Backup Menu options

Scrivener Menu Backup Options

Save

Scrivener automatically saves your work as you go along but File>Save force Scrivener to save the project manually. (Ctrl + S)

Save As…

Using this options creates a NEW project with any name you choose. The original project is closed and saved. This is useful if you plan radical changes to the original project. You must choose a new project name and a folder to store this new project. (Ctrl+Shift +S). Simple backups are created with the Back up now and Back up to functions discussed below. (Fine points of automatic backups are set in the Options Panel under Backups.)

Please be aware that the Save As command is a very common cause of “lost” work.

It creates a new copy of a project, and then continues working in this newly created copy going forward. It’s very common for people to then open the original version of the project and panic because work done in the NEW copy of the project was “lost.” Try to avoid this option.

Save and Rebuild Search Indexes

You can manually rebuild the search index while saving. This is sometimes useful in cases where you suspect the project has lost its synchronization with the search index. There is typically no need to do this as Scrivener will automatically maintain the index, and it will rebuild it if something appears to have gone awry since the last session. (Alt + Shift + S)

Sync

Clicking this will give 3 options

Sync ▸with Mobile Devices (Shift+F8) Forces Scrivener to check the current project for mobile changes. In ordinary usage this will not be necessary as these checks are performed automatically when loading the project. However, it is safe to use whenever you feel unsure about the sync state of the project.

Sync ▸with External Folder… (Shift +F7) Method for creating folders with plain-text, rich text, Fountain or Final Draft files on your system. The folder can be placed anywhere, including network mounted drives or cloud folders such as provided by Dropbox, Google Drive, or iCloud Drive. It is thus useful for coordinating with collaborators or even just working on pieces of your project while on the go.

Sync ▸with External Folder Now (Shift +F6) If external folder sync has been previously set up, then this command syncs the project with the folder immediately. Otherwise, the configuration window will be opened for you.

Back up to-

Back up to a specific location like a cloud drive, USB key or external drive. Allows a manual backup separate from the normal backup process which you can save anywhere (as a zip file or regular folder if unclick the checkbox) [can be great when collaborating, allows you to have a separate shared folder to work from]

Back Up Now-

Triggers the automatic backup process and Scrivener backs up the project to your usual backup location which is either set in the Options Panel (Backup- System Wide) or in the Project Settings (Backup- Project Specific) as a compressed file or uncompressed. (The safest method is as a compressed zip file.)

Recommended Backup Settings:

Turn on Automatic backups

Backup up on close

Backup with manual save

Compress automatic backups as zip files

Backup before syncing with mobile devices ***** to prevent a sync overwrite.