I have PortableApps running on the data partition of my Win10 PC. I backup most of the partition to a NAS on a file-basis (using the heavily configurable Syncovery) regularly.
When backing up the PortableApps directory and all of its subfolders, I would like to omit program files and only keep
- app data
- app settings
- as well as the list of installed apps itself.
Two reasons: first, obviously backup size, because in case of restore I could get the apps themselves from the Internet. Second: time, as certain apps (GIMP, LibreOffice) consist of tens of thousands of very small files, slowing down a file-by-file backup massively.
Backing up only the [AppName]\Data folders (like the built-in Backup functionality does it) sort of works, BUT in case of a restore I would need to
- install PortabaleApps platform itself
- install all apps manually (by going through the backed up list of [AppName]\Data folders
- "merge" the newly created installation with the backed up /Data folders by copying those
My goal would be, when backing up the structure below \PortableApps, to backup the program files of the Platform App itself, so that it is runnable immediately after restore, plus all app's data and settings while keeping the folder structure. Then, plus those files that would be needed to let the (restored) Platform App detect the list of apps, and upon hitting "Update apps" would trigger a download of just those.
I tried keeping [AppName]\Data as well as [AppName]\App\AppInfo\appinfo.ini but as the latter carries the latest version information, an update would not happen unless a new version was released after the restore.
Any ideas on this rather specific scenario?
Cheers,
Henn
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Check the back up options in the platform. There is an option to backup app data, one for documents and one for the entire drive
I've been toying with the idea for setting this up for a while, but the issue is that some apps do specific things when upgraded from other versions like move files or adjust settings. So, we'd need to add in the ability for the installer to know what version of the apps your data is associated with.
The first step is reinstall functionality in the platform which is coming shortly. The next would be batch reinstalling of missing apps (restored from backup). And lastly, an option in the platform itself to detect a restore and automatically install and then grab all your necessary apps.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
I will keep a close eye on the https://portableapps.com/platform/changelog
Thanks for the insight!