It is good practice to take backups of:
your software installation - before/after significant changes in configuration
the content held within the repository - regular
After installation, or significant changes in the configuration, it is advisable to take a backup of your software installation.
To do this you need to take a backup of your repository then:
stop CQ WCM
backup the entire
<from your file systemcq-installation-dir>
![[Caution]](../resources/caution.png) | Caution |
|---|---|
If you are operating a cluster then the “shared” folder might be in a different location and will also need to be backed-up. See the section called “How to Set Up a Cluster in CQ” for information about configuring a cluster. |
| Caution |
|---|---|
If you are operating a third party application server, then additional folders may be in a different location and also need to be backed-up. See the section called “How to install CQ5 with an Application Server” for information about installing application servers. |
| Caution |
|---|---|
Incremental backups should not be used with TarPM as file names can change. |
![[Note]](../resources/note.png) | Note |
|---|---|
Disk mirroring can also be used as a backup mechanism. |