backup creates one versioned bundle containing readable catalog, conclusions, personal data, source evidence and accounts. It can run even when only some stores exist; personal notes or accounts without a catalog are still worth saving. The summary states which parts were held, empty or unreadable.
Each store is read independently. An unreadable separate conclusions file is reported and omitted from the bundle, without omitting a readable catalog or other readable stores. Its original bytes remain untouched; keep a separate copy if they need recovery.
Version 3 includes salted account password verifiers, never sessions. A backup containing credentials requires private Unix permissions, including when replacing an existing destination (chmod 600). Older versions remain readable. See accounts.
Choose an explicit filename and keep a copy off the machine/NAS. If that file already exists, Aède asks before overwriting it; --yes bypasses that prompt. A completely empty data directory returns an error rather than writing a misleading empty backup.
The destination's parent folder must already exist. Active Aède stores and writer locks, existing audio, final symbolic links and special files are refused even with --yes. The complete archive is written through an isolated temporary file before atomic replacement; another hard-link name keeps its original bytes. On Unix, new backups have no permissions for other users, while an existing destination's permissions are preserved. This does not guarantee durability after power loss.
The bundle contains no original audio, artwork, lyrics sidecars or other derivative assets. Back those up separately. Treat the bundle as private because it can include personal history and absolute file paths. Use restore to recover stores, not export: an ordinary catalog export does not include all irreplaceable personal information.
Version 4 also includes private parental policies and listening usage. Restoring an older bundle preserves the existing parental store. These rules are administrator-owned; ordinary Phémios preference imports cannot alter them. A bundle containing parental data requires the same private permissions as account credentials.
Syntax and arguments#
aede backup <file>
Exactly one destination file; additional positional arguments are refused. Use the positional filename, not --output.
Options for this command#
| Option | Meaning |
|---|---|
--yes | Skip the confirmation when this command asks for one. Inspect the intended operation first; use deliberately for unattended execution. |
The shared options reference explains --data, --no-color, --help/-h, --version/-v/-V, option values and output/pagination rules. These shared presentation/data options do not make every command support CSV/JSON or pagination.
Examples#
aede backup aede-backup.aede
aede backup "/Volumes/Backup/aede-2026-10.aede"
Result and errors#
Output describes the selected operation or catalog data. Read any per-item warnings and retained-work summary; a completed process is not an independent integrity or audio-quality guarantee. Invalid command syntax/options normally exit with code 2; handler failures normally exit with code 1. Local interruption differs from a delegated server task, as explained in cancel.
Related reading#
Detailed existing guide: operating.md.