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All Collabase data — pages, tasks, users, settings, automations, test cases, and uploaded files — is stored in two places: a PostgreSQL database and a file storage location. A complete backup covers both.
There is no built-in backup screen in Collabase. Backups must be created by running commands on your server or through a scheduled job. Plan for this before going into production.
Run backups daily for any production deployment. Store backup files off-server — on a network share, cloud storage, or a separate machine — so that a server failure does not destroy your backups at the same time as your data.

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Automatic pre-update backups

Every time you run bash update.sh, Collabase automatically creates a database backup in deployment/backups/ before applying the update. These backups are kept for 7 days and then removed automatically. They are intended as a safety net for rollbacks, not as your primary backup strategy.
Pre-update backups cover the database only. Uploaded files are not included. Set up your own regular backup schedule (see below) that covers both the database and file storage.

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What to back up

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Backing up the database

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Manual backup

Run the following command on your server to create a compressed backup of the database:
This creates a timestamped .sql.gz file in your current directory.

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Scheduled daily backup

For production systems, set up a daily automated backup using cron. Open the cron editor with crontab -e and add:
This runs at 2:00 AM every night and automatically removes backups older than 30 days. Adjust the retention period to match your requirements.

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Backing up file storage

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Local filesystem

If files are stored locally (the default), copy the file storage directory to your backup destination:
Run this as part of the same cron job as your database backup so the two are always in sync.

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S3-compatible storage

If you use S3 or a compatible provider (Cloudflare R2, MinIO, etc.), use your provider’s sync or versioning features. Enable object versioning in your bucket settings so previous versions of files are retained automatically.

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Copying backups off-server

Always store backups in a second location. Some common options: Cloud storage (AWS S3, Cloudflare R2, etc.)
Remote server via rsync
Network-attached storage (NAS) Mount your NAS share on the server and set the backup destination path to the mount point.

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Restoring from a backup

Restoring overwrites all current data in the database. Only proceed if you intend to roll back to a previous state. This cannot be undone.
1

Stop the application (keep the database running)

2

Restore the database backup

Replace the filename with your actual backup file:
3

Restore uploaded files (if applicable)

Copy your file backup back to the storage location:
Skip this step if you use S3 storage — the files remain in your bucket.
4

Start the application

5

Verify the restore

Open Collabase in a browser and confirm that content, users, and settings are as expected.

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Testing your backups

A backup you have never tested is not a reliable backup. Perform a test restore on a separate (non-production) machine at least once a month to confirm the backup files are valid and the restore process works.

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Backup checklist

Last modified on July 17, 2026