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How to Manually Restore a Backup

PostedJuly 4, 2025
UpdatedJuly 4, 2025

If something went wrong and you’d like to roll back your Crates library and settings to a previous state, you can manually restore a backup.

Crates automatically creates backups of your database and user preferences at multiple intervals:

  • Hot backups (frequent recent saves)

  • Hourly

  • Daily

  • Weekly

These are stored in timestamped ZIP files so you can pick the version closest to a point before the issue occurred.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Quit Crates (Desktop App + Server)

Before doing anything:

  • Completely close the Crates desktop app: from the top menu “Quit App & Server”

  • Make sure Server is closed (check the dock/ tray)

    • macOS: Use Activity Monitor and search for “Crates”

    • Windows: Use Task Manager and check under “Processes”

2. Navigate to the Crates Backup Folder

The backup folder is located in your system’s app data location:

  • macOS:
    ~/Library/Application Support/Crates/DB Backups

  • Windows:
    %APPDATA%\Crates\DB Backups
    (Paste it in Explorer or Run dialog)

Inside this folder, you’ll find ZIP files named like:

hot_backup_20250704_100000.zip
hourly_backup_20250703_150000.zip

daily_backup_20250702_000000.zip

Sort by “Date Modified” to find the most relevant backup.

3. Choose and Unzip a Backup

Pick the backup you want to restore (ideally just before the problem occurred), and unzip it.

Inside, you’ll typically find:

  • com.crates.db (the database file)

  • user_preferences.json (your app settings)

4. Locate the Current User Data Folder

Next, go to the active Crates user folder:

  • macOS:
    ~/Library/Application Support/Crates/user/

  • Windows:
    %APPDATA%\Crates\user\

You should see the same two files there:

  • com.crates.db

  • user_preferences.json

5. Backup Your Current Data

Before replacing anything:

  • Create a zip of the old files, or make a folder e.g old_user_backup/ and move the existing com.crates.db and user_preferences.json into it

That way, you can revert again if needed.

6. Replace the Files with the Backup Versions

Copy the unzipped files (com.crates.db, user_preferences.json) from the backup, and paste them into the user/ folder, replacing the current files.

7. Start Crates

Now open the Crates app again.

You should see your library and preferences as they were at the time of the backup you restored.

Notes

  • This process restores both your crates database and user settings.

  • No media files are affected — only database and preferences.

  • Always be sure Crates is not running before making changes.

If you need more help, don’t hesitate to contact us