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Backups
A backup is an off-node export of a pod - a full copy kept on separate storage, away from the machine your pod runs on. When you restore a backup, you get a brand-new pod. Your original is never touched.
That's the whole point of backups, and the whole difference from snapshots. A snapshot rewinds the pod you have. A backup gives you a fresh pod built from a saved copy, which is what you want for disaster recovery, spinning up a copy to test against, or keeping the original safe while you experiment.
Slots and limits
Like snapshots, each pod gets 5 backup slots by default: 4 manual plus 1 reserved for the auto schedule (the exact allowance is per account - see Settings -> Account). At the manual limit, delete one before taking another.
Auto schedule
Backups can run on a schedule, all at 3:00 AM UTC: Daily, Weekly (Sunday), Monthly (the 1st), or Disabled. Each scheduled run rotates out the previous auto backup.
Restoring and cloning
Two ways to turn a saved pod into a running one, and both make a new pod:
- Restore takes an existing backup and rebuilds it as a new pod.
- Clone skips the saved-backup step and copies a live pod straight into a new one, on the same Region and network.
Because each creates a pod, both need at least $3 of credit and use a slot from your pod limit. Name the new pod, or let us pick a random name.
Snapshot vs backup
| Snapshot | Backup | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it's stored | On the pod's node | Off-node, separate storage |
| Restore gives you | The same pod, rewound | A new pod |
| Your original after restore | Overwritten | Untouched |
| Speed | Fast | Slower (full export) |
| Slots per pod (default) | 4 manual + 1 auto | 4 manual + 1 auto |
| Reach for it when | Quick rollback before a risky change | Disaster recovery, cloning, keeping the original |
Rule of thumb: snapshot before you do something risky to a pod you want to keep; back up when you'd want the pod back even if the original is gone.
A note on the account-wide list
The account backups list shows every backup you have, and it can include email backups (from mailboxes) alongside pod backups. Only pod backups can be restored into a pod.