The latest articles on DEV Community by Mirsad Zonic (@zonicmirsad). https://dev.to/zonicmirsad https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4123175%2F7add7a4c-d3ca-4dca-ab47-2491c5ed04b9.png https://dev.to/zonicmirsad en Mirsad Zonic Wed, 07 Oct 2026 19:19:46 +0000 https://dev.to/zonicmirsad/why-i-made-my-wordpress-backup-app-self-hosted-not-saas-56p7 https://dev.to/zonicmirsad/why-i-made-my-wordpress-backup-app-self-hosted-not-saas-56p7 <p>Most backup tools for agencies are SaaS. When I built SiteVault, the app I use to back up client WordPress sites, I went the other way. Here's the reasoning, and what it changed technically.</p> <p><strong>The credential problem</strong></p> <p>A backup service needs access to the site: FTP/SFTP for files, database credentials for the dump. In a SaaS model, the provider stores those for every client of every agency using it. That's a high-value target, and as a solo developer I didn't want to be responsible for it.</p> <p>Self-hosted flips that. Each agency runs its own instance, so the credentials never leave their infrastructure.</p> <p><strong>How the backups actually run</strong></p> <p>Instead of pulling everything over FTP from the outside, SiteVault installs a small MU plugin connector on the WordPress site. The connector runs the backup server-side and the app orchestrates it. That makes it faster and more reliable on large sites.</p> <p>Each run is logged step by step (size, status, duration), and after it completes, the client gets an email report. Email goes through Resend.</p> <p><strong>Packages instead of manual cron</strong></p> <p>Backups are scheduled by maintenance package instead of per site: Basic (monthly), Pro (weekly), Agency (daily + monitoring). Each package defines its frequency and how many backups to keep, so retention is handled automatically.</p> <p><strong>The trade-offs</strong></p> <p>Self-hosted means the buyer handles hosting and updates. In return, they own the code, can customize it, and pay once instead of monthly.</p> <p>I'm selling SiteVault with full source code on <a href="https://market.designzonic.com/product/sitevault" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://market.designzonic.com/product/sitevault</a>. If you've built something similar, I'd like to hear how you handled backup storage and retention.</p> architecture wordpress showdev webdev