OpenCode + xCloud

Back up and stage sites with OpenCode on xCloud

Backing up and staging sites with OpenCode means asking the open-source terminal agent to read your xCloud backup state, take a backup before a risky change and open a staging copy of a Git site, from the same session where you are changing the code.

Skill: xcloud:sites
Toolsets: sites
Free with every xCloud account

Set up OpenCode All OpenCode guides

YouBack up shop.example.com before I run the migration.

xcloud_sites_backupsread-only

AgentNative site. The last backup was 31 hours ago and completed, stored locally. I will take a new local backup now.

xcloud_sites_backup

AgentBackup completed two minutes ago and is stored locally. You can run the migration.

Last updated: October 2026. Keep a human in the loop: xCloud stops and asks before anything that creates, deploys, updates, reboots, deletes or buys.

Setup

How Do You Set Up OpenCode to Back up and stage sites on xCloud?

Connect OpenCode once; every job on this account uses the same connection. Then ask in plain words.

1
Add the xCloud MCP server
Run this from the project that should use xCloud, or add --global to make it available everywhere. OpenCode writes the entry under mcp.servers in its config (OpenCode v2 no longer accepts server names directly under mcp). Remote servers use OAuth by default, so there is nothing else to fill in; the equivalent hand-written entry is shown below.
Terminal
```
opencode mcp add xcloud --url https://app.xcloud.host/mcp

# the entry it writes to opencode.jsonc
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "xcloud": {
        "type": "remote",
        "url": "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp"
      }
    }
  }
}
```
2
Sign in with OAuth
This opens your browser on the xCloud approval screen, where you tick the teams and choose Read-only or Full access. Inside OpenCode, /mcps does the same: pick xcloud and sign in. Then opencode mcp list should show xcloud as connected.
Terminal
```
opencode mcp auth xcloud
opencode mcp list
```
3
No browser? Use an API key
For a headless or CI machine, create a token with the mcp:invoke scope plus the read abilities for the areas it will use (read:servers and read:sites, with read:billing and read:addons for billing and add-on tools) and the matching write: abilities if it should change things in Settings, Developers, API Tokens and export it as XCLOUD_TOKEN. Setting oauth to false turns off the automatic sign-in, and the {env:XCLOUD_TOKEN} reference keeps the token out of the file. The entry still lives under mcp.servers.
JSON
```
{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "xcloud": {
        "type": "remote",
        "url": "https://app.xcloud.host/mcp",
        "oauth": false,
        "headers": {
          "Authorization": "Bearer {env:XCLOUD_TOKEN}"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Check it worked

Then ask OpenCode for the job itself, for example:

Prompt

back up shop.example.com now and tell me when it has finished, I am about to run the migration

In practice

How Does Backups and staging Work from OpenCode?

OpenCode runs in your project directory, which makes it a good place to ask for a backup at the moment you need one: after you have written a migration and before you push it. The agent can see the diff, the branch name and the migration files, so a prompt as short as back up the shop site, I am about to run the migration is enough context for it to find the site on xCloud, work out whether it is a native site or a Docker app and say which kind of backup it will take. Because OpenCode prefixes every MCP tool with the server name, the calls show up in the session as xcloud_sites_backups, xcloud_sites_backupStatus and xcloud_sites_backup, so it is easy to see exactly what ran.

The reads come first and cost nothing. OpenCode asks xCloud for the backup list, count and status and answers the plain questions: when the last backup ran, whether it completed and whether it went to local storage or to a connected provider. A backup itself starts without an approval prompt, so one line from you is all it takes. For a Docker app the agent tells you before it starts that the app stops for a moment while its volumes are captured, then follows the backup until it is completed or failed instead of reporting the queued response. What you get back is a sentence, not a task id, and then you can run the migration knowing a finished copy exists.

Staging is where the repository awareness pays off. For a Laravel, Node.js, custom PHP or Lovable site you can say create a staging environment from the branch I am on. OpenCode reads the branch with git, asks you to approve, calls xCloud to create the staging environment and gives you the URL to test against. On the free plan xCloud answers that staging is not available, and the agent passes that on as a plan limit instead of retrying. A WordPress staging copy and every restore are dashboard jobs, so for those OpenCode lists the backups, names the newest completed one and gives you the path in the dashboard.

OpenCode specific: If you connect the compact URL to keep OpenCode's context small, load the sites toolset for this job instead: https://app.xcloud.host/mcp?toolsets=sites holds the backup, backup settings and staging operations, so OpenCode can call them directly. And because xCloud does not stop a backup for confirmation, OpenCode's own tool settings are the only brake. Keep xcloud switched off in the agent you use for everyday coding and enable it in a separate operations agent, so a stray request cannot start a backup of a busy Docker app.

What xCloud does for backups and staging

xCloud lets the agent read every site's backup state, start a backup on demand for native and Docker sites, and create a staging environment for Git sites. Restores, storage providers and WordPress staging stay in the dashboard, and the agent tells you the exact path when you ask for one.

Find the site. The agent resolves the site by name or domain, restates which one it is about to act on, and reads whether it is a native site or a Docker app, because the two use different backup operations.
Read the protection state. It reads the backup settings, status, count and recent backups. That answers whether the site has a schedule, when the last backup ran, whether it succeeded and where it is stored, before anything is changed.
Back up now. A backup starts without an approval prompt. A native site takes a local backup by default or a remote one when a storage provider is connected. A Docker app is stopped briefly while its volumes are captured, so the agent says so before it backs up a production app.
Wait for the result. xCloud queues the backup and returns straight away. The agent follows the backup task or row until it is terminal, then reports completed or failed instead of treating the queued response as done.
Stage the change. For a Git site such as Laravel, Node.js, custom PHP or Lovable, the agent creates a staging environment from the branch you name, after you approve, and gives you its URL. A WordPress staging site is a dashboard step, and the agent gives you the path.
Hand off restores and settings. If you ask to restore a backup, change a native site's schedule or add a storage provider, the agent explains that these are dashboard-only and gives the path and the site's dashboard link. It never improvises a workaround.

Reference

Backups and staging Settings and Limits on xCloud

The facts OpenCode works within when it backs up and stage sites. Where a row names the dashboard, that step stays yours to take there.

Setting or limit	What applies
Native site backup	On demand through the API; the type is local (the default) or remote. A remote backup needs a storage provider with a working connection, otherwise xCloud refuses it with a 422 before anything is queued
Docker app backup	On demand through the API for Compose deploys and most one-click apps. The app is cold-stopped for a moment while volumes are captured. A remote copy goes to an S3-compatible or SFTP provider; Google Drive and pCloud are not supported for Docker apps
Reading backups	Backup list, count, status and settings are readable for every site. Docker apps also expose one backup's detail
Docker backup housekeeping	The agent can label a Docker backup with a note and delete one. Deleting is irreversible, so it names the exact backup by date and note first
Native schedule and retention	Read-only through the API. Change them in the dashboard under Site > Site Backup > Backup Settings
Docker backup settings	Writable through the API: automatic backup on or off, daily, weekly or monthly frequency, and the number of days to keep backups
Restores	Dashboard-only for every site type: Site > Site Backup > Previous Backups > Restore. A backup can also be restored to another site from the same page
Storage providers	Dashboard-only, under Integrations > Storage Provider. Backup settings return a provider's identifier and status, never its credentials
Team-wide backup policy	Applying one backup policy to many sites is dashboard-only, under Global Settings > Site Backup
Git staging	Created through the API for Git sites on paid plans. On the free plan xCloud answers 403 because it is a plan limit, not a permission
WordPress staging	Dashboard-only: xCloud answers 422 when the API is asked for it. Push and pull between staging and production also happen in the dashboard
Snapshots	Snapshots are listed per site. The server-wide snapshot list holds site snapshots, not a server image. Taking or restoring a snapshot, and a whole-server provider backup, stay in the dashboard

Rules OpenCode has to follow

A backup runs without an approval prompt, but the agent says when it briefly stops a Docker app and does not trigger one on a busy production app without telling you.
A queued backup is not a finished backup: the agent reports completed or failed only after it has read the result.
Restoring a backup, changing a native site's schedule, adding a storage provider and creating WordPress staging are dashboard steps; the agent gives you the path instead of guessing an operation.
Creating a staging environment stops for your approval, and deleting a backup names the exact backup first.
Before you push staging data to production in the dashboard, take a backup of the production site so you can recover if the push goes wrong.

Example prompts

What Can You Ask OpenCode to Do for Backups and staging?

Type these as written and swap in your own repository, site and server names. Reads and routine actions such as backups, cache purges, PageSpeed scans and vulnerability scans run straight away; creating, deploying, updating, rebooting, deleting, buying or starting a broken-link scan stops and asks first.

Prompt

back up shop.example.com now and tell me when it has finished, I am about to run the migration

Prompt

check backup settings on every site, list the ones with no schedule

Prompt

create a staging environment for the api site from the current branch and print the URL

Prompt

When was the last backup of the shop site, did it succeed, and where is it stored?

Prompt

Check the backup settings on every site and list the ones with no schedule.

Prompt

Take a backup of the n8n Docker app now, before I upgrade it, and tell me when it is done.

Prompt

Switch the n8n Docker app to a daily backup and keep backups for 14 days. Show me the change before you apply it.

Prompt

Create a staging environment for the API site from the feature/checkout branch and give me its URL.

Prompt

List the snapshots of the shop site and tell me which is newest.

Prompt

I need to restore the shop site to last night's backup. Tell me where to click.

OpenCode and Backups and staging: Frequently Asked Questions

What people ask before they let OpenCode back up and stage sites through xCloud.

Can OpenCode take a backup before I push a risky change?

Yes. Ask it from the session where you wrote the change, and it finds the site, reads the backup state and starts a native or Docker backup without an approval prompt. It reports completed or failed only after it has read the result, so you know a finished copy exists before you push.

Can OpenCode create a staging copy from the branch I am on?

For Laravel, Node.js, custom PHP and Lovable sites, yes. OpenCode reads your branch, asks you to approve and creates the staging environment through xCloud, which needs a paid plan. For a WordPress site it gives you the dashboard path, because WordPress staging is not available through the API.

Can an AI agent restore a backup for me?

No. Restoring a native or Docker backup is a dashboard step, under Site > Site Backup > Previous Backups > Restore. The agent can list the backups, tell you which one is newest and completed, and give you the site's dashboard link so you can start the restore yourself.

Does the agent ask before it takes a backup?

No. A backup is a routine action, so xCloud runs it without a confirmation prompt. For a Docker app the agent tells you first that the app stops briefly while its data is captured, and it reports the result only after the backup has finished.

Can the agent change my backup schedule?

For Docker apps, yes: it can turn automatic backups on or off, set daily, weekly or monthly, and set how many days backups are kept. For native sites the schedule, retention and destination are read-only through the API, so you change them in the dashboard under Site > Site Backup > Backup Settings.

Can the agent connect my S3 bucket or other storage?

No. Storage providers are added in the dashboard, under Integrations > Storage Provider, so credentials never pass through a chat. Once a provider exists, the agent can read which one a site's backup settings point at and use it for a remote backup.

Can the agent create a staging site for WordPress?

Not through the API. xCloud answers 422 for WordPress staging, so you create it in the dashboard from the site overview. For Laravel, Node.js, custom PHP and Lovable sites the agent can create a staging environment, which needs a paid plan.

Other agents