds, you will receive notifications based on your settings.

Backup Management

You can manage your backups using the following commands:

List Backups: To list all backups, run:

php artisan backup:list

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php artisan backup:list
Restore Backups: To restore a backup, you can run:

php artisan backup:restore {backup-name}

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php artisan backup:restore {backup-name}
Delete Old Backups: To delete old backups, run:

php artisan backup:clean

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php artisan backup:clean

Conclusion

Spatie Laravel Backup is a robust solution for managing backups in Laravel applications. Its straightforward configuration, automated scheduling, and support for multiple storage options make it an essential tool for ensuring data safety and recovery.

Additional Considerations

Test Restores: Regularly test your backup restoration process to ensure you can recover data when needed.
Storage Security: Ensure your backup storage (especially cloud storage) is secure and access is restricted.
Backup Monitoring: Set up monitoring to ensure backups run as scheduled and are not failing unnoticed.