To back up a Space Station 14 server on PlayNHost, open Backups in the left menu and click Start backup in the Create backup panel. A backup holds the whole server folder, including server_config.toml and the data folder with the database of characters and playtime. The Automatic backup schedule also takes one every night when your plan has backup slots.
What does a Space Station 14 backup need to keep?
| File or folder | What it holds |
|---|---|
data | The server's database (a built-in SQLite file, preferences.db) with saved data such as characters and playtime |
server_config.toml | Every setting you changed by hand: player cap, admin user, whitelist, hub listing |
| Everything else | The game itself, which you can download again from the official build page |
The official hosting guide names the same two: to move "saved data such as characters and playtime", copy "the data folder and server_config.toml". The round being played is not saved anywhere: Space Station 14 rounds start fresh.
How do I take a backup now?
- Open your server in the panel. For a backup you want to rely on, for example before an update, click Stop first and wait for Offline, so the database file is not being written.
- In the left menu, click Backups.
- In the Create backup panel, type a Name if you like, for example
Before update. - Turn on Lock this backup if it must never be deleted by the automatic rotation.
- Click Start backup and wait until it finishes.
- Start the server again if you stopped it.
How do I restore a backup?
- In the left menu, click Backups.
- Open the menu of the backup you want and click Restore to server.
- Leave Delete files that are not in the backup on, unless you only want one file back.
- Click Restore backup. The server stops while files are replaced and players are disconnected.
- Click Start when the restore has finished.
The panel warns: "This puts your server back the way it was when the backup was taken. Anything changed since then, including your world, is replaced." For Space Station 14, that means characters and playtime made since the backup are gone.
How do I keep a copy on my own computer?
Open the backup's menu on the Backups page and click Download. To copy only the important part, open Files and use Download folder in the menu of the data folder and Download file in the menu of server_config.toml. The same files move your server to another PC or host, or from one to PlayNHost: How to move your Space Station 14 server to PlayNHost.
When does the automatic backup run?
Automatic backup under Quick Tasks runs every night. Once your backup allowance is full, the oldest backup makes room for the newest; a locked backup is kept out of that rotation. You can change its time on Backups, Scheduled backups, Edit.
More: How to create, download and restore backups. Before you update the game, back up first: How to update your Space Station 14 server.
