The free version of the “Download Plugins and Themes from Dashboard” plugin is a valuable tool for creating manual backups of your WordPress plugins and themes. But the pro version takes it a step further by introducing a powerful feature: Periodical Downloads. This functionality allows you to schedule automatic downloads of your plugins and themes, ensuring you always have up-to-date backups without any manual intervention.
Exclusive to the Pro Version
It’s important to note that periodical downloads are only available in the pro version of the plugin, accessible through Download Plugins and Themes from Dashboard WordPress Plugin: https://wpfactory.com/item/download-plugins-and-themes-from-dashboard-wordpress-plugin/.
Setting Up Automatic Backups
The periodical downloads feature offers a wide range of customization options to tailor backups to your specific needs.
Here’s a breakdown of the settings you’ll encounter
Scheduling Options
- Do not download: This option disables periodical downloads.
- Download once a minute: Ideal for highly dynamic environments where plugins or themes are frequently updated, but can be resource-intensive.
- Download once hourly/twice daily/once daily/once weekly/every 4 weeks: Choose the frequency that best suits your backup needs and server load.
Important Note
Similar to the free version, periodical downloads will not include “Must-Use,” “Drop-in,” or “Single File” plugins due to their inherent functionality within WordPress. However, you can still download these plugins manually from the “Plugins” page in your admin panel.
Theme Download Options (mirrored from Plugin Download Options)
- The periodical download settings for themes mirror those available for plugins, allowing you to schedule automatic downloads at your preferred intervals.
Customization beyond Scheduling
- Path for periodical plugin downloads/Path for periodical themes downloads: Specify custom locations on your server to store the downloaded ZIP files. This can be helpful for organizing your backups.
- Append download date & time to plugin ZIP filename/Append download date & time to theme ZIP filename: Choose whether to include the download date and time in the filenames for better organization and identification of backup versions.
- Plugins output file(s)/Themes output file(s): This setting allows you to choose how the downloaded plugins or themes are packaged:
- Each plugin’s zip/Each theme’s zip: Creates individual ZIP files for each plugin or theme.
- All plugins in single zip/All themes in single zip: Combines all plugins or themes into a single ZIP file for a more compact backup.
- Each plugin’s zip + All plugins in single zip/Each theme’s zip + All themes in single zip: Provides both individual and combined ZIP files, offering flexibility in your backup strategy.
- Plugins single ZIP file name/Themes single ZIP file name: If you choose to create a single ZIP file for all plugins or themes, you can define a custom name for this file.
Benefits of Periodical Downloads
- Automated Backups: Schedule automatic downloads to ensure you always have a recent backup of your plugins and themes, eliminating the risk of manual errors or forgetting to create backups.
- Peace of Mind: With automated backups in place, you can rest assured that you can easily restore your website in case of plugin or theme issues.
- Customization Options: The variety of settings allows you to tailor your backups to fit your specific workflow and server resources.
Consideration
- Server Load: Frequent automatic downloads can increase server load. Choose a download frequency that balances your backup needs with your server’s capabilities.
By leveraging the periodical downloads feature in the “Download Plugins and Themes from Dashboard” pro version, you can automate your WordPress plugin and theme backups, ensuring a robust disaster recovery plan for your website.
