server crash - backup restore problems - need help

[sydneysunshine]

Hello! My web host server crashed and I'm also in the middle of changing hosts (it's messy).

I need help knowing how to set up my new server using a cpanel backup. What I have is the 'home directory' backup from cpanel, and not the 'full backup' (I don't know the difference). Should I restore the home backup within cpanel? If so, what else should I be doing to check my site is retrievable? Or should I reinstall CMSMS on my new host and treat it like I'm changing server? (I assume I would have had to do that anyway, but I don't actually know what is contained within the backup and if it includes everything anyway). Or am I doomed to recreate my site?

I'm very confused... our web hosts are/were resellers and were backing up their data but they got corrupted so I have little info to go on.

Also now I know there's a backup facility within cmsms I'll install that when this current site is feeling better. I didn't realise it existed until I searched for an answer to this problem.

[Ted]

Doing some quick reading.  Looks like a home directory backup doesn't include the database.  Since everything is stored in the database, this is a problem...

I'm kind of confused here.  They lost your database AND all their backups too?  If that's the case, make sure you give out names, because that makes them totally useless.

Did you create the site on the server, or did you develop it offline?

[sydneysunshine]

Hi Ted and thanks for the reply. I thought as much about the home directory backup and I now need to learn more about backing up. I can't actually give you a name because there may be some legal action involved but they are a reseller for a US company and they are very small and have lost all their websites (apparently about 25). They have told us that the US companies server crashed and they weren't informed about it until a few days later. I really don't understand how their backups got corrupted but hey - them's the breaks.

The backup they sent me was from February so it's useless. it seems as if there were no further backups until their server crashed.

I created the site locally and then uploaded it - but I did a whole bunch of work when it was live that I don't have.

So can you tell me whether I need to start from scratch? I have backups of my stylesheets and the actual content but that's about it. And I obviously now don't have the database...

[Ted]

I honestly don't think there is anything you can do.  Was trying to think if there was some clever way to use the data in the cache, but I think it would take longer to reverse engineer that then it would to reenter your content.

I think your best bet is reinstall and copy/paste, unfortunately.

[sydneysunshine]

Thanks - that's cool I understand.

Well at least it gives me a chance to do some tweaks on iwhat I had