If the value isn't localhost then its probably because the server with the database is different to the server with your website and SSH access.
vB has a built in backup option to generate a DB backup, try using that, but make sure you keep your database intact as sometimes the backups it produces are not 100% reliable.
In vB3 its under Import & Maintenance in the ACP menu, and in vB 2 (IIRC) its somewhere near the bottom.
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