Cloud Snapshots

Basic Memory Cloud includes point-in-time snapshots for backup and recovery. Create manual snapshots before major changes, or rely on automatic daily backups.

What Snapshots Do

• Rollback to a previous state after accidental changes
• Browse historical versions of your notes
• Restore individual files or entire folders
• Protect against accidental deletion

Using the Web App

Manage snapshots directly in your browser at app.basicmemory.com.

View Snapshots

Go to Settings → Snapshots to see all snapshots with creation time and description.

Create a Snapshot

1. Click Create Snapshot
2. Add an optional description (e.g., "Before reorganizing projects")
3. Confirm

Restore from a Snapshot

1. Click on a snapshot → Restore Files
2. Filter by project or search for specific files
3. Select files or folders to restore
4. Click Restore to copy them back

Using the CLI

Manage snapshots from the command line with bm cloud snapshot commands.

Create a Snapshot

bm cloud snapshot create "Before reorganization"

Output:

Created snapshot: snap_abc123 (2026-01-27T10:30:00)

List Snapshots

bm cloud snapshot list

Output:

snap_abc123  "Before reorganization"  Jan 27, 2026  42 MB
snap_xyz789  "daily-auto"             Jan 26, 2026  41 MB
snap_def456  "daily-auto"             Jan 25, 2026  40 MB

View Snapshot Details

bm cloud snapshot show snap_abc123

Browse Snapshot Contents

View files in a snapshot without restoring:

bm cloud snapshot browse snap_abc123

Output:

notes/project.md
notes/ideas.md
research/analysis.md
meetings/2026-01-15.md

Filter by path:

bm cloud snapshot browse snap_abc123 --path notes/

Restore Files

Restore a specific file:

bm cloud snapshot restore snap_abc123 --file notes/important.md

Restore an entire folder:

bm cloud snapshot restore snap_abc123 --path research/

Delete a Snapshot

bm cloud snapshot delete snap_abc123

When to Create Snapshots

• Before reorganizing your folder structure
• Before bulk imports from Claude or ChatGPT
• Before deleting multiple notes
• Before running automated scripts
• At project milestones

Automatic Snapshots

Basic Memory Cloud creates automatic daily snapshots:

• Frequency: Once per day
• Naming: daily-auto prefix
• No action required: Happens automatically

You can rely on automatic snapshots for basic protection, but manual snapshots are recommended before major changes.

Best Practices

1. Name snapshots descriptively - Use names like "Before Q1 reorganization" instead of "backup1"
2. Create before bulk operations - Imports, reorganizations, and deletions
3. Review automatic snapshots - Check that daily snapshots are being created
4. Test restore occasionally - Verify you can restore files when needed
5. Clean up old snapshots - Delete manual snapshots you no longer need

Troubleshooting

Snapshot Creation Failed

1. Check your subscription status: bm cloud status
2. Verify you're authenticated: bm cloud login
3. Check available storage in your account

Can't Find a File in Snapshot

1. Use browse with different paths to locate the file
2. Check if the file existed at the snapshot time
3. Try an earlier snapshot if the file was deleted before the snapshot

Restore Didn't Work

1. Check file permissions in your project
2. Verify the file path is correct
3. Try restoring to a different location first

Next Steps