How to Back Up and Restore Orbit
Browser storage is convenient, but it is not a permanent archive. Keep a separate file for any setup you cannot easily recreate.
Know what each file contains
A full .orbit backup contains local wheels, settings, histories, templates and referenced wheel images. This version also includes the four utility setups, their recent histories and compact team images as an additive backup field. Existing wheel storage remains version three; it is not rewritten into a new wheel schema to add those tools.
A one-wheel export is different. It includes that wheel and its referenced images but excludes unrelated wheels and utility histories. A utility-data JSON file includes all four utilities only. TXT and CSV result exports are readable records, not full workspace backups. Choose the format according to what you need to restore later.
A share link is not a backup. A remote wheel share publishes a separate snapshot without your local history, and a utility setup link contains only configuration. Sharing cannot replace a full backup of editable local work. It also exposes content to anyone who obtains the link.
Export before something can be lost
Open the Storage controls in the editable wheel workspace and choose Export all data. The verified Ctrl+S shortcut, or Command+S on macOS, also downloads a full .orbit backup when you are outside editable form fields and dialogs. Use the visible control if a browser shortcut or keyboard layout behaves differently.
Give the downloaded file a name you will recognise and keep it outside browser site storage. Check that the download completed before clearing data. Store it somewhere appropriate for its contents: classroom names, team photographs and result histories may be personal information. Orbit does not encrypt a downloaded backup for you.
Back up before clearing cookies and site data, uninstalling a browser, moving devices or restoring another file. Installing the PWA does not create an independent backup or automatically sync your workspace. A browser can still remove localStorage, IndexedDB or cached files under its own storage policy.
Restore with a current safety copy
First export your current workspace if there is anything in it you may want later. In Storage, choose the restore file and review the replacement confirmation. Full restore replaces the local workspace; it does not merge two sets of wheels. Use a one-wheel import when your goal is to add one separate wheel instead.
Orbit validates the backup format, wheel records and referenced image assets before accepting them. Image IDs are checked against their content, and missing required assets cause a visible error. Utility configuration and history are validated too. A JSON file being readable does not mean it is a valid Orbit backup, and you should not remove validation errors by editing arbitrary fields you do not understand.
Older .orbit backups without the utility extension remain accepted. Restoring one leaves the separate utility data unchanged. Importing a single wheel does not restore utility data even if the source file also has that extension. This avoids importing unrelated private histories when you only wanted one wheel.
If storage is unavailable or full
Do not immediately clear everything after an error. Read the message and try exporting the current setup first. A full store may reject a new save; utility results can remain visible in memory while the error explains that persistence did not succeed. A reload may lose that unsaved work. Keep the tab open long enough to export or copy it.
Damaged utility storage is not silently overwritten. You can export the current session setup and explicitly reset only utility storage. That reset does not delete existing wheels. If another tab saved newer utility data, load that tab's saved version before continuing rather than silently replacing it with an older copy.
For important data, test a backup on a separate browser profile or device before relying on it. Use the real browser you plan to keep using, and check both labels and images after restoration. Automated validation catches many malformed files, but it cannot know whether your chosen file contains the latest version of every setup you intended to preserve.