How to open a .wpress backup file | Hostvento Knowledge Base

What is a .wpress file?

WordPress is a popular tool for building websites. A plugin is a small add-on for it. The All-in-One WP Migration plugin packs your whole site into one file that ends in .wpress. It holds your pages, pictures, themes and database (the place where your posts and settings are stored).

You cannot open this file like a normal ZIP file. You need a small tool that unpacks it. Most people only need to do this when they want to look at one file inside the backup.

Before you start

Make a copy of your .wpress file and work on the copy. That way the original stays safe.

Option 1: Use a Python tool

Python is a programming language. Many computers already have it. Several free community tools exist that unpack .wpress files. One example is the open-source "wpress-extractor" family of scripts.

Install Python 3 if your computer does not have it.
Download a trusted .wpress extractor from a well-known code site. Read its page to check people use it.
Put your .wpress copy in an empty folder.
Open a terminal (a window where you type commands) in that folder.
Run the tool with your file name. A typical command looks like this:

python3 wpress_extract.py mysite.wpress

This command unpacks the archive into a new folder. The script name may differ, so follow the tool's own instructions.

Open the new folder. You will see folders such as uploads, plugins and themes, plus a file named database.sql.

Option 2: Restore it with the plugin

If you want your site back, you do not need to unpack anything. Install the same plugin on a fresh WordPress site and use its import feature.

Log in to the WordPress dashboard (the admin area of your site).
Go to All-in-One WP Migration and click Import.
Choose Import From and then File.
Pick your .wpress file.
Wait for the upload to finish and confirm when asked.

Warning: Importing replaces the current site content. Take a backup of the site first.

Tip: If the upload is too big for your hosting, ask Hostvento support to help raise the upload limit.

What is inside?

database.sql holds your posts, pages and settings.
uploads holds your images and files.
themes and plugins hold the design and add-ons.

Quick recap

A .wpress file is a full site backup from the All-in-One WP Migration plugin.
A normal ZIP tool cannot open it.
Use a trusted extractor tool to unpack a copy.
To restore the site, use the plugin's Import feature instead.
Always back up before you import.