Making a backup

The collection is one file, so a backup is one copy of that file. Two ways to get one: on demand, or automatically.

A copy right now

Database › Backup…, or Ctrl+B. Choose where to put the copy and the current database is written there, complete. The same command is the simplest way to put a collection on a memory stick, on a NAS, or into a shared folder for network use.

Automatic multilevel backup

The one that actually saves people. Switch it on in Tools › Preferences › General, Automatic multilevel backup:

Enable automatic backupTurns the whole thing on.
Copies to storeHow many previous copies are kept. Older ones are dropped as new ones appear.
Days between copiesHow often a new copy is made.
Folder for backup copiesWhere they go. Browse folder opens it in Explorer.

Several copies matter more than one. A single copy overwritten every day is no help against damage you only notice a week later; five copies at three-day intervals are.

Put the copies in the cloud. Backups next to the database die with the same disk. If the program finds a synchronized OneDrive, Dropbox or Google Drive folder on the computer, it offers to keep the copies there — accept. This is the one place the cloud is right for: the working database itself should stay local.

Restoring

Copy the backup file back and open it, or open it where it lies. A file the program recognizes as one of its own backups triggers an offer to copy it to a clean name first — accept, otherwise the program keeps making backups of the backup and the names grow into My Movies[3][1][2].amm.

Backups are never blocked: they work in the trial, in free mode and with a licence. Your data is never held hostage — see Trial, free mode and licence.

DOWNLOAD

Free to try. Catalog up to 100 movies at no cost, forever.