# Settings reference

This is the control-by-control reference for the Settings page. Changes are
saved automatically unless an action opens a confirmation or file picker.

![General, scheduling, retention, and transfer settings](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ATAC-Helicopter/VaultSync/Stable/docs/images/Settings_General.png)

## General

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Projects root | Default parent folder used to discover project candidates. It does not back up every child automatically. |
| Resume where you left off | Opens the page that was active when VaultSync last closed. |
| Launch at system startup | Starts VaultSync when you sign in. |
| Show tray icon | Keeps the tray/menu icon available for quick actions. |
| Run in background when closing | Closing the window hides VaultSync instead of ending it. |
| Show main window for tray actions | Brings the app forward for tray-started snapshots or backups. |
| Show mini backup widget for tray backups | Displays a small draggable progress window for tray-started backups. |

## Backup schedule, retention, and transfer

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Enable automatic backups | Allows background scheduled backups. |
| Backup interval | Minutes between automatic-backup checks. |
| Keep last N snapshots per project | Retention cap for ordinary restore points. Protected points and proof floors can prevent deletion. |
| Simulate retention | Previews suggested deletions and reclaimable space without deleting anything. |
| Confirm before deleting backups | Requires confirmation before destination data is removed. |
| Sync backup history across devices | Exports portable, non-secret metadata to `.vaultsync/meta/`. |
| Auto-import history when found | Merges metadata when a destination becomes reachable. |
| Prompt to restore after import | Offers the latest imported restore point before new local work creates another history branch. |
| Bandwidth limit | Caps network transfer speed. The value is in megabits per second. |
| Quiet hours | Defers automatic backups inside the entered 24-hour `HH:mm` window. Manual runs remain available. |
| Refresh history now | Immediately scans reachable destinations for metadata to import. |

## Backup location and encryption

![Advanced destination configuration](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ATAC-Helicopter/VaultSync/Stable/docs/images/Settings_Destinations.png)

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Fallback backup location | The single destination used in simple mode, or when no advanced destination is configured. Never place it inside the protected project. |
| Advanced destinations | Enables multiple independently configured local, external, or network targets. |
| Encrypt archive backups | Encrypts compressed archives locally before upload. Destinations receive `data.vse`. |
| Allow session-only password fallback | Keeps a password only in memory if secure OS credential storage is unavailable. It is lost when VaultSync exits. |
| Open-unlock timeout | Minutes a decrypted open workspace may remain available before it is locked. |
| Set/Clear password | Stores or removes the global encryption secret through the OS credential service where possible. |
| Enroll project passwords | Applies the configured secret to projects that require encryption enrollment. |
| Rotate encrypted backups | Re-encrypts eligible archives under the current credential through the guided rotation flow. |
| Lock opened encrypted backups now | Removes temporary decrypted open workspaces immediately. |

VaultSync cannot recover a forgotten encryption password. Read
[Backup encryption](Encryption) before enabling encryption.

## Backup format, performance, and safety

![Encryption and backup-performance controls](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ATAC-Helicopter/VaultSync/Stable/docs/images/Settings_Encryption_Performance.png)

| Toggle | What it does and when to use it |
| --- | --- |
| Compress backups | Creates a single archive. Useful for WAN/VPN links or many small files; costs CPU and removes folder-level incremental behavior. |
| Delta sync for large files | Uses `rsync` block deltas. Best for large files on LAN; it is disabled when incremental backups are enabled. |
| Incremental backups | Hardlinks unchanged files to preserve history efficiently on compatible local/LAN storage. |
| Auto-tune archive uploads | Briefly measures the destination and chooses an archive upload buffer. |
| Parallel archive uploads | Uses multiple writers. It may be faster, but some SMB servers are less reliable with it. |
| Verify backups after creation | Runs an integrity check after each backup. Recommended. |
| Full snapshot hashing | Hashes every file. Safest change detection, but slower for large trees. |
| Use scan cache for snapshots | Skips folders known to be unchanged. |
| Aggressive scan cache | Trusts matching folder timestamps and skips deeper checks. Fastest, but less safe. |
| Pause auto-backups on battery | Avoids heavy automatic disk work while unplugged. |

## Storage

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Prefer external drives | Favors removable/external destinations when selection is otherwise equivalent. |
| Show drive health warnings | Surfaces health and availability warnings for destination drives. |
| Reserve free space | Minimum percentage VaultSync should leave free before starting or continuing a backup. |

## Each advanced destination

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Alias | Friendly name shown throughout the app. Keep aliases unique. |
| Active | Includes or excludes the destination without deleting its configuration. |
| Path / Select | Folder, mounted share, or network target used for backups. |
| Test | Checks reachability and the configured access path. Test after any mount, path, or credential change. |
| Credential | Saved credential profile used when VaultSync must mount or authenticate. |
| Pre-mounted | Tells VaultSync the OS or user already mounted the share. |
| Auto-mount if needed | Attempts to mount an unreachable destination with the selected credential. |
| Auto-unmount after backup | Unmounts only when VaultSync performed the mount. |
| Count as offsite copy | Gives offsite credit in the 3-2-1 advisor. Enable only when the storage is physically elsewhere. |
| Sync backup history | Exports portable metadata to this destination. |
| Auto-import backup history | Imports metadata when this destination is found. |
| Force full history export | Backfills the full project history on the next backup, then clears the request. |
| Retry attempts / backoff | Number of transfer retries and seconds between retries. |
| Checkpoint resume | Saves transfer progress so an eligible interrupted upload can resume. |
| Soft quota / warning percent | Plans against a destination-specific capacity limit and warns before it is exhausted. Zero quota means no explicit soft cap. |

## Credential profiles

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Name | Unique label selected by a destination. |
| Use keychain/credential manager | Stores the secret through Windows Credential Manager/DPAPI, macOS Keychain, or Linux Secret Service when available. |
| Username | Account name, including `DOMAIN\\user` where required. |
| Password / Show | Secret used for mount or login. Showing it affects only the editor. |

## Appearance

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Theme | Follow system, Dark, Light, or Custom. |
| Custom theme | Starts from a base theme or preset and edits stable palette slots such as accent, surfaces, text, success, warning, and danger. |
| Compact mode | Reduces spacing in dense views. |
| Show project avatars | Displays icons or initials beside project names. |

Theme presets include VaultSync Midnight, Deep Blue, OLED Black, Ember, Fjord,
Forest, Neon Dusk, Orchid, Aurora Glass, Paper & Ink, Porcelain Glass, and
Studio Light.

## Notifications

The **Enable notifications** master toggle controls all notifications. The
success, failure, and low-disk toggles select which events are allowed. Turning
off the master does not erase those individual choices.

## Advanced, diagnostics, and maintenance

![Maintenance, repair planning, metadata conflicts, and updates](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ATAC-Helicopter/VaultSync/Stable/docs/images/Settings_Maintenance.png)

| Control or action | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Enable verbose logging | Adds troubleshooting detail to the live log. |
| Save verbose logs to disk | Persists that detail locally while verbose logging is enabled. |
| Open console / Export logs | Views recent activity or exports it for support. |
| Export support bundle | Shows every generated file before export. Required report/manifest files stay included; optional sanitized diagnostics and anonymized telemetry can be removed or the export can be cancelled. |
| Import support bundle | Imports supported configuration from a bundle; diagnostics are not applied as settings. |
| Crash report assistance | Creates a strictly allowlisted local report after a crash. Nothing is sent automatically. |
| Maintenance window | Allows selected once-per-day health jobs inside an `HH:mm` window. |
| Run consistency scan | Checks project, snapshot, and backup linkage. |
| Run repair dry-run | Produces an exact repair plan without applying it. |
| Refresh metadata history | Imports current reachable destination metadata during maintenance. |
| Backup index: Dry-run plan | Scans for deterministic remaps. Review this before repair. |
| Backup index: Fix now | Applies only exact actions from the current plan. |
| Metadata conflict: Keep local | Keeps local destination, restore, verification, and tag choices. |
| Metadata conflict: Accept imported | Applies the shown values imported from another machine. |

## Updates and language

| Control | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Check for updates on startup | Enables update checks for direct-distribution builds. Store builds remain Store-managed. |
| Update check interval | Minutes between checks while VaultSync is running. |
| Check for updates now | Checks the selected channel immediately. |
| Preview updates | Follows prerelease development builds. These may be unstable. |
| Language | Changes the language used throughout the UI. |
| Reset to defaults | Restores settings defaults after confirmation. It is not the same as forgetting projects. |

## Danger zone

- **Clear local cache** removes cached metadata and transient state, not project
  or destination files.
- **Forget all projects** resets VaultSync's internal project, snapshot, and
  backup records. It does not delete source or backup files, but the local
  index cannot be undone. Export anything you need first.

## Project-level controls

The Backups page can override global behavior per project:

- automatic backup enabled;
- preferred destination;
- encryption policy;
- restore mode;
- verification policy; and
- backup-now action.

Use global Settings for the normal policy, and project overrides only when a
project genuinely needs different storage or safety behavior.