Is there a safe method to create and restore snapshots Zotero library?

edited April 3, 2019
Is there a method to take a snapshot of my Zotero library and revert back to previous snapshots if needed?

Would a manual copy/replace of the "zotero.sqlite" database file be the correct approach to take snapshots? If I manually copy/replace the "zotero.sqlite" database file as a method of taking and restoring snapshots, would I run into issues I have major changes to my library such as re-organizing collections, items, merging duplicates, etc...? Assumption: I am NOT using sync and Zotero is install only on a single PC.

Currently just copying the entire "Zotero" directory seems to be a working approach for me, but this directory is very large (>3GB), thus it is not a feasible approach.

  • The sqlite is the way to go with two caveats:
    1. Ideally you would want to make the copies while Zotero is not running (to ensure that all database operations have finished)
    2. Replacing the database with an older version will leave orphaned files (i.e. files not linked to any Zotero entry) in the Zotero data directory. They don't do any harm per se, but they will accumulate if you do this a lot as you seem to plan to do.
Sign In or Register to comment.