NoteCove is currently in beta — expect rough edges.
NoteCove NoteCove Beta

Backup & Recovery

NoteCove includes powerful tools to protect your data and recover from unexpected issues. Access these features through Settings → Recovery tab.

Backup System

Manual Backups

Create complete backups of your Storage Directories for safekeeping:

  1. Open Settings (Cmd+, / Ctrl+,)
  2. Go to the Recovery tab
  3. Click Create Backup
  4. Select which Storage Directory to backup
  5. Choose backup options:
    • Normal Backup: Fast, preserves exact current state
    • Pack and Snapshot (optional): Optimizes file size (takes longer)
  6. Add an optional description
  7. Click Create

Backup Contents:

  • All notes (database + CRDT files)
  • Folder structure and organization
  • Tags and tag associations
  • Storage Directory metadata
  • Settings and configuration

Storage Location: Backups are stored in your user data directory under .backups/. You can change this location in Settings.

Retention: Manual backups are kept until you delete them manually.

Pre-Operation Snapshots

Restore System

Restoring from Backup

Recover your data from a previous backup:

  1. Open Settings → Recovery tab
  2. Click View Backups
  3. Select a backup from the list (shows timestamp, size, note count)
  4. Click Restore
  5. Choose restore options:
    • Restore as Original: Replaces the original Storage Directory (if it exists)
    • Restore as New: Creates a new Storage Directory with the backup contents
  6. Select destination folder
  7. Click Restore

After Restore:

  • The restored Storage Directory is automatically registered in NoteCove
  • All notes and folders from the backup are available immediately
  • Tags are automatically extracted and indexed from note content
  • If restored as new, you’ll have both the original and restored SDs

Best Practices

Regular Backups

  • Create manual backups before major operations
  • Back up before upgrading NoteCove
  • Consider weekly backups for important data

Multi-Storage Directory Setup

  • Use multiple SDs for organization (work, personal, etc.)
  • Each SD can be backed up independently
  • Easier to restore specific data sets

Cloud Sync + Local Backups

  • Store your Storage Directories in cloud sync folders (Dropbox, etc.)
  • Create local backups as additional protection
  • You get both real-time sync and point-in-time restore

Monitoring

  • Check the Recovery tab periodically for diagnostics
  • Address stuck operations promptly
  • Clean up old activity logs to save space

Troubleshooting

”Cannot restore: target exists”

The destination folder already contains a Storage Directory. Either:

  • Choose a different destination folder
  • Delete the existing SD first
  • Use “Restore as New” to create alongside it

”Backup failed: disk full”

Free up disk space or change backup location to a drive with more space (Settings → Recovery → Backup Location).

”Stuck operation from this instance”

A move operation started on this device didn’t complete. Click “Take Over” to resume it. If it fails repeatedly, click “Cancel” to roll back.

”Duplicate notes detected”

Compare both copies using “View Both Copies”. Keep the one with the latest changes, then delete the other.

Advanced Topics

Recovery from Catastrophic Failure

If NoteCove won’t start:

  1. Locate your Storage Directories (default: ~/Documents/NoteCove/)
  2. Copy them to a safe location
  3. Reinstall NoteCove
  4. Use “Add Storage Directory” to re-add your data
  5. Or use “Restore from Backup” if you have backups

Multi-Instance Coordination

When running multiple NoteCove instances (different computers):

  • Stuck operations from other instances show which instance started them
  • Use “Take Over” to continue an operation from a different device
  • Instance IDs are shown for debugging multi-device scenarios

Next Steps