How long does a manual backup or restore take?

How long a manual backup or restore takes depends almost entirely on the size of your world. This article gives you a realistic sense of the timing and how to keep it fast.

Note: This is about copies you move yourself via Files or SFTP. Back up now and restores on your server's Backups page need no download or upload.

What affects the time

The main factor is world size. A small vanilla world zips and downloads in under a minute, while a large modpack world can take several minutes each way. For big worlds, SFTP is the fastest and most reliable route.

How to make it smooth

1. Stop the server first so you get a clean copy and avoid mid-write errors.
2. For a small world, use Files → Archive → download.
3. For a large modpack world, use SFTP (WinSCP/FileZilla) to move folders directly.
4. If a download stalls, check your connection and disk space, then try SFTP.

Tip: Large worlds transfer far more reliably over SFTP than through the browser file manager — reach for it whenever a download drags.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my restore so slow? Big worlds simply take longer to upload. Use SFTP and make sure your connection and disk space are healthy.

A download keeps stalling. What now? Confirm you have free disk space and a stable connection, then switch to SFTP, which handles large transfers better.

Do I really need to stop the server? Yes for a clean copy — a running world can be captured mid-write, which risks a corrupt backup.