Back up a personal research archive and test the restore

A folder full of exports is reassuring only if the files contain the work you expect and can be restored. Treat backup as a small repeatable experiment: identify what matters, copy it, recover a sample, and write down what happened. Browser-based notes deserve the same attention as documents. 1. Make an inventory. List your catalog, source files, notes, collections, local images, attribution records, and any application exports. Distinguish files that came with a project from personal state stored by a browser. Copying an application folder does not necessarily copy the notes saved inside that browser profile. 2. Export before major changes. Use the product's available export controls, then check the downloaded filename, size, and date. Keep exports outside the application's own folder as well as with your project when practical. Include a short README explaining what each export covers; do not assume all similarly named backup buttons contain the same information. 3. Keep copies with different failure paths. Two copies on the same drive do not protect against losing that drive. Choose an additional location you control and can access, considering privacy for sensitive research. If storage synchronizes deletions automatically, understand how recovery and version history work before treating it as your only backup. 4. Test restoration safely. Use a separate test folder or an appropriate separate browser profile rather than overwriting your only working copy. Restore a sample and inspect actual notes, record links, and images. Confirm that the export includes text content, not just references to files that remain elsewhere. 5. Check file integrity and readability. A cryptographic hash can help compare exact bytes between copies; opening a file checks a different thing. A matching hash does not prove the content is accurate, and a readable file may still be missing records. Use both structural counts and a few human checks. 6. Leave instructions for future you. Record export date, application edition, restoration steps, and known exclusions. Keep originals when converting file formats and document the conversion. Review the process after adding a new kind of data or moving to another device. For a small archive, a monthly restore exercise and an export before each major import may be a practical starting routine, not a universal rule. Adjust the schedule to how much work you can afford to lose. The meaningful success condition is that you can recover your actual research and understand it, not merely that a ZIP file exists.

Editorial review: 2026-09-23. New evidence may change this account.

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