I'm moving to a new computer

Take your projects, sessions and settings with you.

Quick question

What do you need?

To keep a backup in a folder that syncs
Turn it on
1. Open Settings > Backup & Restore and find Backup Mirror.
2. Under Mirror folder, click a cloud folder Yardmaster found on this computer (it makes a Yardmaster-mirror folder inside it), or click Browse….
3. Under Encryption passphrase, type a long passphrase or click Generate strong passphrase.
4. Save the passphrase in a password manager, then tick I’ve saved this passphrase somewhere safe.
5. Turn on Enable backup mirror.
6. Click Mirror now for a first copy straight away.
Backup MirrorSettings, Backup & RestoreEncrypted off-machine backup of the full database, config, and attachments so session history survives a hard drive failureOpen in YardmasterOpens Yardmaster. Don't have it? Download
Heads up: Lose the passphrase and the backups are gone
The passphrase is the only key to your backups. Yardmaster cannot reset it or show it to you, and nobody else can open the files without it.
If you turn the switch on before choosing a folder and a passphrase, a Finish setting up Backup Mirror reminder waits in your Inbox until you do.
Read it in Back up everything to a folder
To restore that backup on the new computer
Restore on a new computer
1. Install Yardmaster on the new computer and sign in.
2. Copy your backup file (it ends in .amcmirror) onto it, for example from your cloud folder.
3. Open Settings > Backup & Restore and click Restore from file….
4. Type your passphrase and click Choose mirror file. You see when the backup was made and on which computer.
5. Read Merge or Replace? just after these steps, pick one and click Restore.
A wrong passphrase changes nothing: Yardmaster stops before touching your data.
Restored sessions pick up where they left off. The first message you send gives the agent the whole earlier conversation again.
Merge or Replace?
- Merge (the default) adds the sessions and messages from the backup that this computer does not have yet, with the projects they belong to. Nothing you already have is changed or removed. Settings and automations are not merged.
- Replace makes this computer a copy of the backup, including files outside Yardmaster's own data.
Heads up: Replace overwrites files the moment you confirm it
Before Replace runs, a confirm lists exactly what it replaces here, with Cancel selected. As soon as you confirm, Replace overwrites these with the backup's copies:
- your CLAUDE.md and memory files in the .claude folder in your home folder, both the global ones and each project's,
- your Yardmaster preferences in the .amc folder in your home folder,
- your notes in The Vault, in the notes folder this computer uses.
Your database and settings are swapped for the backup's the next time Yardmaster starts, and the backup's attachments are added then too.
Yardmaster first saves a copy of everything it replaces. If this computer already has work you want, choose Merge.
Undo a restore
After a Replace, an Undo restore card waits at the top of Settings > Backup & Restore until you undo, keep the restore, or restore again. Undo restore asks first, then:
- puts back replaced files and removes added ones,
- first saves any file you changed since then in the backups folder (the card names them),
- before a restart, cancels the database and settings swap; after one, swaps your earlier ones back at the next restart (later work is lost).
Read it in Back up everything to a folder
To move everything with one file I carry (Preview)
Make a backup file
1. Open Settings > Backup & Restore and find Portable Backup.
2. Optional: tick Include my saved credentials to bring your API keys and sign-ins too (see Does it include my API keys and sign-ins?).
3. Click Export a backup… and choose where to save the file.
4. Copy the recovery code from the Backup Created window into a password manager.
5. Tick I've saved this recovery code somewhere safe and click I've saved this.
6. Optional: click Show in folder to find the file and copy it to a USB stick or cloud drive.
Heads up: The recovery code is shown once
Yardmaster never stores the recovery code and cannot show it again. On any other computer, the code is the only way to open the file. Lose it and that backup cannot be restored.
Read it in Move to a new computer with one file
To bring that file in on the new computer (Preview)
Bring it in on the other computer
1. Copy the backup file (it ends in .yardmasterbackup) onto the other computer and sign in to Yardmaster.
2. Turn on Portable Backup there too, open Settings > Backup & Restore and click Import a backup….
3. Pick the file and type the recovery code when asked.
4. Check the Import Preview (when it was made, and how many projects, sessions and messages it holds), then click Import. On a full restore, read the list of what it replaces and confirm.
Nothing changes until you click Import. On a brand-new install with no projects, Yardmaster may also offer "Have a backup from another computer? Import it now." as a shortcut here.
Good to know: An existing Claude Code setup is safe
If you already use Claude Code on this computer, Import merges instead of replacing, so your CLAUDE.md and memory files are kept. A full restore only happens on a computer with neither Yardmaster projects nor a Claude Code setup; see What does import do to my data?.
Read it in Move to a new computer with one file
My sign-ins are missing after a restore
Work through the checklist
The checklist opens by itself the first time Yardmaster starts after a restore that replaced your data with a backup from another computer, and an Inbox card points to it.
1. Look at the groups that are open: those have items that need attention. Each group shows how many items are healthy.
2. On an item, click its button: for example Go to Accounts to sign in again, or Copy or Open Terminal for a command-line tool's sign-in command.
3. Enter the key or sign in again.
4. Come back and click Re-check on that item. It turns healthy when Yardmaster can read it.
5. When you are done, or want to finish later, click Dismiss.
If items still need attention when you click Dismiss, Yardmaster asks first. The checklist does not open by itself again until your next restore.
If you undo the restore, the checklist does not open for it: your own keys and sign-ins come back with your own settings.
Good to know: Your keys still work
Nothing changed at the provider. Yardmaster only lost the ability to read its own saved copy, so entering the same key, or signing in again, is enough.
Read it in Fix sign-ins after a restore

What do you need?

Merge or Replace?

Undo a restore