The options page is split in sections by means of standard Joomla! slider panes. The page itself contains two areas entitled "Common Settings" and "Profile Settings". The former contains the configuration options which are common among all profiles, while the latter contains the profile-specific settings.
The Basic tab options on the Common Settings section are:
Output Directory. This is the directory where the result of the backup process goes. The result of the backup - depending on other configuration options - might be an archive file or an SQL file. The output directory must be accessible and writable by PHP.
![]() | Important |
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Providing a directory with adequate permissions might not be
enough! There are other PHP security mechanisms
which might prevent using a directory, for example the
|
Minimum Access Level. This defines the minimum Joomla! access level a back-end user must have in order to be able to access the component's functions. The default level ("Super Administrator") limits access to JoomlaPack to the Super Administrator group. Choosing "Administrator" allows both Administrator and Super Administrator group members to access the component, useful if you don't make a habit of loging in as a Super Administrator user. The last option, "Manager", effectively allows all back-end users to access the component which is dangerous! Use this option responsibly.
![]() | Warning |
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JoomlaPack backups contain all of the files and database records of your site. Anyone who is given access to this component must be absolutely and undisputably trusted because he will be able to clone the site on another - live or local - server, bypassing any restriction you might have implemented. |
The Frontend tab options on the Common Settings section are:
Enable front-end backup. Controls
the availability of front-end backup. The front-end backup feature
allows you to perform a backup operation using any profile you'd like
without logging in the Joomla! administrator section. It is primarily
used for automating the backup process using
cron
scripts, or other automated
utilities.
Secret word. In order to prevent DoS (Denial of Service) type of attacks by malicious users flooding your server with front-end backup requests, JoomlaPack implements the "secret word" approach. The "secret word" is an arbitrary string which has to be passed along in the front-end backup request URL in order for the process to begin.
![]() | Important |
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We suggest you to use only alphanumeric characters (a to Z and 0 to 9) for the secret word. If you use any special symbols, they will have to be passed URL-encoded for the front-end backup request URL to be valid and work at all. If you don't understand what URL encoding means, just follow our advice! |
![]() | Note |
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JoomlaPack will email all Super Administrators whenever a backup attempt is finished successfuly, or with a catchable backup error. If something goes awry and the backup attempt is halted abruptly on the cause of a PHP error, JoomlaPack is unable to report failure. As a result, it is always a good idea to log in periodically to JoomlaPack's administration page to review the backup status of your site. |
The Basic tab options on the Profile Settings section are:
Backup Type. It defines the kind of backup you'd like to take. The backup types for JoomlaPack are:
Full site which backs up the Joomla! database, any extra databases you might have defined and all of the site's files. This produces a backup archive with an embedded installer so that you can restore your site with ease. This is the option 90% of the users want; it is the only options which creates a full backup of your site.
Database only which backs up only the Joomla! database. It results in a single SQL file which can be used with any MySQL administration utility (e.g. phpMyAdmin) to restore only your database should disaster strike. This option is recommended for advanced users only.
Archive Name Template. Here you can define the naming template of backup files. There are a few available macros. Macros are special strings which will be expanded to something else at backup time. They can be used to make the names of the files harder to guess for potential attackers, as well as allow you to store multiple backup archives on the output directory at any given time. The available macros and their expansion at backup time are:
The configured host name of your site
The current server date, in the format YYYYMMDD (year as four digits, month as two digits, day as two digits), for example 20080818 for August 18th 2008.
The current server time, in the format HHMMSS (hour as two digits, minutes as two digits and seconds as two digits), for example 221520 for 10:15:20 pm.
This is a nice security measure, as it generates a 64 character semi-random string (the MD5 hash of the server's time, accurate up to the millisecond). This is almost impossible to guess, unless you know the exact millisecond the template name was processed by the server. Yes, the chance to find this is very, very slim indeed!
Log level. This options controls the verbosity of the JoomlaPack's log file. The available log levels are:
Errors only. Only fatal errors are reported. Use this on production boxes where you have already confirmed there are no unreadable files or directories.
Errors and warnings. The recommended setting, reports fatal errors as well as warnings. JoomlaPack communicates unreadable files and directories which it wasn't able to backup through warnings. Read the warnings to make sure you don't end up with incomplete backups!
All information. As "Error and Warnings" but also includes some informative messages on JoomlaPack's backup process.
All Information and Debug. This is the recommended setting for reporting bugs. It is the most verbose level, containing developer-friendly information on JoomlaPack's operation. This is what we need to help you in case of a problem.
None. This log level is not recommended. You should only use this if you are paranoid and want no log files written on the server. However, if you are truly concerned about security, you should protect the backup directory instead of using this log level!
The Advanced tab options on the Profile Settings section are:
Database export style. This option controls the MySQL version compatibility when creating the database SQL dump file. In fact, it forces JoomlaPack to request the appropriate CREATE TABLE commands from your database server. It is useful when migrating your site to another host with a different MySQL version. The available options are:
Default compatibility. JoomlaPack will not try to enforce MySQL compatibility mode. Recommended if you are making a backup for security reasons, or if you are migrating to a host with MySQL 5 or greater.
Force MySQL 4 compatible. JoomlaPack will request from your database server to provide table definitions (CREATE TABLE commands) in a MySQL 4 friendly format.
![]() | Important |
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This option will take effect in MySQL 4.1 or greater database hosts. If you use it on older MySQL version the backup might fail! |
Database backup algorithm. This option determines how JoomlaPack will operate in order to try avoiding timing out when it is backing up your database. The available options are:
JoomlaPack will only perform a single step at a time. This is the fail-safe setting, but it is also slowing the backup down because a new HTTP request has to be made for every step. Use this option only if the Smart algorithm doesn't work for you.
JoomlaPack will try to group together and perform many steps in a single go. The success of this algorithm depends on the availability of certain server configuration information to JoomlaPack. Since it tries to be a best compromise between speed and efficiency, it is possible that it fails. You can control this algorithm's behaviour through the Magic Numbers configuration options.
File packing algorithm. This option determines how JoomlaPack will operate in order to try avoiding timing out when it is scanning your site for files to back up and while archiving these files. The available options are:
JoomlaPack will only perform a single step at a time. This is the fail-safe setting, but it is also slowing the backup down because a new HTTP request has to be made for every step. Use this option only if the Smart algorithm doesn't work for you.
JoomlaPack will try to group together and perform many steps in a single go. The success of this algorithm depends on the availability of certain server configuration information to JoomlaPack. Since it tries to be a best compromise between speed and efficiency, it is possible that it fails. You can control this algorithm's behaviour through the Magic Numbers configuration options.
File list engine. This option controls how JoomlaPack will scan your site for files to back up during the File Packing process. The available options are:
Pure PHP file system scanner. This is the classic default engine available since the first versions of JoomlaPack. It uses standard PHP functions to read the contents of the directories and determine the files to be backed up.
Joomla!-powered file system scanner. This engine uses the Joomla! Framework functions for accessing the file system and reading the contents of the directories. It is somewhat more efficient for sites with large directories than the Pure PHP engine.
Database backup engine. This option controls how JoomlaPack will access your database and produce a dump of its contents to an SQL file. It is used during the Database Dump operation and applies to all backup types. The available options are:
Joomla!-powered database dump. This is the classic default engine available since JoomlaPack 1.1. It uses the Joomla! database connectivity library to access the database and produce the SQL dump.
mysqldump-powered database dump. This is a new, hybrid mode engine. It should be used by advanced users only! The command line utility mysqldump is used to produce an SQL dump of your database. Afterwards, PHP code post-processes the resulting file, taking it into a form suitable for use with the restoration script (JoomlaPack Installer).
![]() | Warning |
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This option is only compatible with JoomlaPack Installer 3. Even though it is possible to select it together with JoomlaPack Installer 2, the resulting backup archive will not restore! This is due to peculiarities of that restoration script and it is not considered a bug. |
![]() | Important |
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In order to use this option the
mysqldump utility must be available on your
system, the |