How to restore from backup

I’ve found if I right click on a document, that this document moves down the list as I move the cursor down the menu. The document often ends up in another folder and I have to retrieve it. Today a document disappeared completely during this process.

I went to restore it from backup, but couldn’t find any instructions about this. I copied the text file, but this didn’t retain any of the note structure. Is there a proper way to restore from backup?

In the end, I was saved by turning my tablet offline, and opening up the older version of Dynalist, then copying the lost document before re-synching. This time I was thankful for the absence of background synching!

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Sounds like a bug, but I can’t reproduce it right now. Is it still happening?

Was that from a Dropbox/Google Calendar backup? If so, there should be an OPML version of the backup. Just open it and copy everything into a new document to restore it.

We definitely should add a dedicated import channel though! For example, below the “New document” and “New folder” option, there should be a third option called “Import from OPML”.

Thanks @Erica. Yes, it is still happening for me. I’ll see if I can record it.

I was using the Google Drive backup. But the files seem to be only in indented text format. Is it different in Dropbox?

They should have the same backup format…

The OPML backup is in a separate .zip file though, the file name looks like this: “dynalist-backup-opml-2016-05-27.zip”.

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Duh. I didn’t expect there to be two different formats.

I eventually found the missing file buried inside another. It would have slipped in as I scrolled down the context menu.

I’ve replicated this issue on my laptop.

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So in the desktop app?

No, it happens in Chrome Version 59.0.3071.29. There isn’t the same problem in the desktop app.

Could you please refresh and try again, if you haven’t refreshed in a long time, and see if it still happens?

The desktop app should be on the same version as the latest web, so this issue should be either both fixed or not fixed on both platforms.

It still happens on Chrome. I use a trackpad where right click is placing two fingers on the right side. This seems to both select the document and open the context menu in Chrome, but only opens the context menu in the app, while leaving the document fixed in position.

Hi Erica
Just recalling you to this - we really do need an IMPORT FROM OPML menu item or at least some better instructions.
‘Just open it’ sounds easy and it is AS LONG AS YOU KNOW TO JUST OPEN IT IN A PLAIN TEXT EDITOR which is not specified.
Depending what apps someone has installed (i.e. me!) it opens in something that renders it, and copying the rendered version creates all kinds of mess.
Now that I have figured it out I see that if I specify it should open in textedit it shows the raw opml and when I paste that into DL it all works beautifully as no doubt you intended.
Luckily I was not in panic mode but if I had just lost some stuff and wanted to restore from backup this would have made me a bit frantic!
Still loving DL - esp the recent updates!
Helen

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Not sure if you read the updates but we literally just added this: http://blog.dynalist.io/2017-week-38-update/

Haha I read it as I was browsing around after posting my msg and THAT minute your msg came to my inbox.
Great minds think alike.
Only weird thing is I don’t actually see the menu command in either the web version, the app or in fluid (which I use most often).
Maybe it takes some time to kick in or something?
Helen

It should on web. Hasn’t rolled it out to desktop yet.

Try force refresh, or wait a bit if you don’t mind.

That is great BUT I came across this by chance. If I go to the main help section and search for “Restore” I get
"Search results for restore
No articles were found. Care to try again?"
Can you please tell people about this in the help pages and make it easily searchable. When people are looking for “Restore” they are not always at their best, take it from me!

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The “Restore” feature is really necessary in case the account is hacked, data loss and need to restore the entire folder structure, documents using the most recent backup from Dynalist.

A backup would make less sense if it could only be exported but there’s no way to re-import it intact.

Just happened to me, I moved one folder into another and then 15+ documents disappeared.

It was a pain to restore each one form the backup.

And, even more, after resolving - internal links got lost.