In the simplest use case, in order to deploy a Backdrop site, you will need to transfer the following 2 things to the server hosting your site:

  1. The codebase of your site (various files that need to be copied across)
  2. The database of your site (a single data export that needs to be imported to the server)

By default, the codebase includes:

  • the Backdrop core files, which include the /core directory, and any other files/directories that are not uploaded assets or configuration files (see two following points).
  • a /files directory, which holds all the uploaded assets managed by the CMS (files uploaded by content editors via the administrative interface).
  • a /config directory, which is by default located within the /files directory, to hold your site configuration.

In simple setups, the /files directory will be at the same level as the /core directory, and it will contain the /config directory.

In more advanced setups, the /files and the /config directories may be configured to be placed outside the codebase (and optionally also have different names). In such cases, you will need to transfer the following 4 things:

  1. the codebase (Backdrop core + any contributed or custom modules/themes/layouts)
  2. the database
  3. the directory that holds the uploaded assets of the site
  4. the directory that holds the configuration of the site

All of these items will need to be copied to your server. Once there, they will need to be connected via the settings.php file in your web root (or a settings.local.php file, if you prefer).

There are many ways to deploy Backdrop websites from one server (or from your local computer) to another server. Please use the option below that best suits your needs.