Exporting Structure and Data (Backup) - Mastering phpMyAdmin 3.1 for Effective MySQL Management - page 136

After clicking Go , we will get a confirmation message or an error message (if the web
server does not have the required permissions to save the file).
For saving a file again, using the same file name, check the Overwrite
existing file(s) box.
User-specific save directories
We can use the special string, %u , in the $cfg['SaveDir'] parameter. This string
will be replaced by the logged-in user name. For example, using
$cfg['SaveDir'] = './save_dir/%u';
This would give us an on screen choice, Save on server in ./save_dir/marc/ directory .
These directories (one per potential user) must exist and must bear the proper
permissions, as already seen in the previous section.
Memory limits
Generating an export file uses a certain amount of memory, depending on the size
of the tables and on the chosen options. The $cfg['MemoryLimit'] parameter can
contain a limit (in bytes) for the amount of memory used by the PHP script that is
running. By default, the parameter is set to 0 , meaning that there is no limit. Note that,
if PHP has its safe mode activated, changing $cfg['MemoryLimit'] has no effect.
Instead, the enforced limit comes from the memory_limit directive in php.ini .
Summary
In this chapter, we examine the various ways to trigger an export—from the
Database view, the Table view, or a results page. We also list the various available
export formats, their options, the possibility of compressing the export file, and the
various places where it might be sent.
In the next chapter, we'll have the opportunity of importing back our structure and
data, provided the chosen format is supported by phpMyAdmin.