Back up and restore skin data

A backup must match the storage backend in use. The configuration file alone does not contain player selections or custom skin data.

File storage

1. Stop the instance that writes skin data.
2. Copy its complete SkinsRestorer data directory to a separate location.
3. Record the plugin or mod version with the backup.
4. Start the instance again.

Keep the configuration, locales, and all storage subdirectories together. On a proxy network, the proxy usually owns the selections.

SQL storage

Use your database host's consistent backup or dump procedure. Back up the SkinsRestorer tables and the configuration of every connected instance.

A copy of config.yml cannot restore SQL records. Do not copy live database files without a database-specific backup procedure.

Restore

1. Stop all instances that write to the affected storage.
2. Preserve the current data as a separate recovery copy.
3. Restore the saved data and matching configuration.
4. Start one instance and read its startup log.
5. Check a custom skin and a player's saved selection.
6. Start the remaining instances.

Use a compatible release for the restored data. Older releases can fail to read newer formats.

Remove old data

/sr purgeolddata <days> removes old skin data. /sr drop player <target> removes a player record. /sr drop skin <target> removes stored skin data.

Back up before these operations. They are administrative maintenance commands, not fixes for every skin problem.

Continue with updates or shared storage.