Backup and Restore in SavePoint
Good backups are peace of mind you only notice when you need them, and by then it is too late to set them up. This guide shows how SavePoint handles both automatic and manual backups, where to store them safely, and how the 3-2-1 backup rule protects you from ever losing your financial history. You will also learn how to restore from a backup step by step, and how to test your backups so you know they will actually work the day you need them.
SavePoint provides automated and manual backup options to protect your financial data. Configure automated backups in Preferences or Data Management tabs, or create manual backups on-demand from the Data Management tab.
💾 Automated Local Backup Settings
Configure automated backup frequency and location. Backups run automatically based on your frequency setting and save complete copies of your database to the location you specify.
Backup Frequency: Set when SavePoint automatically creates backup copies of your database
- Daily: Backup created once per day (recommended for active daily use)
- Weekly: Backup created once per week (suitable for weekly financial reviews)
- Monthly: Backup created once per month (minimal protection, not recommended for active use)
- On-Startup: Backup created each time you open SavePoint (recommended if you open it infrequently)
- On-Exit: Backup created each time you close SavePoint (captures all changes from session)
- Automatic Retention: System keeps your 10 most recent automatic backups and permanently deletes older ones using fs.unlinkSync() to save disk space
Backup Location: Select where automatic backups are saved
- Default Location: SavePoint/backups folder in your user directory
- Custom Location: Any folder on your computer, external drive, or network location
- Cloud Storage Integration: A cloud storage option will be available as an add-on for the Online-Capable version of the software
- Path Validation: SavePoint verifies the location is writable before enabling backups
Backup Status: View when backups last ran and whether they succeeded
- Last Backup Date/Time: Shows when the most recent automatic backup completed
- Success/Failure Status: Indicates if the last backup worked or if there were errors
- Error Details: If backup failed, shows specific error (e.g., "disk full", "location not accessible")
- Next Scheduled Backup: Displays when the next automatic backup will occur based on your frequency setting
Active Users: Use "Daily" frequency with backup location set to a folder on your computer (or cloud-synced folder if using Online-Capable version).
Weekly Users: Use "On-Startup" frequency so you get a backup every time you use the app, regardless of how much time has passed.
Redundancy: While Preferences tab configures one automatic backup location, you can also create additional manual backups using the Data Management tab to store in multiple locations.
Network Locations: If you set backup location to a network drive or NAS, backups will fail when you're offline or the network is unavailable.
External Drives: If backup location is on an external USB drive, backups only work when the drive is connected. You'll see errors if you launch SavePoint without the drive attached.
Permanent Deletion: When automatic cleanup removes old backups (beyond 10 most recent), files are permanently deleted, and not moved to Recycle Bin.
📂 Manual Backup & Restore
Create manual backups on-demand or restore from existing backup files. This is separate from the automated backup system.
Manual Backup Creation:
- One-Click Backup: Click "Create Backup" to save complete database copy with timestamp
- Backup Location: Choose where to save the backup file (default: SavePoint/backups folder)
- Filename Format: Manual backups can be named as desired; automatic backups use "SavePoint_Backup_YYYY-MM-DD_HHMMSS.db"
- Complete Database: Includes all transactions, accounts, budgets, settings, categories, merchant mappings, and user profile
- Use Cases: Before major changes, before software updates, before data cleanup operations, or for manual archival
Restore from Backup:
- File Selection: Browse to select backup file to restore (works with both automatic and manual backups)
- Confirmation Required: System warns that restore will replace ALL current data
- Automatic Current Backup: Before restore, SavePoint automatically backs up your current database
- Complete Replacement: Restore replaces entire database - all current data is replaced with backup contents
- Post-Restore: Application automatically reloads with restored data
Critical: Restore is not a merge - it completely replaces your current database. Any transactions, accounts, or changes made since the backup was created will be lost unless you create a backup of your current data first. The system does create an automatic backup before restore, but verify this backup exists before proceeding.
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Initial Backup Configuration
- Enable automated backup system
- Select backup frequency (recommend Daily for active use, Weekly for occasional use)
- Set backup location
- Configure retention policy (recommend 30 days for daily, 12 weeks for weekly)
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Test Backup System
- Manually trigger first backup to test configuration
- Verify backup file creation in specified location
- Run integrity check on created backup file
- Test restore process with backup file (optional but recommended)
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Ongoing Maintenance
- Monthly review of backup success logs
- Quarterly test restore to ensure backup validity
- Monitor backup storage space usage
- Update backup location if storage requirements change
Scenario: Maria's computer suffered a hard drive failure but was able to completely recover her 3 years of financial data using SavePoint's backup system.
- Backup Configuration: Daily automated backups to local folder and then saved to a backup drive
- Regular Testing: Quarterly restore tests confirmed backup integrity
- Multiple Locations: Additional weekly backups to external USB drive
- New Installation: Installed SavePoint on replacement computer (may need new license key)
- Backup Access: Retrieved latest backup from saved location
- Restore Process: Used restore wizard to recover complete database
- Data Verification: Confirmed all 3 years of transactions, accounts, and settings recovered
Result: Complete data recovery with loss of only 1 day of recent transactions, demonstrating the critical value of proactive backup configuration.
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Access Backup Files
Navigate to configured backup location and identify most recent valid backup file.
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Install SavePoint
Install SavePoint on new system and complete initial setup (don't add data yet).
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Execute Restore
Use restore wizard to select backup file and restore complete database.
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Verify Recovery
Check accounts, transactions, settings, and all major features to confirm complete recovery.
Use the 3-2-1 backup rule: 3 copies of your data, 2 different media types, 1 offsite location. Configure daily automated backups to cloud storage, weekly backups to external drive, and monthly manual exports for long-term archival. Test your restore process quarterly to ensure backups are valid and you're familiar with the recovery procedures.
Ensure your backup location is accessible and secure - cloud storage is an option for reliability, but understand there is a huge concern about putting financial data in the cloud. Remember that untested backups are not reliable, so perform quarterly restore tests. Balance retention needs: too few backups risk data loss, while too many consume excessive storage. For encrypted backups, document key management procedures since the same encryption keys are required for restore.