Since the upgrade to 3 I seem to have issues every time I try to save a scriv project. The project goes into the dropbox>apps>scrivener folder ok but for some reason the backups are in there too and I get a warning:
“Project not in a recommended save location.
The project “two_boys.scriv” is stored inside its own automatic backups folder. This could potentially result in data loss in the event of an automatic backup trying to overwrite the current project file. It is therefore strongly recommended that you close the project and move it to a different location.”
I am using MacOS and iOS and use dropbox for keeping the files synced, any idea of where `I should be storing the backups and how to do it?
Store the backups anywhere on your computer (but make sure you have a backup system like Time Machine running) except where you save your live projects. You set it up in Preferences under the Backups tab.
If you use zip:ed backups you can save them in your iCloud Drive folder, which means that you can access them even if the hard drive on your Mac breaks down. If you have Time Machine running, storing general backups on an external hard drive (e.g. Time Capsule), you will always have a copy of both your live project and your backups there.
Hi lunk,
Can I safely assume that the backup and the scrivener project are two different files? I just found the saving location for backups (in Preferences) and it is the same location as my dropbox>apps>scrivener folder where I keep all the projects `I’m working on. I do not remember ever changing this and its only happened in the last week or two.
Yes, they are completely different files/packages. Your projects have the names projectname.scriv whereas your backups are named something with bak in the projectname and optionally date and ending in .zip (if you have chosen zip:ed backups).
All you have to do is point your backups somewhere else. You don’t have to move all your older backups, unless you decide to sync your projects with an iDevice, in which case you don’t want a lot of other files and folders in that folder.
You could also make a completely new subfolder in your dropbox folder where you start saving your active projects.
I have a folder named dropbox/Scrivener Projects where all my projects are stored, and in it a sub-folder named dropbox/Scrivener Projects/Scriv Active Projects in which I only have those projects I know I want to be able to access from my iPad as well.
… and my backups are zip:ed backups stored in Mega/Scrivener Backups, where Mega is another cloud service, basically functioning like Dropbox.
Hi Lunk, I’m new to Scrivener and struggling with the same error message listed above. I’m saving my live file in a particular folder on Dropbox. And within preferences I’ve tried to save the backup file location to another DB folder, to my desktop, and finally to my iCloud drive. Annoyingly, I keep getting the error message:
Thanks Lunk, certainly – please see attached. I’ve included a screenshot of the Preferences window, the location of the Live file (on Dropbox), and the location of the Backup (on iCloud Drive). With blacked out areas for confidentiality.
You seem to have two identically named “live” projects. One in Dropbox->1_Scrivener Live, and the other in iCloud Drive->Scrivener Backups.
You must be opening the one in the Scrivener Backups folder, which causes the error message. You should work out which of the two versions has the most up to date writing in it, archive the other, and make sure the best version of your project is stored in the Dropbox location.
Hi Lunk, thank you, yes – I have done this. Please see attached. Any further thoughts re. what may be causing the issue? It’s troubling to get this error message every time I hope the backup to ensure that it’s there correctly. (I’m not working or updating the file from there. Just opening it and I get the error message.) Is this a glitch with the software?
Also it seems strange that every time I close the live file I get the Project Template selection screen (attached) – ensure i this has any relation to my main problem…
Hi rdale, thanks for trying to help (this issue is getting frustrating - it should be simple to backup!) I’m only working out of the active “live” file. The backup file is what I’m trying to archive correctly. I get this error message when I open the backup file to check it (i.e. that the latest updates have been backed up.)
I’m not sure how to change the title of the backup file as I don’t see that as an option anywhere – only the option to pick the backup file location… Do you have any other suggestions, please?
First, you should not have Desktop & Documents in iCloud activated as that may be part of the problem. Scrivener needs access to the whole project package all the time, in one place, and with part of Documents only on the iCloud server and some on your computer, you might run into trouble.
You seem to be confusing things. Your live project is the one you open and close (and which saves itself every time you stop writing for a few seconds). That’s all you have to do. No archiving or anything else.
Your backups are created automatically when you close the project and are placed where you have designated them to go in Preferences -> Backup.
The confusing thing is that according to Preferences you seem to have your backups in Documents but then on the screenshot you have them on the iCloud Drive?
Hi Lunk, I have tried putting my Backup folder everywhere (iCloud, Documents, Google Drive, DropBox) to see if it would resolve getting this error message to show up. I don’t think I’m messing anything up. I’m not archiving or moving files in Finder or anything. I’m simply working from the file in its “live” location, closing it and then opening the file in it’s backup location archive state to ensure it’s archiving correctly. It DOES open for me – but with the error message warning above. Which makes me worry that this could cause problems down the line which I must avoid now.
I’ve triple checked – not sure why it says “Doc” in the file extension in the Preferences window (for location for where to backup.) But it’s definitely saving to the iCloud Drive location in this instance.
If the issue is caused by having Desktop & Documents activated in iCloud Drive why do I still get the same message when I set Google Drive as my backup location?
One more odd detail – I “reset to default” the Backup location. And then within that Preferences window asked it to show me where the default would save it. What’s so strange is that the file structure indicated there does not mirror what’s on my machine. So I can’t “find the archive” in it’s default location. UGH. I don’t understand why this is so hard. I’m not sure what to try next…
If I am understanding your steps above, to confirm that your backup worked, you are going into the designated backup folder and using Scrivener to open the backup project.
Well, that corresponds to the warning message. You have opened your project in the designated backup folder, and that’s what Scrivener is warning you about!
I understand your desire to confirm that your backup worked. A better way to do that is to copy your backup project out of the backup folder, say onto your desktop, and then try to open it. Then you will not get the warning.
Make sense?
HTH,
Jim
ETA: I just read through the responses and see that rdale has already told you basically the same thing.
In case you don’t realize this, there is nothing special about Scrivener’s backups, they are simply copies of your live project. If you were to have some disaster strike and your live Scrivener project was damaged, the first thing most folks on this forum would likely tell you to do–I certainly would–is copy your latest backup from the backup folder to somewhere else, and then open it to see if your lost words are in there. So what I am suggesting above is also what I’d suggest you do in the event of an actual problem.
The default is in ~/Library/Application Support/Scrivener/Backups, which by default is in a hidden location. That may explain why you can’t find a way to navigate there with Finder, and it’s definitely not going to be anywhere in your iCloud Drive hierarchy. If you want to make the folder visible, navigate to your Home folder in Finder, hit ⌘J to bring up view settings for that folder, and tick the Show Library folder option. Now you should be able to navigate manually to the above path.
Something else to consider is that each project can have its own backup folder set. If you have changed a project’s backup settings in Project ▸ Project Settings… then it won’t respond to the setting in your main Preferences: Backup pane.
I simply took the Scrivener Backups folder out of my Documents and put it on my Desktop. To test it, I closed and reopened my project, and the error message doesn’t show up anymore.
