Backup

3DPrintForge can back up all configuration, history, and data so you can easily restore in the event of system failure, server migration, or update issues.

Go to: https://localhost:3443/#settings → System → Backup

What is included in a backup

Data type	Included	Note
Printer setup and configurations	✅
Print history	✅
Filament inventory	✅
Users and roles	✅	Passwords stored hashed
Settings	✅	Incl. notification configurations
Maintenance log	✅
Projects and invoices	✅
File library (metadata)	✅
File library (files)	Optional	Can be large
Timelapse videos	Optional	Can be very large
Gallery images	Optional
data/model-cache/	Cached 3MF models	Optional
data/history-models/	3MF linked to history	Recommended
data/toolpath-cache/	Cached gcode toolpath	Optional

Creating a manual backup

1. Go to Settings → Backup
2. Choose what to include (see the table above)
3. Click Create backup now
4. A progress indicator is shown while the backup is being created
5. Click Download when the backup is ready

The backup is saved as a .zip file with a timestamp in the filename:

3dprintforge-backup-2026-03-22T14-30-00.zip

Downloading a backup

Backup files are stored in the backup folder on the server (configurable). You can also download them directly:

1. Go to Backup → Existing backups
2. Find the backup in the list (sorted by date)
3. Click Download (download icon)

:::info Storage folder Default storage folder: ./data/backups/. Change under Settings → Backup → Storage folder. :::

Scheduled automatic backup

1. Enable Automatic backup under Backup → Scheduling
2. Choose interval:
   • Daily — runs at 03:00 (configurable)
   • Weekly — a specific day and time
   • Monthly — first day of the month
3. Choose Number of backups to keep (e.g. 7 — older ones are deleted automatically)
4. Click Save

:::tip External storage For important data: mount an external disk or network drive as the backup storage folder. That way backups survive even if the system disk fails. :::

Restoring from backup

:::warning Restore overwrites existing data Restoring replaces all existing data with the contents of the backup file. Make sure you have a fresh backup of the current data first. :::

From an existing backup on the server

1. Go to Backup → Existing backups
2. Find the backup in the list
3. Click Restore
4. Confirm in the dialog
5. The system restarts automatically after restoration

From a downloaded backup file

1. Click Upload backup
2. Select the .zip file from your computer
3. The file is validated — you can see what is included
4. Click Restore from file
5. Confirm in the dialog

Backup validation

3DPrintForge validates all backup files before restoring:

• Checks that the ZIP format is valid
• Verifies that the database schema is compatible with the current version
• Shows a warning if the backup is from an older version (migration will be performed automatically)