Offsite Backup Solution MySQL Backup Tool

MySQL Backup Tool is a free program for Microsoft Windows devices that enables you to backup MySQL tables, create SQL dump files, and more.

Backups are an important part not only when it comes to local data but also data such as apps, files, or databases made available online or in a computer network.

Websites are usually made up of files on a web server and content stored in a database. The best option to backup those files and databases is to run a cron job that backs up all files and moves them to another backup location automatically.

Backing up data to remote locations ensures that the site or app can be recovered if files on the server are damaged or deleted, or if the server fails completely. A hard drive failure for instance would take all data with it, and if backups are stored on that drive, well, then those are gone too.

Many web hosting companies offer backups as part of plans, or as add-ons for a plan. While that is comfortable, depending on the company you are dealing with, you may have to pay a pretty penny for the privilege.

MySQL Backup Tool

Webmasters who want to create a quick local copy of their MySQL database have several options at hand. They can connect via ssh to the server and create a database backup, or use phpMyAdmin if the database is not that big.

Another comfortable option is the offsite backup software MySQL Backup Tool for the Windows operating system. The Open Source software can be used to create a backup of a specified local or remote MySQL database.

You need to enter the login credentials of a user authorized to access the MySQL database (MySQL username, password and database name), and set a backup location on the local system.

While you may backup full MySQL databases using the tool, you may also blacklist tables that you don't want included in the back up. This can be useful to speed up the back up process or decrease the amount of storage needed on the local system.

For instance, if you don't need a temporary table, or a table with email spam, then you could block those from being backed up with the rest.

MySQL Backup Tool provides other options: it allows you to password protect the backup, compress it to save space on the local system, or store tables in a single file or separate files.

You may save the settings that you modify so that they become available when you use the program in the future. A click on Start Backup will initiate the backup process. The software displays status information on the screen.

Update: The most recent version of the database backup program supports additional features. You may use a whitelist instead of a blacklist for instance; useful if you need to backup a small number of tables only.

There is also an option to delete old backups by selecting a number that you want to keep at any point in time.

Closing Words

MySQL Backup Tool is a handy software program for Windows users who want to backup MySQL databases occasionally. The application can be added to the Windows Task Scheduler so that backups are created regularly. The program can be downloaded from the project's website over at Sourceforge.

Advertisement