Jobber/docs-site/docs/getting-started/database-backups.md

id, title, description, sidebar_position

id	title	description	sidebar_position
database-backups	Database Backups	Configure, run, and restore JobOps database backups.	2

What this covers

This page is about database backups:

• automatic backup schedule
• manual backup creation/deletion
• retention behavior
• restore workflow
• backup troubleshooting

Backup behavior

JobOps stores backups in the same data directory as jobs.db.

Two backup types exist:

• Automatic backups
• Manual backups

Automatic backups

• Scheduled daily.
• Filename format: jobs_YYYY_MM_DD.db
• Schedule hour is configured in Settings (UTC hour).
• Automatic retention is capped by backupMaxCount.
• If today’s automatic backup already exists, JobOps skips creating a duplicate.

Manual backups

• Triggered from Settings or POST /api/backups.
• Filename format: jobs_manual_YYYY_MM_DD_HH_MM_SS.db
• If a filename collision occurs, JobOps appends _1, _2, etc.
• Manual backups are not auto-deleted by automatic retention cleanup.

Configure backups

In Settings → Backup:

1. Enable automatic backups.
2. Set backup hour (0-23, UTC).
3. Set max automatic backups to keep (1-5).
4. Save settings.

API reference

# List backups + next scheduled run time
curl "http://localhost:3001/api/backups"

# Create a manual backup
curl -X POST "http://localhost:3001/api/backups"

# Delete a specific backup
curl -X DELETE "http://localhost:3001/api/backups/jobs_manual_2026_02_15_10_20_30.db"

# Update backup settings via Settings API
curl -X PATCH "http://localhost:3001/api/settings" \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "backupEnabled": true,
    "backupHour": 2,
    "backupMaxCount": 5
  }'

Restore workflow

To restore from a backup:

1. Stop JobOps.
2. Locate backup files in your data directory.
3. Copy the chosen backup over the main DB file (jobs.db).
4. Start JobOps.
5. Verify jobs/runs in the UI.

Example shell flow:

# Example only: adjust paths for your setup
cp /path/to/data/jobs_manual_2026_02_15_10_20_30.db /path/to/data/jobs.db

Troubleshooting

Backups are not running automatically

• Confirm backupEnabled is true.
• Confirm backup hour is set as intended (UTC, not local time).
• Verify the app process is running at scheduled time.

POST /api/backups fails

• Confirm the data directory and jobs.db are writable/readable.
• Confirm jobs.db exists.
• In demo mode, manual backup creation is blocked.

Cannot delete a backup

• Filename must match valid backup patterns.
• Invalid names and missing files return errors.

Next scheduled time is null

• Automatic backups are currently disabled.

Notes

• Backup cleanup applies only to automatic backups.
• Manual backups stay until you delete them.

Related pages

• Settings
• Self-Hosting