Starting with the BeerSmith 3.1 update we’ve added improved data storage security as well as backup options to the BeerSmith platform. I strongly recommend upgrading to 3.1 or higher by going to the main download page at BeerSmith.com if you are using an older version of BeerSmith.
Improved Storage
In earlier versions of BeerSmith the data was stored under the Documents/BeerSmith3 directory. As computers have evolved this created more and more problems with shared drives, antivirus programs, cleanup and backup programs. For example many antivirus programs block programs from reading/writing a lot of data to the Documents folder. To correct this, V3.1 now recommends you store data in the AppData (Windows) or user Library (Mac) folder which is far less likely to be blocked or tampered with.
BeerSmith also previously stored changes made in memory and then wrote the data when you closed the program. This caused issues if the program crashed or if the program was left running when the computer shut down, which can happen on many laptops. The new version stores data changes incrementally as they are made, which means you won’t lose data in a crash or unexpected computer shutdown.
New Backup Features
BeerSmith 3.1 adds two new menu items on the File menu. The first one called Full Backup to Zip can be used to create a single zip archive file containing all of your current BeerSmith data and settings. This makes it very easy to make a periodic backup of your data for archival or make a copy of your data to move to another computer.
There is also a File->Full Recovery from Zip which takes the above zip file and recovers all of your data. Since recovering from a zip file replaces all of your existing data, the program will first ask you if you want to backup your existing data to a zip file, which you can do, and then it will do the recovery.
Transferring to a New Computer
Using the new backup and recover from zip commands it is now much easier to move to a new computer when you upgrade. Just install BeerSmith and activate it on the new computer, then use the File->Full Backup to Zip on the old computer to back it up. Next transfer that zip file to the new computer and use the File->Full Recovery from Zip on the new computer to restore all of your data and settings.
Automatic Backups of Files and Recipe Edits
In addition to the above changes, BeerSmith 3 makes periodic full backups of your key data files and stores them by date. You can access these from the File->Recover from Auto Backup command. Here there are 5 backups for each major data type, and you can select a file and click the button Open File in a New Tab to view the backup data for that date.
If you want to recover only a few items, you can then copy/paste the data from the open file tab back to your My Recipes or other view. If you need to restore the entire file, you can use the Recover from Backup Selected on the recover dialog.
In addition to the bulk automatic backups, the Recipe->Recipe Archive keeps a record of all major recipe edits. This lets you recover the last version or recent versions of any recipe even if you deleted or made substantial changes. From this view it will show recipes by date along with the name, action and folder they were stored in. In addition you can use the search box on the title bar to find all versions of a single recipe. Open a recipe by double clicking to view it and use the Save a Copy button on the ribbon to save a copy of the open recipe back to your folders.
That is a quick overview of some of the backup and recover options available in BeerSmith 3.1. Thanks for joining me on the BeerSmith Home Brewing Blog. Be sure to sign up for my newsletter or my podcast (also on itunes…and youtube) for more great tips on homebrewing.
