# Lost hard copies of site. How do I open downloaded site? **URL:** \ **Category:** RapidWeaver Classic\ **Created:** [July 21, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586 "2015-07-21T19:42:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![andym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ab992/32.png) [@andym](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/andym)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/1 "2015-07-21T19:42:29Z")
My computer and backup drive were wrecked while backing it up and lost all hard copies of my site. I copied all the files from the web server. How do I open the site now in RapidWeaver6 (it was made years ago in a very old version of RapidWeaver)? I have index.html and index.asp files and then folders for each page. andy ---
**Author:** ![leif\_ottosson](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/leif_ottosson/32/25460_2.png) [@leif\_ottosson](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/leif_ottosson)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2015, 7:46pm UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/2 "2015-07-21T19:46:47Z")
I’m sorry but I have only bad news for you. You can’t. RapidWeaver can only open project files, not an exported site that you download from the server. Leif ---
**Author:** ![andym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ab992/32.png) [@andym](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/andym)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2015, 7:51pm UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/3 "2015-07-21T19:51:29Z")
are there any short cuts having all the files from the web, pasting in content? tricks? Or do I have to build it from scratch? andy ---
**Author:** ![leif\_ottosson](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/leif_ottosson/32/25460_2.png) [@leif\_ottosson](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/leif_ottosson)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2015, 8:02pm UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/4 "2015-07-21T20:02:37Z")
I’d say it’s a good thing to have all the files from the server to work with. Then you don’t have to recreate all the images and you can copy/paste text if you open the html pages in a text editor. But basically you have to rebuild the site from scratch. See it as an opportunity to make it fresh and modern/responsive (especially since it’s many years old in your case). Leif ---
**Author:** ![Rovertek](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/rovertek/32/223_2.png) [@Rovertek](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/Rovertek)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2015, 10:04pm UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/5 "2015-07-21T22:04:34Z")
@andym – As Leif said, there is no way to import your site from a server back to RW. This time, you are screwed. But take a look at [**this discussion**](http://community.realmacsoftware.com/t/importing-sites-from-servers/577/10) and you will be presented with a solution for the same problem in the future… ---
**Author:** ![LaPan](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/lapan/32/92_2.png) [@LaPan](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/LaPan)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 7:04am UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/6 "2015-07-22T07:04:37Z")
Try Sitesucker. It downloads entire websites (and then you can cut and paste from there) including all graphics. ---
**Author:** ![leif\_ottosson](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/leif_ottosson/32/25460_2.png) [@leif\_ottosson](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/leif_ottosson)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 8:44am UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/7 "2015-07-22T08:44:48Z")
No need for Sitesucker since @andym have already downloaded all files from the server. If you have FTP accessibility that’s usually a better solution for downloading the site. ---
**Author:** ![neuron1](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/neuron1/32/24910_2.png) [@neuron1](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/neuron1)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 2:15am UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/8 "2026-02-07T02:15:08Z")
Same happened to me. Wonder now there is a solution or not with Elements? Thanks ---
**Author:** ![Heroic\_Nonsense](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/heroic_nonsense/32/20666_2.png) [@Heroic\_Nonsense](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/Heroic_Nonsense)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 6:49am UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/9 "2026-02-09T06:49:33Z")
Hi @neuron1, Unfortunately, no. The best option remains to grab the site using something like Sitesucker (found in the Mac App Store) and use the assets and text it grabs to reconstruct your site using Elements (or RapidWeaver). Cheers, Erwin ---
**Author:** ![neuron1](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex005/user_avatar/forums.realmacsoftware.com/neuron1/32/24910_2.png) [@neuron1](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/neuron1)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2026, 7:54am UTC](https://forums.realmacsoftware.com/t/lost-hard-copies-of-site-how-do-i-open-downloaded-site/586/10 "2026-02-09T07:54:14Z")
Thanks for your reply. Just bought Elements and try to reconstruct it. Very time costly. I almost stop updating my web due to the computer crash. The local web-policeman told me I have to change an Apache problem with my web. otherwise, they will do something with my web. Hate this.