When the account has outgrown the arrangement.
WHY IT MATTERS
Large backups time out, consume storage, and strain resources during creation.
WHAT IS USUALLY LARGE
Media libraries, particularly video Old backup archives left on the server Cache directories Log files Email with attachments Database log and statistics tables
REDUCING SIZE
Exclude cache directories, which are regenerated and need no backup Exclude old backup archives, which should not be on the server anyway Exclude log files Exclude large database tables that are logs rather than data Move video off the server to a video platform Clean up before backing up
SPLITTING
Back up the database and files separately, on different schedules. The database is small and changes often; files are large and change rarely.
Back up each site separately on a multi-site account.
TIMING
Schedule backups at genuinely quiet hours. A large backup during peak traffic affects visitors.
IF IT STILL TIMES OUT
Use the command line, or ask us. Very large accounts sometimes need a different approach.
