Installing Discourse on a self hosted VPS. A process with FAQs

And you really really should take your own backups. And take those backups offsite. This is part of being your own sysadmin. If you leave everything to the hosting provider you stand to lose everything, and the value of your business to the provider is minimal. The value of your data to you and to your community is substantial, if you’re building a true community where people care about their messages and their relationships.

Starting a community is taking on a responsibility: if you don’t have the skills for that responsibility, you should outsource them. That would mean paying for a reputable outfit to look after things for you: security, maintenance, continuity, repair and recovery.