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This article provides step-by-step instructions for backing up your information using forScore’s Backup panel, but it’s also important to understand where your data is stored and how forScore works with iOS backups, iCloud, and your computer. For more information on these topics, visit this page.
Note: this article references 4SB Archives which are available as of forScore 10.4.7. Archives take up significantly more storage space on your device and may not be available in all situations. Learn more about the difference between 4SB backups and archives here.
Using a computer
This method is the fastest and most common way of backing up your data. We recommend this process instead of using the Services panel whenever possible.
If you’re transferring information from an iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch, use these instructions:
- In forScore, open the Tools menu and choose Backup.
- Tap the + button to create a new backup (recommended) or an archive, if available.
- Connect your device to your computer with its USB cable and access the File Sharing panel.
- If you created an archive, select it from the list. If you created a backup file, select all of the files (this includes all PDFs and other files like CSVs or audio files) in the documents list.
- Click the “Save To…” (or “Save”) button and specify a location on your computer. The transfer begins immediately—once the progress bar finishes, it is safe to disconnect your device.
If you’re transferring information from forScore running on a Mac, use these instructions:
- In forScore for Mac, open the Tools menu and choose Backup.
- Tap the + button and create a new archive.
- Click and drag the resulting archive out of the forScore window and to a separate location on your computer or right click on the file and choose “Share.”
Using the Services panel
You can also back up your library to a supported cloud service through forScore’s Services panel. When using this method, we strongly encourage using Archives instead of Backups since only a single file needs to be uploaded and ensures that you don’t end up with an incomplete backup of your library.
- In forScore, open the Tools menu and choose Backup.
- Tap the + button to create a new backup or archive (recommended, if available).
- Return to the Tools menu and choose Services, select your account if not already visible, and navigate to your preferred upload directory.
- If you created an archive:
- Tap the + button, navigate to the “Backups” tab, select your archive and choose “Upload” to begin the transfer.
- If you created a backup:
- Tap the + button, navigate to the “Backups” tab, select the backup you just created and choose “Upload” to begin the transfer.
- Tap the + button again, navigate to the “Scores” tab, tap “All” in the lower left-hand corner to select all files. Ensure that the upload format is “PDF” in the bottom right-hand corner, then choose “Upload” to begin the transfer.
- Tap the + button and navigate to the “Audio” tab. If any files listed, tap “All” in the lower left-hand corner to select all of them and choose “Upload” to begin the transfer.
- Repeat the last step for the upload picker’s “Other” tab, if necessary.
Using forScore Backup Utility for MacforScore 10.5
Archive your library directly to a Mac running macOS 10.13 or newer by downloading our free backup utility. This creates a single 4SB Archive file on your computer that can be used to recover your entire forScore library if needed. If you need to be able to browse through and access your documents on your computer, see the “using a computer” section above.
- Connect your iOS device to your computer using its USB cable
- Launch forScore Backup Utility
- Open forScore and choose “Backup” from the tools menu
- Create a new archive by tapping the + button in forScore’s Backup panel, then choosing “Back Up to [computer name]”
- When the progress bar completes, follow the prompt in the Backup Utility app to specify a location on your computer to save the resulting file. You can now disconnect your device.
Please don’t leave your hard work up to chance, back up regularly!
If you ever need to restore your data from a forScore backup, see this article: Restoring your library from a forScore backup file