Backup & Recovery

Updated: 2026-03-28

Regular backups are essential for safeguarding your site's data. This guide covers backup and recovery procedures for each Dujiao-Next component.

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1. What to Back Up

Item	Path	Importance
Database	db/ (SQLite) or PostgreSQL	Critical
Configuration file	config.yml	High
Uploaded files	uploads/	High

The frontends are embedded in the binary — there are no static asset directories to back up separately. Paths below are relative to the program's working directory (for Docker deployments, the data/ directory mounted from the host).

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2. Database Backup

2.1 SQLite

SQLite data is stored in a single file -- simply copy it:

# Back up
cp db/dujiao.db db/dujiao.db.bak.$(date +%Y%m%d%H%M%S)

It is recommended to back up while the service is stopped or during low-traffic periods to avoid write conflicts.

2.2 PostgreSQL

Use pg_dump to back up:

# Full database backup
pg_dump -U dujiao -d dujiao -F c -f dujiao_backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).dump

# Data-only backup (no schema, suitable for migration)
pg_dump -U dujiao -d dujiao --data-only -f dujiao_data_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

2.3 Docker Environment Backup

# SQLite (copy directly from the container)
docker compose cp dujiao-next:/app/db/dujiao.db ./backup/dujiao.db

# PostgreSQL (using pg_dump)
docker compose exec postgres pg_dump -U dujiao -d dujiao -F c -f /tmp/backup.dump
docker compose cp postgres:/tmp/backup.dump ./backup/

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3. Configuration File Backup

cp config.yml backup/config.yml.$(date +%Y%m%d)

config.yml contains sensitive values such as database passwords and JWT secrets. Its app.secret_key is required to recover encrypted configuration stored in the database. Restrict backup permissions and always keep it paired with the matching database backup.

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4. Uploaded Files Backup

# Direct copy
cp -r uploads backup/uploads_$(date +%Y%m%d)

# Or use rsync for incremental backup
rsync -av uploads/ backup/uploads/

Docker environment:

docker compose cp dujiao-next:/app/uploads ./backup/uploads

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5. Automated Backup Script

Create a scheduled backup script:

#!/bin/bash
# backup.sh

BACKUP_DIR="/path/to/backup/$(date +%Y%m%d)"
APP_DIR="/path/to/dujiao-studio/api"

mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"

# Back up database (SQLite)
cp "$APP_DIR/db/dujiao.db" "$BACKUP_DIR/dujiao.db"

# Back up configuration
cp "$APP_DIR/config.yml" "$BACKUP_DIR/config.yml"

# Back up uploaded files
rsync -a "$APP_DIR/uploads/" "$BACKUP_DIR/uploads/"

# Remove backups older than 30 days
find /path/to/backup -maxdepth 1 -mtime +30 -type d -exec rm -rf {} \;

echo "Backup completed: $BACKUP_DIR"

Add a crontab entry for scheduled execution:

# Run backup daily at 3:00 AM
0 3 * * * /path/to/backup.sh >> /var/log/dujiao-backup.log 2>&1

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6. Restoring Data

6.1 Restore SQLite

# Stop the service
systemctl stop dujiao-next

# Restore the database
cp backup/dujiao.db db/dujiao.db

# Start the service
systemctl start dujiao-next

6.2 Restore PostgreSQL

# Stop the service
systemctl stop dujiao-next

# Restore the database
pg_restore -U dujiao -d dujiao -c backup/dujiao_backup.dump

# Start the service
systemctl start dujiao-next

6.3 Restore Configuration and Uploaded Files

cp backup/config.yml config.yml
cp -r backup/uploads/* uploads/

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7. Backup Recommendations

• Frequency: Back up the database at least once daily; for high-traffic sites, every 6--12 hours is recommended
• Retention: Keep at least 7 days of historical backups; 30 days is recommended
• Off-site storage: Store critical data in a remote location (e.g., object storage, a separate server)
• Testing: Periodically test the recovery process to ensure backups are valid
• Security: Backup files contain sensitive information -- pay attention to storage security and access permissions