Last Updated on: 9th October 2023, 07:06 am
In the ever-dynamic world of e-commerce, it’s critical to ensure that you have a backup plan for your Shopify store. Like an insurance policy for your online endeavor, a backup safeguards your business-critical data, preventing the heartbreak of losing valuable content.
Surprisingly, Shopify doesn’t automatically back up your store’s data, but don’t panic. As a Shopify user, you’re responsible for securing your account-level data using the Shared Responsibility Model. But how do you do this? And why is it necessary?
Understanding the Shared Responsibility Model
Operating under the Shared Responsibility Model, Shopify users share the responsibility of data security with Shopify.
While Shopify handles the software, infrastructure, and disaster recovery elements of its platform, merchants like you are tasked with user permissions, password security, third-party applications, and most crucially, backing up all their account data.
The potential for disaster is omnipresent in the digital realm, ranging from human error to malicious attacks and software glitches caused by third-party apps.
While Shopify has measures in place to prevent platform-wide disasters, these protections don’t extend to account-level backups.
As a result, valuable data is at risk of loss unless you proactively create a backup in a separate location.
Shopify Manual Backup Method
Step 1: Log in to your Shopify Admin, navigate to various sections (Products, Customers, etc.), click on the section name, then click on ‘Export.’ You will be prompted to download a CSV file containing your store’s data.
Step 2: Shopify will not export certain data like metadata, custom categories, or product images. Manually copy and paste this specific information into a document/spreadsheet.
Step 3: For any remaining store data that Shopify cannot export, manually copy and paste these into your document/spreadsheet.
Step 4: Organize this document/spreadsheet in a manner that allows easy access and retrieval when needed.
Step 5: Secure your backup data by encrypting the files, creating multiple copies across different mediums, and maintaining at least one off-site stored copy.
Step 6: Repeat steps 1 to 5 regularly to capture any new changes made to your Shopify store.
Step 7: To restore from an error or disaster, re-login to your Shopify admin, navigate under ‘Products,’ or the relevant section, and click ‘Import.’ Here, select the appropriate CSV file you want to restore data from.
Step 8: Manually input the additional store data (like blog posts, and product images) from your backup, to fully restore everything your store had.
Custom Backup Solution for Shopify
Step 1: Get access to Shopify’s public APIs by visiting their API documentation. Develop a backup tool based on these APIs that can get the required information from your store.
Step 2: Secure your backup by encrypting files and following the 3-2-1 backup rule.
Step 3: Regularly test, maintain and update your backup solution ensuring it’s compatible with any changes in Shopify APIs.
Step 4: If you need to restore, access your custom backup solution, sort through the data to identify what needs to be restored, and execute the restoration.
Automated Backup (Using Rewind App)
There are many other Apps to Back up your Shopify store but the experts recommend The Rewind App to Back-up Shopify Store.
Step 1: Download the Rewind Backups app from the Shopify App store, and install it.
Step 2: Set up the backup preferences within the app – how frequently you want backups created.
Step 3: Let the app run in the background. It will automatically create backups of your store as per your preferences.
Step 4: When you need to restore data, open the Rewind app, select the backup point you wish to restore from, and the app will revert your store to that state.
Each one of these backup methods has its own merits – manual backups offer complete control; custom-built solutions provide flexibility, and automated backups (like Rewind) offer ease and time-saving benefits. Choose the one that best suits your requirements, resources, and technical expertise.
