How to Restore Your Old, Deleted or Expired Website

Introduction


Welcome to WaybackRestorer! This step-by-step guide will show you how to recover an old or deleted website using archived snapshots from the Wayback Machine . Whether your site was taken down years ago, or you’re simply looking to retrieve a specific old version for SEO or nostalgic reasons, WaybackRestorer helps simplify the entire process.

Below, you’ll find everything you need: from basic snapshot selection to more advanced techniques like extracting additional resources and fixing URLs. Let’s dive in!

Video Tutorials


For a quick visual demonstration, check out these tutorial videos. Each covers a different aspect of the restoration process.

Basic Restore Explained
Quick Tutorial & Snapshot Tips
Advanced Restoration & SEO Techniques

Step 1: Enter Your Domain Name


On your Dashboard (or the Restore Domain form), enter the URL of the website you want to recover. For instance, yourawesomewebsite.com.

  • Make sure you only type the root domain (no trailing /path or query strings).
  • Decide if you’ll be restoring the www version or the non-www version if you’re not sure, you can choose www or non-www in a later step.

Note: Some domains may be restricted (e.g., adult content or extremely large websites). If you see a “Domain Restricted” error, please contact support or try a different domain.

Step 2: View Available Snapshots


After clicking Submit, the system fetches available snapshots from the Wayback Machine. These snapshots represent different dates and times when the website was crawled.

You’ll be directed to a page showing a table of snapshots:

  • Date & Time: The exact moment this snapshot was taken.
  • Screenshot URL: A direct link to the archived version.
  • Action Buttons: Fetch Screenshot lets you grab a preview to see if that snapshot is usable (i.e., has real content, not an error page).

You may need to scroll to find the best snapshots, or click Fetch Screenshots multiple times if the list is large.

Step 3: Identify the TO Date


The TO Date is essentially the “end” of the timeframe you’re restoring. Typically, you want the most recent, fully-functional snapshot of your site.

  • Look for the snapshot that shows the best or latest version of your website.
  • Preview it by clicking Fetch Screenshot.
  • If the screenshot is a “This Site Can’t Be Reached” or an empty page, try an older snapshot or check the domain directly in web.archive.org .

Once decided, click the To button to lock in that snapshot date as your TO Date. This will highlight the row in green.

Step 4: Identify the FROM Date


The FROM Date is the earliest point in time you want to include. This ensures older files, images, or pages that might not exist in later snapshots are also restored.

  • A common rule-of-thumb is to pick a date up to 1 year before the TO Date.
  • If your site drastically changed over time, pick the earliest snapshot that still contains the structure and content you need.

After previewing, click the From button to lock in that snapshot date. This will highlight the row in yellow.

Step 5: Confirm www vs. non-www


Before saving the job, choose which version of your domain you prefer:

  • www: e.g., www.yourawesomewebsite.com
  • non-www: e.g., yourawesomewebsite.com

This is crucial for rewriting links properly during advanced restoration (so all internal links match your final domain setup).

Step 6: Save the Restore Job


Once both dates and the domain preference are selected, click Save Restore Job to finalize.

  • You’ll be redirected back to My Jobs, where you can see the new job in pending status.
  • From there, click Start Restore to begin the retrieval process for your selected time range.

Tip: If you accidentally chose the wrong snapshots, you can delete the job and create a new one at any time.

Step 7: Basic vs. Advanced Restoration


After the basic restore completes (if successful), you’ll see an option to Download Zip of your recovered files. However, if you want a more thorough restoration (e.g., fix broken links, download missing files or external resources), proceed with the Advanced Steps:

  1. Extract URLs: Gathers all internal/external links from your restored pages.
  2. Download External: Pulls external resources (images, CSS, JS from external domains).
  3. Download Missing: Retrieves any remaining internal resources that Wayback might have missed initially.
  4. Fix URLs: Rewrites all references to match your chosen domain version (www or non-www), ensuring a fully functional static site.

Each advanced step has a separate credit cost. If at any point you run out of credits, you can refill under your Billing or Credits section.

Step 8: Download & Host Your Website


Once all steps are completed (basic or advanced), you can click Download Zip to get your fully restored site.

  • Hosting Tip: We recommend DreamHost (affiliate link) for smooth WordPress and static hosting experiences.
  • Extract the Zip on your local machine or via cPanel, place the files in the public_html or www directory of your hosting account, and your site should go live (once DNS is correctly pointed).

Step 9: SEO & Monetization


After restoring your site, you might want to fine-tune it for search engines:

  1. Fix SEO Action: If you purchased the Fix SEO advanced action, your </code>, <code><meta></code> tags, and more are automatically optimized. You can further tweak these manually once the files are in your hosting environment. </li> <li> <strong>Insert Ads Action:</strong> For monetization, use <em>Insert Ads</em> to embed ad script placeholders. Then, just paste your ad codes into those placeholders for display. </li> </ol> </div> <!-- Step 10: (Optional) Convert to WordPress --> <div class="content-section"> <h2 class="step-title">Step 10: Convert to WordPress (Optional)</h2> <hr class="hr-light"> <p> Many prefer WordPress’s convenience. If you want your newly restored static site converted into a WordPress theme or import, simply open a support ticket: </p> <ul> <li> Go to <em>My Jobs</em> → look for <strong>Open A Ticket</strong> button beside your domain/job. </li> <li> Provide details on how you want the WordPress site to function (blog, eCommerce, etc.). </li> </ul> </div> </div> <!-- Divider --> <hr class="hr-info my-section-divider"> <!-- Important Tips & Disclaimers --> <div class="important-notes-section"> <h2 class="section-title">Important Tips & Disclaimers</h2> <hr class="hr-light"> <ul class="custom-list"> <li class="custom-list-item"> <strong>Fetch Times Vary:</strong> The snapshot fetch process depends on external Wayback Machine servers. Please be patient if it takes longer at peak hours. </li> <li class="custom-list-item"> <strong>Not All Content Is Guaranteed:</strong> The Wayback Machine may not have archived every page or image of your website, so some files might be missing. </li> <li class="custom-list-item"> <strong>Size Limits:</strong> Extremely large websites may only have partial coverage due to crawler or archiving limits. </li> <li class="custom-list-item"> <strong>Copyright & Legal:</strong> Ensure you have the rights to restore the domain’s content. Restoring a domain you do not own or have permission for could result in legal issues. </li> </ul> <div class="notice-box notice-danger"> <strong class="notice-title">Need More Help?</strong> <p class="notice-text"> If you’re stuck or have questions, we offer direct assistance. Use the <em>Open Ticket</em> button on your <strong>My Jobs</strong> page. Our support team can guide you through selecting snapshots, handling advanced restores, or finishing any final touches. </p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <!-- Floating Action Button for Website Restore --> <a href="https://wbrestore.com" class="floating-website-restore-btn" title="Start a Website Restore"> <span class="fab-label">Start a Website Restore</span> <i class="fas fa-globe"></i> </a> <script> // Schedule a bounce on a given element at random intervals (min 10s) function scheduleBounce(element) { // Random delay between 10 and 15 seconds (adjust as desired) const delay = Math.random() * 5000 + 10000; // 10000ms to 15000ms setTimeout(() => { element.classList.add('bounce'); // Remove the bounce class after the animation finishes (1 second) setTimeout(() => { element.classList.remove('bounce'); // Schedule the next bounce scheduleBounce(element); }, 1000); }, delay); } document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', () => { const websiteRestoreBtn = document.querySelector('.floating-website-restore-btn'); if (websiteRestoreBtn) { scheduleBounce(websiteRestoreBtn); } }); </script> <!-- Custom CSS (Ideally, move to public/css/app-custom.css) --> <style> /* General Page Styles */ .hero-banner { padding-top: 2rem; /* Replaces py-2 */ padding-bottom: 2rem; /* Replaces py-2 */ color: #fff; /* Default text color for this section */ } .content-wrapper { max-width: 1140px; /* Standard container width */ margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 15px; /* Gutters */ padding-right: 15px; /* Gutters */ padding-top: 2rem; /* Replaces py-2 */ padding-bottom: 2rem; /* Replaces py-2 */ } .transparent-content-box { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.75); border-radius: 15px; padding: 3rem; /* Replaces p-5 */ color: #fff; /* Ensure text inside is white */ } .main-title { text-align: center; margin-bottom: 3rem; /* Replaces mb-5 */ font-size: 2.5rem; /* Approximation for display-4 */ font-weight: bold; /* Replaces fw-bold */ } .content-section { margin-bottom: 3rem; /* Replaces mb-5 */ } .content-section p, .content-section ul, .content-section ol { font-size: 1rem; 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font-weight: bold; font-size: 1.25rem; /* Replaces fs-5 */ } .video-title { margin-top: 0.75rem; /* Replaces mt-3 */ color: #fff; font-size: 1.1rem; font-weight: 500; } /* Notice Boxes (replaces alert-like styling) */ .notice-box { padding: 1rem; /* Replaces p-3 */ border-radius: 0.25rem; /* Replaces rounded */ margin-top: 1rem; margin-bottom: 1rem; color: #fff; /* Default text, can be overridden */ } .notice-danger { background-color: #dc3545; /* Danger color */ color: #fff; } .notice-warning { background-color: #ffc107; /* Warning color */ color: #212529; /* Darker text for better contrast on yellow */ } .notice-box strong { font-weight: bold; } .notice-title { /* For the "Need More Help?" section */ display: block; margin-bottom: 0.5rem; } .notice-text { /* For the "Need More Help?" section */ margin-bottom: 0.25rem; } .notice-text:last-child { margin-bottom: 0; } /* Custom Badge */ .custom-badge { display: inline-block; padding: 0.35em 0.65em; font-size: .75em; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1; color: #fff; text-align: center; white-space: nowrap; vertical-align: baseline; border-radius: 0.25rem; } .badge-info { background-color: #0dcaf0; /* Info color */ color: #000; /* Good contrast for info blue */ } /* Text Highlights */ .text-highlight-success { color: #198754; /* Success color */ font-weight: bold; } .text-highlight-warning { color: #ffc107; /* Warning color */ font-weight: bold; } /* Important Notes List (replaces list-group) */ .important-notes-section { color: #fff; /* Default text color for this section */ } .custom-list { list-style: none; padding-left: 0; margin-bottom: 1.5rem; /* Replaces mb-4 */ } .custom-list-item { background-color: rgba(33, 37, 41, 0.75); /* bg-dark bg-opacity-75 */ color: #fff; padding: 0.75rem 1.25rem; border-radius: 10px; /* From original */ margin-bottom: 5px; /* From original */ } .custom-list-item strong { font-weight: bold; } .mb-0 { /* Utility class for margin-bottom: 0 */ margin-bottom: 0 !important; } /* Floating Action Button Styles */ .floating-website-restore-btn { position: fixed; bottom: 90px; /* Positioned above the File Restore button */ right: 20px; background-color: #28a745; /* Green color for website restore */ color: #fff; border-radius: 50px; padding: 10px 20px; display: flex; align-items: center; text-decoration: none; box-shadow: 0 2px 10px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3); z-index: 1000; transition: background-color 0.3s, box-shadow 0.3s; } .floating-website-restore-btn:hover { background-color: #218838; box-shadow: 0 4px 12px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.4); } .floating-website-restore-btn .fab-label { margin-right: 8px; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; } .floating-website-restore-btn i { font-size: 20px; } /* Bounce animation */ @keyframes bounce { 0% { transform: translateY(0); } 50% { transform: translateY(-20px); } /* Increased bounce height */ 100% { transform: translateY(0); } } .bounce { animation: bounce 1s ease; animation-fill-mode: both; } /* Responsive adjustments for video grid */ @media (max-width: 992px) { /* md breakpoint approx */ .video-card { flex-basis: 45%; /* Two cards per row */ } } @media (max-width: 768px) { /* sm breakpoint approx */ .main-title { font-size: 2rem; } .transparent-content-box { padding: 1.5rem; } .video-card { flex-basis: 100%; /* One card per row */ } } </style> </div> </main> </div> <script> document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', function() { const skeleton = document.getElementById('content-skeleton'); const content = document.getElementById('actual-content'); const hideSkeleton = () => { if (skeleton) skeleton.style.display = 'none'; if (content) content.style.opacity = 1; }; if (skeleton) skeleton.style.display = 'block'; if (content) { content.style.opacity = 0; content.style.transition = 'opacity 0.3s ease-in-out'; } requestAnimationFrame(() => { if (content && content.offsetHeight > 10) { hideSkeleton(); } else { setTimeout(hideSkeleton, 400); } }); const toggler = document.querySelector('.navbar-toggler'); const navCollapse = document.getElementById('main-nav'); if (toggler && navCollapse) { toggler.addEventListener('click', () => { const isExpanded = toggler.getAttribute('aria-expanded') === 'true'; 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