Restoring Files From The CrashPlan App

RESTORING FILES FROM THE CRASHPLAN APP

Applies to: CrashPlan PRO, CrashPlan PROe

Overview

We recommend using the CrashPlan app to restore files whenever you have access to one of your computers. The

CrashPlan web app (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Web) and the

CrashPlan mobile app (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/CrashPlan_Mobile_App) are convenient for

restoring files when you are not near one of your computers. However, the CrashPlan app offers you the most flexibility.

This article describes how to restore from the CrashPlan app.

Note: If you need to restore all of your files because you recently replaced a computer or the hard drive containing your

operating system, refer to our Restoring All Files On A New Computer Or Drive (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/

Restoring/Downloading_All_Files_On_A_New_Device_Or_Drive) guide instead.

Steps

1. Open the CrashPlan app and go to Restore.

2. If there are multiple computers on your account, select the computer containing the files you want to restore.

3. If the selected computer is backing up to multiple destinations, select the backup destination that you want to use for this

restore.

4. If you want to restore your files from a previous date, click most recent to select the date from a calendar.

5. Select the checkboxes for the folders and files you want to restore.

Learn more about finding files (including hidden or deleted files) below.

6. Update the restore options to specify the version, permissions, restore location, and naming convention for your restored files.

◦ Click the links in the description to see your options and change a selection.

◦ When in doubt, restore using current permissions.

7. Click Restore.

Your download begins immediately. The Restore Status displays the status of your restored files.

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Updated: Tue, 07 Mar 2017 19:04:16 GMT

Restore Tips

• It is safe to close the CrashPlan app while the files restore in the background.

• If you are restoring a large amount of data, consider optimizing your computer settings (http://support.code42.com/

CrashPlan/4/Getting_Started/Optimizing_Energy_Settings) to prevent disruptions.

• Alternatively, if you don't want to restore all of the files at once, you can shut down or put your computer to sleep, and

the restore will resume where it left off when it is powered on again.

• If you receive errors when restoring, refer to our troubleshooting guide (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/

Troubleshooting/Unable_To_Restore).

Choosing The Backup Destination To Use For Restore

If you are backing up to multiple destinations (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Configuring/

Choosing_Multiple_Destinations), you can choose the destination that you want to use to restore. See the

considerations below for the type of destination you are using.

• From an external hard drive

The hard drive must be connected to your computer. Restoring from an external hard drive is faster than restoring over the web.

• From the cloud

You must be connected to the Internet to restore from CrashPlan Central or another cloud destination.

• From another computer on your account (CrashPlan for Home and Code42 for Enterprise only)

The computer must be turned on and CrashPlan must be running. If CrashPlan isn't set to run “always,” then you will only be able

to restore during the backup times (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Code42_App_Reference/

Backup_Settings_Reference#Settings_::_Backup) specified on that computer.

• From a friend destination (CrashPlan for Home only)

Like computers on your account, your friend's computer must be turned on and CrashPlan must be running. If the friend

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destination isn't set to "always" allow restores from inbound devices, then you will only be able to restore during the specified

time (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Code42_App_Reference/

General_Settings_Reference#Inbound_Backup_From_Other_Computers).

Finding Files To Restore

If you want to restore a specific file, you can enter a portion of the file name in the search field. You can also search for a

particular file extension (for example, jpeg).

To search, enter your search term and click the search icon:

(http://support.code42.com/@api/deki/files/1066/search1.png?revision=1)

Searching For Files Backed Up From Another Computer

Searching from the CrashPlan web app or the CrashPlan app may not locate files backed up for a computer other than the

one you are using. If the file you are searching for is not found, use the file tree to navigate to the file's location.

Hidden Files

Some temporary and system files are hidden in the CrashPlan restore view because you do not typically need to interact

with these files. Hidden files (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Troubleshooting/

What_Is_Not_Backing_Up#Hidden_Files) and locations do not appear in the file selection list by default. Select Show

hidden files to view hidden files.

Deleted Files

CrashPlan stores deleted files based on your version retention settings (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/

Configuring/Specifying_Version_Settings) (the default setting is to never remove deleted files from your backup

archive). To display or search for deleted files in the file tree, select Show deleted files. Learn more about retaining and

restoring deleted files (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Retaining_And_Downloading_Deleted_Files).

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After you enable Show deleted files, your deleted files appear in the file tree and can be restored.

Restore Options

CrashPlan suggests default settings for restoring your files, including the version, permissions, and location of restored

files, as well has how to handle file name conflicts. You can click the links in this restore description to see your options

and change the selection.

http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Code42_App (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Code42_App)

Updated: Tue, 07 Mar 2017 19:04:16 GMT

File Version

CrashPlan restores the latest version of a file by default. However, you may want to restore a previous version, either

because the file became corrupted, or you simply liked an earlier version better. CrashPlan backs up versions of your

files based on your version retention settings (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Configuring/

Specifying_Version_Settings).

To restore an earlier version of a file, click most recent to change the selection. Select the date and time for the file you

want to restore.

Permissions

By default, CrashPlan restores files with the permissions associated with the original file. However, if you are restoring

the files to a different computer than the one where the file originated, it is best to restore using current permissions.

To restore files using your current computer's permissions, click original permissions to change it to current

permissions.

http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Code42_App (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Code42_App)

Updated: Tue, 07 Mar 2017 19:04:16 GMT

Restore Location

By default, CrashPlan restores files to your computer's desktop. You can click Desktop to change your location. Your

options include:

• Desktop

• Original location

• A folder you choose

Original Location No Longer Exists

If you restore files to their original location, but that location no longer exists, CrashPlan will recreate the folders used by the

original location. For this reason, pay special attention when changing computers to file path differences between your old

and new computer. For example, suppose you back up the folder C:\Users\Jim\Documents. Later, you replace

your computer and use a different username, so your new Documents folder is located at C:\Users\James\

Documents. If you restore your Documents folder to the original location, CrashPlan will create a folder labeled Jim

under the C:\Users directory and restore the Documents folder there. In this scenario, you probably don't want to

restore files to their original location.

Rename Or Replace Files?

If a file is restored to a location that already contains a file with the same name, CrashPlan defaults to renaming the

original file with the prefix "original1." However, you can tell CrashPlan how to handle matching file names by clicking

the rename option:

• Overwrite: If a duplicate name is detected, CrashPlan replaces the existing file with the restored file

• Rename: If a duplicate name is detected, CrashPlan renames the original file with the prefix "original1"

Rename Your Files

If you aren't sure whether you want to rename or replace, choose the rename option. You can always delete duplicate files

later.

Restoring Files To A Different Operating System

These considerations apply if you are, for example, moving from a Windows computer to a Mac computer.

• Restore the files to a specific location, rather than the original location. This is important because the computer you are restoring

to has a different file-system structure than the original computer.

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• Some file metadata may be lost during a cross-operating system restore. To preserve all file metadata, restore to a computer with

the same operating system as the original.

• Filenames containing characters that are illegal on the operating system you restore to cannot be restored to that computer.

Restore those files to a computer of the same operating system or use web restore (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/

Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Web).

Restoring Mac Files To A Windows Computer

If you plan to restore Mac files to a Windows computer, we recommend using the more restrictive Windows naming rules

(https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa365247.aspx)with your Mac files to prevent any potential restore problems.

Restoring An External Hard Drive

If you are restoring files that were originally stored on an external hard drive, and that hard drive is not currently

connected to the source computer, CrashPlan treats the files as missing. To restore:

• If you are replacing the original drive (due to failure or another loss), see our guide to Restoring Files After Replacing A Drive

(http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_After_Replacing_A_Drive).

• If you are not replacing the drive, but it is not currently available (or you don't want to connect it because you are only restoring

several files), you can select Show deleted files to restore the files.

Restore Order

When performing a restore, files are downloaded starting at the top of the tree and recurse down. So if your file structure

looks like this:

• Folder 1

◦ Folder 1.1

◦ Folder 1.2

• Folder 2

CrashPlan will restore the files and folders in this order:

• Folder 1 and its contents

• Folder 1.1 and its contents

• Folder 1.2 and its contents

• Folder 2 and its contents

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• Backup Status Report Reference (http://support.code42.com/Administrator/3/Administration_Console_Reference/

Backup_Status_Report_Reference)

• Configuring Device Backup Settings (http://support.code42.com/Administrator/3/Configuring/

Configuring_Device_Backup_Settings)

• Supported Metadata (http://support.code42.com/Administrator/3/Configuring/Supported_Metadata)

• Best Practices For Custom Roles & Permissions (http://support.code42.com/Administrator/3/Monitoring_And_Managing/

Best_Practices_For_Custom_Roles_And_Permissions)

• Introduction To The Code42 API (http://support.code42.com/Administrator/3/Monitoring_And_Managing/

Introduction_To_The_Code42_API)

http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Code42_App (http://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/4/Restoring/Downloading_Files_From_The_Code42_App)

Updated: Tue, 07 Mar 2017 19:04:16 GMT