Adding Credentials to the Jetpack VaultPress Backup Plugin

Looking for instructions on adding credentials to the Jetpack plugin? See our article about Adding Credentials in the Jetpack Plugin.

The steps below explain exactly how to get SSH, SFTP, or FTP credentials and enter them into the Jetpack VaultPress Backup Plugin.

Jetpack VaultPress Backup will start to back up your site as soon as you install the plugin, purchase a backup plan, and connect the site to Jetpack. If your backups don’t start immediately, you can add SSH, SFTP, or FTP credentials to bypass other issues and create a backup right away. Credentials are also needed to restore your site from a previous backup.

File Access Permissions

When creating credentials to use with Jetpack VaultPress Backup, you need to set the correct access permissions. For Jetpack VaultPress Backup, the credentials need full read and write access to the WordPress directory.

This allows VaultPress Backup to back up your files (read access), upload the helper script, and restore files (write access).

Note: The required settings could vary depending on your host, so please contact them to ensure you’re using the correct configuration.

ℹ️ What is Helper Script?

The Helper Script is used to fetch data from your site efficiently. It can walk directory trees, hash files, fetch WordPress config information, and fetch database tables. They expire automatically 6 hours after being uploaded to the server. They’re unique to the server that uploaded them, and only that server can access them due to randomly generated keys only the uploading server knows about.

Getting Server Credentials for the Jetpack VaultPress Backup Plugin

If you’re confused about what these credentials are, how they work, or why we need them, you can read more about that in our SSH, SFTP, FTP Credentials guide.

If you have issues adding your credentials to Jetpack VaultPress Backup, we recommend contacting your hosting provider for support. When you reach out to your hosting provider, you can share the following with them:

I’m in the process of setting up my site on Jetpack VaultPress Backup, and I need server credentials to enter into the plugin so that it can perform backups and restores on my website. Could you help me determine the correct information for the following items:

Protocol: FTP is fine, but SSH or SFTP would be ideal.
User: The user needs to have read and write permissions for my site’s files on the server. More on why VaultPress Backup needs read and write permissions can be found here.
Password: If using SSH credentials, this password is optional.
Host/IP Address: If my site uses Cloudflare, I require the IP address for the server my site is located on, otherwise the URL that points to my site on the server is fine.
Port: Should the port be 21, 22 or something else?
SSH Private Key: If using SSH, the SSH private key cannot be password protected and must use OpenSSH format. Password protected private keys and/or keys in PuTTY format are not supported.
WordPress Path: The WordPress path should point to the folder on the server where my WordPress instance lives.

Add Your Credentials

If you’re unsure about what credentials are, how they work, or why we need them, you can learn more about them in our SSH, SFTP, and FTP Credentials guide.

To add your server credentials:

Go to https://cloud.jetpack.com.
Select your site that’s connected to Jetpack VaultPress Backup.
In the left sidebar, click Settings.
On the screen that opens, you’ll see the option to select from a list of popular hosting providers. Click on your hosting provider if listed. If you don’t know your hosting provider, it’s not listed here, or you have your server credentials, click I don’t know / my host is not listed here / I have my server credentials.

You’ll enter your credentials on the next screen and click Test and save credentials. Once the site is connected, Jetpack will start your first backup.

Note: If your site is hosted at Pressable, we can automatically detect these credentials for you. In that case, you will see a message asking for your approval to grant Jetpack VaultPress Backup permission to use the credentials to back up your site.

Entering Your Credentials

The information below explains what to enter into each field, based on the type of credentials you’re adding.

Adding FTP Credentials

To use FTP credentials, you’ll need the following information:

Credential type: This will be FTP
Server address: This is often your site URL, but some hosts require you to use a different, special domain or an IP address. Note: If you’re using Cloudflare with your website, you will always need to use the server’s IP address where your site is located.
Port Number: This will be 21.
WordPress installation path: This should point to the directory on your server where your WordPress installation is located.
Server username: This username should have read and write access to your WordPress directory.
Password: Try to make sure this password is secure and is different from other passwords you use. If you’re unsure about your password strength, read this article on Selecting a Strong Password.

If you are unsure about any of this information, contact your hosting provider for assistance.

Adding SFTP/SSH Credentials

Typically, SFTP setup coincides with SSH activation on your server. However, in the case of some hosts, it is possible to create a standalone SFTP account that is unrelated to SSH.

To use SFTP/SSH credentials, you’ll need the following information:

Credential type: This will be SFTP/SSH
Server address: This is often your site URL, but some hosts require you to use a different, special domain or an IP address. Note: If you’re using Cloudflare with your website, you will always need to use the server’s IP address where your site is located.
Port Number: This is typically 22. Double-check with your hosting provider to ensure you have the right one.
WordPress installation path: This should point to the directory on your server where your WordPress installation is located.
Server username: This username should have read and write access to your WordPress directory.
Password: Try to make sure this password is secure and is different from other passwords you use. If you’re unsure about your password strength, read this article on Selecting a Strong Password.

If you are unsure about any of this information, contact your hosting provider for assistance.

Adding SSH Credentials with Private Key

You’ll need to generate a private/public key pair on your server to use SSH. Once you’ve done that, copy the private key and add it to a text file somewhere on your computer.

To use SFTP credentials, you’ll need the following information:

Credential type: This will be SFTP/SSH
Server address: This is often your site URL, but some hosts require you to use a different, special domain or an IP address. Note: If you’re using Cloudflare with your website, you will always need to use the server’s IP address where your site is located.
Port Number: This will be 22 or 18765 for SSH. Double-check with your hosting provider to ensure you have the right one.
WordPress installation path: This should point to the directory on your server where your WordPress installation is located.
Server username: This username should have read and write access to your WordPress directory.
SSH Private key: Make sure that it is not password protected and uses OpenSSH/RSA format. Password-protected private keys and/or keys in PuTTY format are not supported.

If you are unsure about any of this information, contact your hosting provider for assistance.

Still need help?

Please contact support directly. We’re happy to lend a hand and answer any other questions that you may have.