DESIGN DEPOT Q&A
Rew Rixom, Blizzard Internet Marketing, Inc.
Question: I have been told that my website is ‘live’ and that I need to back it up? What does this mean?
Answer: What we mean by a ‘live website’ is that the most current copy of the website resides on the web server, and is visible at the domain name, rather than residing on a server in our office. The reason that you need to back up the website is that if anything happens to the website on the web server, you’ll need to have a copy of the most current version (your back up) to replace it. This can happen more than you think, and a back up really saves an unpleasant situation.
Question: So how do I back up my website?
Answer: You’ll need to download it using File Transfer Protocols (FTP). When your website first went live, our Hosting Department would have provided you with FTP access to the website, including a username and password. If you do not have this information, please e-mail our hosting department to obtain it.
Web editing software programs such as FrontPage and Dreamweaver already have built in FTP programs, but using them to download your website can be confusing. Luckily, most web browsers will have FTP capabilities so you don’t need to purchase any software.
Just type your website’s FTP address into your web browser’s address bar. If your domain name is http://www.haleyfarm.com, then your FTP address will be ftp://www.haleyfarm.com. At this point, you’ll be prompted for your username and password. Once you have entered your information, you’ll see your website in file view.
Once you select all of the files, it is a simple task to copy and paste the files into a folder that you have created on your computer.
