Backup & Restore

A backup snapshot contains catalog metadata, playlists, cues, analysis, artwork, and references to backed-up audio versions. Unchanged audio is reused across snapshots; earlier snapshots retain previous audio and deleted tracks.

Back Up Your Catalog

Preview the backup, then apply it:

dc backup
dc backup --apply

The applied command starts authentication and cloud setup if needed. Keep your audio files and external disks available: a snapshot commits only when all required audio is available locally or already backed up.

Back Up Rekordbox or a USB Directly

You can back up a library without importing it into your default catalog first:

dc backup Rekordbox.app
dc backup Rekordbox.app --apply

Rekordbox.app selects the macOS desktop library. You can also pass a master.db path, its containing directory, or a Pioneer USB volume:

dc backup "/Volumes/DJ"
dc backup "/Volumes/DJ" --apply

These backups capture the source library in an isolated catalog and leave your default catalog untouched. Replace the volume path with your mounted drive, such as "E:\" on Windows or "/media/your-name/DJ" on Linux.

List Snapshots

dc backup list

Use a snapshot ID from this output to restore a particular backup. Omitting --snapshot selects the latest committed snapshot.

Restore a Catalog and Audio

Choose a fresh destination path. Preview, then restore with audio verification:

dc backup restore "/path/to/recovered/main.cdb" --snapshot SNAPSHOT_ID --verify
dc backup restore "/path/to/recovered/main.cdb" --snapshot SNAPSHOT_ID --verify --apply

Replace SNAPSHOT_ID with the ID you want to recover. Audio is restored into the adjacent tracks directory by default. Restore preserves the snapshot as a separate catalog; it does not merge it into your current catalog or overwrite a different existing catalog.

If interrupted, rerun the command with the same snapshot ID and destination to resume.

Restore to an Empty USB

Use --volume to reconstruct a Pioneer library on an empty destination drive:

dc backup restore "/Volumes/RECOVERED" --volume --snapshot SNAPSHOT_ID --verify
dc backup restore "/Volumes/RECOVERED" --volume --snapshot SNAPSHOT_ID --verify --apply

You can also export a restored catalog to a USB later.