Hello!
I’ve just created a second project with Scrivener. Now, my first project is making Back Ups when I close Scrivener. However, my second project does not such a thing. In preferences it says the same things as in my first project. How does this work? Do I need to create a new path to Back Up this project to? Can I Back Up to the same as my first project?
I hope someone can explain this to me. Thank you!!!
Check File->Backup->Exclude from automatic backups. If it’s got a check-mark next to it, select that option again to clear it. I believe that the Options settings for backups affect all projects.
Hi,
Thanks for your reply, but that option was not selected. I’ve tried again. When I close my first project, there’s a back up running. Then I have only the second project open and when I close that one, there’s not a back up running.
Maybe do I have to select another location to store the back up for project 2?
If you change the backup location, it will change it for all of your projects. Are you sure there aren’t any backups being created? I noticed recently that I wasn’t seeing anything in the Scrivener window stating that it was making a backup, but when I sorted my backup folder, I noticed there were a few very recent backups. They were so small, I guess there was no time for the progress bar to display before it was done.
Yes! You are right! I just checked it and both projets can be found in the back up file. Very recent back ups too. Phew! 8) Thank you! 
And the second project is still very small, so the back up process must be done very quickly
Yes, the backup is just long enough for Windows to create the zip file, so the amount of time depends entirely on how large the file is. For small projects, this will be quick enough that the process completes before a progress bar kicks in.
If you change the backup location, it will change it for all of your projects.
I normally work on several concurrent projects – currently 3. While I understand the purpose of this, I find it a cumbersome approach. With a mix of different project I find it annoying to manage my backups. I keep only the 3 latest backups.
Why? If I sort by Name, there is no order to the Date Modified – which can be critical when looking to restore the latest copy. I have the horrors of inadvertently restoring the wrong file.
If I sort by Date Modified, there is no order to the Names. I presume this folder is restricted by the limitations of Windows Explorer??? and therefore a sort + subsort is not possible.
Given that L&L are unlikely to be able to provide the above sorting, can I suggest that when considering future enhancements, we be given the option to set up separate backup folders for each Project, while retaining the existing method?
I would just note that you are of course free to setup whatever additional backup tools you prefer. If you need Scrivener’s automatic backups often enough to really care how the folder is organized, you might want to look at Snapshots and other ways to set user-defined restore points instead.
The primary purpose of Scrivener’s automatic backups is to protect the user from disasters. As such, it is essential that the function be as streamlined and easy to use as possible, particularly for less-knowledgeable users. The more options, the easier it is for users to inadvertently setup an unhelpful backup strategy.
There shouldn’t be any real consequences to restoring the “wrong” backup file, except some temporary confusion while you fix the mistake. Best practice is to copy backups out of the backup folder, confirm that you have opened the correct one before saving back to the original project, and save all pre-restore backups until you’re sure you’re back on track.
Windows Explorer can’t do a sort/subsort, but it can search, and then sort the result.
Katherine
You can also turn on the option to “use date in backup file names” (in the Backup tab of Tools > Options), which will allow you to sort the backups by name and still easily see the most recent of the relevant project.