Data snapshots in the F|P App

Come power outage, lost wifi, F|P still keeps some of your data - to keep You going.

Data Snapshots can even make the F|P App a bit of a time machine!

These are - mostly automatically created - encrypted copies of relevant Trello data on your device (each one is simply a file now), which you can very quickly recall (even offline) using the F|P App.

The feature is very much in development and things may change, also note snapshots are not backups ▸ - anyway, this is not at all to discourage You from using the app!

This one is a pretty horrible video I created about it but I think it'll give you the gist if you prefer motion pic. over text ;)

More info below, but

why not just start keeping snapshots now for FREE? ▸

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Overview

So, how do we remedy the bad days?

Snapshots are by default created "as you go" - no need to think: just open a board in the app (make it the active board), and you should shortly have a recent copy.

Currently there is a configurable limit (minimum 5 m.) on how often these can get created.

What if you don't visit some important boards all the time? The app also allows you to select a number of boards to create regular snapshots of.

The premium version allows for more regularly snapshot boards, making it more suitable for managers - but if you desperately need more multi-board support, and/or the price is too high - let's talk! ▸

However, while it truly sounds tempting lean on this safety net, it is not without holes.

Do keep in mind:

Snapshots are not backups

Not everything is contained!

E.g.

• No custom fields (something to come?)
• No card history, including comments (could add the first few?)
• No attachment content
  Except for recently viewed ones, e.g. images, that are still "memorized" (cached) by your PC, they won't be accessible (though depending on your usage, you may not even notice this)

More about the app can be found at

f-p.app ▸

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More + and - about the Data Snapshots

Aim

Snapshots are a first step on a road to allow you to keep working when you lose touch with Trello's servers - on the go, mid-flight or even underground.

Maybe not for ages, but a shorter disruption should become easy to bridge without a serious distraction - just keep focusing!

What's inside?

Snapshots aren't supposed to contain everything, e.g. it currently isn't in the plans to archive attached files in snapshots.

Just enough so that you can work with them again in the F|P app: some information about the recent state of a Trello board.

• Some basic board details (name, members, open * lists)
• Some details for each open * card on the board (name, description, due date etc.) - archived cards aren't included.
• List of the attachments (but not their contents!)
  This should still cover many practical scenarios, see below.
• Checklists

* Open cards/lists: cards/lists that aren't archived/closed.

Read-only

Currently once viewing a snapshot, editing is not possible.

For editing without a connection to Trello, please see Offline Mode ▸

Easy to work with

Just open a snapshot from F|P app to view its contents (e.g. via Menu/Data Snapshots/Recents).

Fast search, filter, sort & view are immediately at your disposal!

Easily lost!

By default these files cannot be unencrypted once you clear your local F|P app data.

This might happen even unintentionally if your OS needs to be reinstalled.
On the other hand, you are free to export them as compressed data (securely encrypted with a password of your choice), even pass them around and import them, mind that it's your responsibility to keep the data safe from that point.

Possibly a bit dusty

Recent edits (even locally made) may not be included, the saved data instead reflects a most recent complete snapshot from Trello - for instance, from before the WiFi signal was lost.

This does make some sense as your edits could trigger a myriad things (e.g. due to Butler rules), which will only be ready to capture once that happened in the cloud. (Offline editing will refine this slightly, but of course that automation will still happen on the servers.)

So this is reasonable, but as you can't keep editing without a connection, snapshots don't contain changes (say in practice from the last 10 seconds) the app didn't get a "snapshot" of first.

Brighter aspects

No attachment data included, I'll see no images then?

That's not exactly the case!

The F|P uses a dedicated cache for attachment storage.

This means the recently viewed attachments (so long as they fit within the cache, see Settings/Editor) will still be available.
E.g. if there are images in the description of the active card - those will likely be there.
Similarly recently attached data.

Good things

• If the "meat" of what you do in Trello is just card details, then these might easily suit as a first, quick, lightweight layer of defence against smaller incidents.
• Secure
  Snapshots are strongly encrypted from the starts.
• Always at hand
  Snapshots are available when you go offline.
• Portable
  Export & import features allow you to pass these around your, co-workers', maybe clients' PCs, without having to reveal too much.
• Cheap
  No server maintenance, no extra going costs - it can be just on your drive. And without putting significant extra strain on Trello's - and your internet provider's - infrastructure.
• Fair
  This may also help people in rural areas to improve their relationship with Trello, and, ultimately, make further progress with affordable self management.
• Peace of mind
  • When your F|P app icon turns orange next time, you can just reach back for your most recent snapshot of the Active Board, and look up what's next.
  • Should a mistake occur, you can likely use a very recent version and copy back what otherwise could be lost.
• Distributed
  If anyone on the team has a snapshot, they can just share it with others. Of course, they'll only ever find as much data inside as the member had access to.