Configuring Schedules, Backups, and Snapshots in DustBowl Warden

Schedules, Backups, and Snapshots in DustBowl Warden

Maintaining high tick rates and protecting player progress requires consistent server hygiene. DustBowl Warden provides built-in automation routines for recurring maintenance and instant one-click disaster recovery.

---

Why Automated Maintenance Matters

Game servers are persistent processes that suffer from heap fragmentation, entity accumulation, and memory leaks over days of continuous uptime. Setting up a scheduled daily restart clears cached memory and ensures optimal performance for your community.

---

Setting Up Scheduled Restarts

1. Open your server instance in Warden and navigate to the Schedules tab.
2. Click Create Schedule.
3. Name your task (e.g., Daily Maintenance Reboot).
4. Configure the execution interval:
   • Choose a daily off-peak time (e.g., 0 4 * * * for 4:00 AM daily).
5. Add task actions:
   • Step 1 (Warning): Send console command: say Server will restart for daily maintenance in 5 minutes!
   • Step 2 (Save): Send console command: save-all (after a 4-minute delay).
   • Step 3 (Power Action): Select Restart the server.
6. Toggle the schedule to Active and save.

---

Creating On-Demand Snapshots

Before updating your game server build, switching jar versions, or adding a new plugin suite, always take a manual snapshot:

1. Click on the Backups tab in your instance dashboard.
2. Click Create Backup.
3. Give your snapshot a descriptive name (e.g., Pre-v1.21-Update or Working-Mods-Baseline).
4. Warden will snapshot the container filesystem without interrupting active gameplay.
5. Once completed, the snapshot appears in your backup list with size and timestamp metadata.

---

One-Click Disaster Recovery

If an errant plugin crashes your server or a corrupted save file prevents startup:

1. Stop your server from the instance dashboard.
2. Go to the Backups tab.
3. Locate the snapshot taken before the issue began.
4. Click the three dots menu and select Restore.
5. Choose whether to wipe existing files before restore or overwrite in place.
6. Once the restore finishes, start your server — your instance is immediately returned to a known-healthy state.

---

Downloading Snapshots for Offline Archival

You can download any snapshot to your local computer:

• Click the download icon next to any backup in the list.
• Store the .tar.gz archive on your local machine or external storage for long-term historical records.