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Can I move bak file location?

13 REPLIES 13
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Message 1 of 14
Anonymous
8846 Views, 13 Replies

Can I move bak file location?

Hi,

Just wondering if it's possible for all the generated .bak files to be created automatically in one folder . . . and if so, how do I do it?
At present they litter my nicely organised drawing folders, and I have to go in and move them to my "Bak Files" folder.

I prefer to keep a few recent bak's . . . . just in case . . . so would be nice to be notified "do you want to overwrite the current .bak file' or similar!
. . . . . am I asking too much?

Thanks in advance!

Steve
13 REPLIES 13
Message 2 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous


Full AutoCAD, MOVEBAK command: otherwise, I'm not
sure worrying about pretty folder content is that vital when you lose a DWG and
need to find a good BAK to restore quickly and painlessly.

Set Windows Explorer to sort by file type, a better
method.

Message 3 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

Thanks Dean,

I only have 2007 LT, so I guess the answer is that they stay where they are.

Cheers,
Steve
Message 4 of 14
Charles_Shade
in reply to: Anonymous

Can't he set the destination folder from the drop down: Tools->Options->Files-> Automatic Save File Location?
Message 5 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

I don't think its those bak files he is talking about 🙂

clshade wrote:
> Can't he set the destination folder from the drop down:
> Tools->Options->Files-> Automatic Save File Location?
Message 6 of 14
Charles_Shade
in reply to: Anonymous

Then am I correct in assuming that the ones he may be alluding to are the ones created when the file is opened which is saved in the same folder as the drawing file? Would seem easy to get to if that is the case but would not provide for an effective backup.
Message 7 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

Yes, but he was just talking about 'clutter' in the current working
folder. (Not clutter, I know. Essential backups!)

I think he wanted to have those bak files stored in the same folder as
his auto saved bak's.



clshade wrote:
> Then am I correct in assuming that the ones he may be alluding to are
> the ones created when the file is opened which is saved in the same
> folder as the drawing file? Would seem easy to get to if that is the
> case but would not provide for an effective backup.
Message 8 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

HI Guys,

Yes I've tried the Tools/Options file locations area, but there's no provision for changing .bak locations.

The idea behind all this (for me) is really organisation. It also has a safety implication too - any backup file system is configurable to where you'd like to store the backups -(agreed??) - so what's the reason for AutoCAD creating these files if not for backup? And if they ARE to be regarded as backups, then I'd like them on a separate drive location!

You could argue I guess that these are not to be regarded as "real" backups . . . only temp . . . but I've used these files to recover dwgs on a few occasions, before our backup system kicked in (once a day) . . . and without them I would have been jiggered! So to me they ARE my backups, incremental or full, and I'd still like to be able to have them create themselves where I want them, and not just where the program decides to put them.

The working folder location (as is) does make sense, but once this folder becomes quite populated, the unnecessary holding of unwanted files becomes a pain !

Just my opinion!

Thanks for the input guys, very much appreciated.
Any further comments also welcome.

Steve
Message 9 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

I concur with all you said, but would like to add....
bak's appear in two locations;
1. With the original dwg
2. Autosave bak's in the location of your choice.

No.2 Is the primary backup location where you end up with multiple dwgs
at different stages from each day you drew, and includes sv$ files which
can get you out of a mess too.

No.1 Consider it a bonus.




steevg wrote:
> HI Guys, Yes I've tried the Tools/Options file locations area, but
> there's no provision for changing .bak locations. The idea behind all
> this (for me) is really organisation. It also has a safety implication
> too - any backup file system is configurable to where you'd like to
> store the backups -(agreed??) - so what's the reason for AutoCAD
> creating these files if not for backup? And if they ARE to be regarded
> as backups, then I'd like them on a separate drive location! You could
> argue I guess that these are not to be regarded as "real" backups . . .
> only temp . . . but I've used these files to recover dwgs on a few
> occasions, before our backup system kicked in (once a day) . . . and
> without them I would have been jiggered! So to me they ARE my backups,
> incremental or full, and I'd still like to be able to have them create
> themselves where I want them, and not just where the program decides to
> put them. The working folder location (as is) does make sense, but once
> this folder becomes quite populated, the unnecessary holding of unwanted
> files becomes a pain ! Just my opinion! Thanks for the input guys, very
> much appreciated. Any further comments also welcome. Steve
Message 10 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

I'm old school on this one: like MSWord's backup file which also appears in
the same location as the DOC file, I prefer my BAK file to be where my DWG
file is.

The autosave-created BAK file can be located elsewhere, and often should be,
and that is my second alternate backup location, never my primary.

Beyond that, nightly system backups add another layer. There is no need to
bury your initial backup away from your user's immediate need: we all crash
files and we all need instant access to a backup.

--
Dean Saadallah
http://LTisACAD.blogspot.com
--
Message 11 of 14
Charles_Shade
in reply to: Anonymous

I run a script with Autocad startup to set the Autosave to 10 minutes because I have found that will "uncheck" itself from time to time. My Automatic Save file location is set to My Documents\Cad-Save and the *.bak's are here. I also have Save tied into a few macros and custom buttons that I have made so I'll Save w/o thinking.

Every evening a backup program runs that stores the MyDocs folder and other items/files; archived for 5 days on a seperate drive. So even if I loose my harddrive I have the backup of critical information in another place only a day old, five at most.

Regards, Charles Shade
Message 12 of 14
Anonymous
in reply to: Anonymous

Hi,

Can't use MOVEBAK Command in LT Version.

I also want to klow.

Message 13 of 14
pendean
in reply to: Anonymous

If you could you would not be here asking.
Message 14 of 14
RobDraw
in reply to: Anonymous

Not sure why you need to do it but if it's as the OP stated, it's just for file management to keep project folders free of .back files, you're going to need a 3rd party application that can search for and move files for you.


Rob

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