Back It Up

The other day, my heart stopped briefly when I wasn't able to get into my blogger dashboard. After a few minutes of panic, I realized I was logged into a different Google account than the one my blog is connected to. whew! So all is well on that front, but it was a good reminder to back up the blog regularly. Admittedly, I do it only quarterly at best, and I'm curious what you do, if at all. If you never have, it's super quick, as you'll see below.
Note that this is for Blogger only. Do research if your blog is on another platform.

Step 1. SAVE YOUR TEMPLATE: First, go to your blog's dashboard just like you were going to edit a post.

See way over in the upper right corner where it says "Backup/Restore"? Click there.

Choose "Download full template." A file full of code will be downloaded. Save the file and I suggest, rename it to include the current date. 

Close the Backup/Restore window. Step one is done.

Step 2. SAVE YOUR CONTENT: Still on your blog's dashboard, click "Settings" in the left hand column, then "Other." See under "Import & back up" the choice to "Back up Content." Click there and another file full of code will be downloaded. This one will take a little longer than the template, but not long. Save the file and again, rename it to include the current date. 

That's it! Seriously, it'll take you ten minutes or so. And give you a whole lot more peace of mind.

Take Heed!

My friend Heather over at craftingdotdotdot had a real bloggy scare today. Her blog just up and disappeared! Thankfully it returned after a short while, all in one piece thank goodness. Heather's done her research and though she doesn't really know why and how this happened, she does have a really helpful suggestion: back up our blogs! 

Be sure and read Heather's post {here} and then go back up both your blog and your template. Here's what you need to know. If you happen to be using the newer view than this blogger tip (like I am), just look around in 'settings' and 'template', and you'll find the same tools. It only takes a few minutes. 

I feel better now. Thanks, Heather!