Restoring a backup, applying a template or an AI studio result always works the same way: Forge compares what you want to apply with the server's current state, shows you the list of changes, you choose what to keep, then the bot applies it all while you follow the progress.
Only the server owner, or an administrator they have authorised, can start an application (see Who can do what).
Start a restore
- A backup: Forge › Vault, Restore button on the backup's row. From Discord,
/backup restore <id>sends you the link to the same page. - A template: Use this template button in the gallery or in Forge › Templates, then choose the server. From Discord,
/template apply <slug>. - The AI studio: Apply button below the preview.
- An anti-raid alert: Restore button in the direct message or the notification.
Forge then asks the bot for the server's current state and prepares the list of changes (a few seconds).
The list of changes
Each change is colour-coded:
| Colour | Meaning | Ticked by default |
|---|---|---|
| Green · to create | The role, channel, emoji… doesn't exist on the server: it will be created. | Yes |
| Orange · to update | It exists but differs: the row shows before → after (name, colour, permissions, position…). | Yes |
| Red · to delete | It exists on the server but not in the backup or template. | No |
| Grey · impossible | The bot can't do it; the reason is written next to it. | — |
Changes are grouped by section: Server, Roles, Categories and channels, Permissions, Emojis and stickers, Dispatch.IO modules, Members. You tick or untick a whole section or row by row.
Dispatch.IO modules: for each module (tickets, logs, levels…), choose Replace (the backup's configuration replaces the current one) or Merge (what is missing is added, what exists is kept). A module you untick is left alone.
Deleting requires confirmation
Deletions are always unticked by default. If you tick some, Forge asks you to type the server name before starting: deleting a channel also erases its messages, and that can't be undone.
At the top of the list, Forge shows the number of changes and an estimated duration: platforms limit the number of actions per minute, and a 200-channel server takes several minutes.
What may be impossible
Grey rows, with their reason:
| Reason | What you can do |
|---|---|
| Role above the bot: the bot can't create, edit or give a role placed above its own. | Move the Dispatch.IO role to the top of the role list, then click Recalculate. |
| Permission the bot doesn't have: it can't grant a permission it doesn't have itself. | Give it the permission (or Administrator for the time of the restore). |
| No emoji or sticker slot left: the server's boost level limits how many there can be. | Delete some emojis, or untick the less useful ones. |
| Doesn't exist on this platform: forum on Stoat, sticker on Stoat… | Nothing: the item is converted (a forum becomes a text channel) or skipped, as shown. |
Blocked for safety: a community template or the AI can never grant Administrator or a management permission to @everyone. | Set the permission by hand after applying if you really need it. |
Apply and follow the progress
- Click Apply.
- A safety backup of the server is taken just before (automatic with Basic and Ultimate; without a plan, Forge offers to make one if a slot is free).
- The bot applies the changes in this order: roles (bottom to top), categories, channels, permissions, emojis, module configuration, members.
- A progress bar shows the current step, the number of changes done and the time left. You can close the page: the progress is also visible in the Android app and in the server's log channel.
At the end, a summary gives the number of items created, updated and deleted, and the list of failures with their reason.
Good to know:
- One application at a time per server: a second one waits for the first to finish.
- If the bot restarts during the application, it resumes at the step where it stopped.
- Recreated channels and roles get new IDs: the Dispatch.IO configuration is linked to the new ones automatically, but links to the old channels in your messages no longer work.
Undo
The summary offers Undo: Forge restores the safety backup taken just before, with the same list of changes. This button only exists if a safety backup was taken (Basic, Ultimate, or a manual backup accepted before starting).
Caution
Undo doesn't bring back the messages of a channel deleted during the application: messages are never saved.
Members who come back
After restoring a backup that contains members, Forge watches arrivals on the server for 90 days. When a member from the backup comes back, the bot automatically gives them back:
- their roles (those that still exist and that the bot can give);
- their nickname;
- their XP and level;
- their ongoing sanctions (an unfinished temporary ban is reapplied, with the time left).
You have nothing to do: the member just needs to join with an invite.
Re-add members automatically
On Discord, a member can agree once and for all to be put back on a server if it is restored. The owner can then re-add them directly, without an invite.
Member side: in Personal space › Forge › Automatic re-add, tick Put me back on this server automatically if it is restored for the servers you want. Discord asks you to allow Dispatch.IO to "join servers for you": that's the only thing this authorisation allows, and you can withdraw it at any time (by unticking the box or in Discord's Authorized Apps settings).
Owner side: at the end of a restore with members, the Re-add members button puts every member who ticked the box back on the server, with their roles. The summary shows how many were re-added.
Note
A member banned from the server is never re-added, even if they had ticked the box.
Automatic re-add isn't available on Fluxer yet. Members come back with an invite, and the bot gives them back their roles, nickname and XP (see the previous section).
Stoat has no OAuth sign-in: a member can't be put back on a server on their behalf. Members come back with an invite, and the bot gives them back their roles, nickname and XP (see the previous section).
Bot permissions
To apply every change, the bot needs:
Manage Roles, Manage Channels, Manage Server, Manage Expressions, Manage Webhooks, Ban Members (ongoing sanctions), Manage Nicknames, Timeout Members. The simplest: Administrator for the time of the restore, and the Dispatch.IO role at the top of the list.
The same as on Discord: Manage Roles, Manage Channels, Manage Server, Manage Emojis and Stickers, Manage Webhooks, Ban Members, Manage Nicknames, Timeout Members; or Administrator.
Manage Roles, Manage Channels, Manage Server, Manage Customisation, Manage Nicknames, Ban Members, Timeout Members; and the Dispatch.IO role above the roles to give.
Related pages
- The Vault: create and import backups.
- Templates: apply a server model.
- Anti-raid and security: the protections that trigger an anti-raid backup.