Backup – Restore custom settings of apps, with CloneApp
What if you want to save and transfer or just keep for safety the options of Microsoft Word or other Office applications, the options of Photoshop, Audacity, Video Converter, eMule, Image Viewer, Foobar, and so many applications you may use having devoted a lot of time to configure them?
CloneApp is a small portable utility that will help you backup and restore the options of several Windows applications – directories, profile folders, registry information… CloneApp can be very helpful when you want to keep and transfer Windows and program settings when you reinstall Windows or just to have a backup.
Instead of completely backing up all files of a program or of a complete partition or disc etc., CloneApp exports only configuration data of an application from Windows directories and the registry. This is done quickly, it saves a lot of space, it can be repeated easily when you need to refresh this information. Note that you should be running CloneApp always with Administrator rights. You can still use it as a normal or restricted user, but Windows may prevent you from copying certain files.
To start a Backup process click on the left Navigation Icon Clone. Choose the Apps you want to back up by selecting their check boxes. Click the Start button. CloneApp starts now immediately the Backup process and exports all files to the Clone Path defined under Options. The Backup process itself is straightforward. It runs the process for each Application that you have selected individually and echoes the progress in the Status window.
The same procedure is also used for Restoration, only that now you have to use the Restore button. Dialogs may appear during the process when a file cannot be copied, if an application is still running during backup, etc. To restore a backup to another computer, just copy the CloneApp program folder including the CloneApp Plug-ins and of course the backup folder including cloneapp2.ini, to the Machine you want to restore the configuration.
If the Username on the target Machine is different from the one in the Source Machine, CloneApp may return the Error message that “Restoration Settings could not be loaded. Clone Path has been reseted to Default. Please try again”. In the second attempt the Clone Path mentioned in cloneapp2.ini will be prepared and reset to the default Clone Path registered in the Options tab.
CloneApp includes by default pre-configured plug-ins for a lot of popular applications. To extend CloneApp’s functionality you can create your own Plug-ins too.
