Configuration

Everything on this page is editable from the GUI, from the CLI with savevault-cli config, or by editing the file directly. The CLI validates values before saving, so it’s the safest way to script changes.

File locations

Platform	Config directory
Windows	%APPDATA%\SaveVault\
Linux	~/.config/SaveVault/
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/SaveVault/

Files in that directory:

File	Purpose
config.toml	All settings on this page.
custom_games.toml	User-defined games (Backup page → + Add Game, or savevault-cli add).
path-redirects.toml	Persistent path redirects (Settings → Path Redirects, or savevault-cli redirects).
themes/*.toml	User-defined UI themes from the Themes builder.
locales/*.json	User locale overrides: imported or edited translation catalogs, managed from the translations guide.
manifest.yaml	Cached PCGamingWiki / Ludusavi game database.
manifest.cache.json	Pre-parsed copy of manifest.yaml that makes every launch after a database update fast and light; rebuilt automatically, safe to delete.
manifest.etag, manifest.updated_at, manifest.source	Game-database update bookkeeping. A stored ETag is only reused when the configured source hasn’t changed.

State that isn’t configuration — the backup library index (state.db), scan cache, scheduled-run history, device id — lives in the per-platform data directory alongside the logs. On Windows the data directory is the same %APPDATA%\SaveVault\ folder as the config directory (%APPDATA% is the Roaming folder); on Linux and macOS they differ.

Logs

One shared, rotating log receives entries from every entry point: the GUI, savevault-cli, savevault-wrap, and savevault-scheduled.

Platform	Log file
Windows	%APPDATA%\SaveVault\logs\savevault.log
Linux	~/.local/share/SaveVault/logs/savevault.log
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/SaveVault/logs/savevault.log

It’s the one place to check “did last night’s scheduled pass run?” regardless of which part of the app fired.

Key catalog

Every key savevault-cli config list prints, grouped as it appears in config.toml. Settable keys take config set. Dedicated keys are readable with config get but written through the named command instead. Internal keys are machine-managed and read-only.

Top level

Key	Default	Notes
backup_dir	platform default	Where archives are stored. Machine-local; never exported.
default_format	zip	zip, targz, or tarzst.
backup_compression_speed	6	1 (fastest) to 9 (smallest). backup --compression overrides per run.
theme	system (dark in the Steam edition)	system, dark, or light.
custom_theme_id	unset	Dedicated: chosen in Settings → Appearance → Theme or the Themes builder.
show_themes_nav	true	Show the Themes page in the sidebar.
locale	system	UI language: system, en, es, de, fr, pt-BR, zh-CN, zh-TW, or a custom locale tag.
show_translations_nav	false	Show the Translations editor in the sidebar.
close_to_tray	true	Closing the window keeps SaveVault in the tray.
auto_scan_on_launch	false	Run an install scan automatically when the GUI opens.
additional_roots	auto-discovered	Dedicated: roots list / roots discover / roots rescan. See install roots.
onboarding_completed	false	Internal.

[device]

Key	Default	Notes
device.name	unset (detected)	This device’s display name, recorded in every backup it makes so devices sharing a folder can be told apart. Detected as Steam Deck / Steam Deck OLED / Steam Machine / Steam Frame on Valve hardware, otherwise the hostname. Machine-local; never exported. See multiple devices.

[retention]

Key	Default	Notes
retention.default_max_backups	4	Backups kept per game, per device, before the oldest unpinned one is purged. A device never deletes another device’s archives.
retention.per_game_overrides	empty	Dedicated: config --retention-game "Game:count" or the GUI.

[schedule]

Key	Default	Notes
schedule.enabled	false	Dedicated: schedule enable / schedule disable (they also register with the OS).
schedule.mode	daily	daily, weekly, monthly, or interval.
schedule.time	03:00	Time of day for calendar modes.
schedule.interval_hours	4	For interval mode.
schedule.weekdays	empty	Dedicated: schedule enable --weekdays mon,wed,fri.
schedule.month_day	1	For monthly mode.
schedule.games	empty (all)	Dedicated: schedule enable --games ….
schedule.include_configs	true	Include config files in scheduled passes.
schedule.output_dir	unset	Write scheduled archives somewhere other than backup_dir. Machine-local.
schedule.refresh_manifest_before_run	true	Fetch the game database before each pass.

Run schedule enable again after changing timing keys so the OS trigger is re-registered.

[live]

Key	Default	Notes
live.enabled	false	Settable. Machine-local. Also toggled from the GUI, and live enable-all turns it on; the CLI engine runs with live start regardless.
live.monitored_games	empty (all detected)	Dedicated: live enable <game> / live disable <game> / live enable-all / live disable-all.
live.rolling_snapshot_limit	10	Unpinned snapshots kept per game.
live.debounce_seconds	3	Quiet period after a save write before a snapshot is taken.
live.hotkey	Ctrl+Shift+S	Keyboard checkpoint shortcut.
live.controller_hotkey	L3+R3	Controller checkpoint chord. config unset live.controller_hotkey disables it and stays off across updates. Buttons: A B X Y LB RB LT RT Select Start L3 R3 DPadUp DPadDown DPadLeft DPadRight, joined with +.
live.per_game_overrides	empty	Dedicated: per-game snapshot limit and debounce, set in the GUI.
live.snapshot_dir	unset (<backup_dir>/snapshots)	Machine-local.
live.watch_configs	false	Also snapshot when config files change.
live.auto_resume	false	Internal.

[scan], [backup], [restore]

Key	Default	Notes
scan.parallelism	unset (all logical CPUs)	Install-scan threads. A thread count, or auto (or an empty string) restores the default; config get prints auto when unset.
scan.redirect_wine	false	Resolve Windows-layout saves inside Wine/Proton prefixes on restore by default (the CLI’s --redirect-wine). Restore-side only; scanning and backups ignore it.
backup.parallelism	unset (half of logical CPUs)	Per-game archive/compression threads. A thread count, or auto (or an empty string) restores the default.
restore.include_mode	saves	What restores copy back by default: saves, configs, or both. Any single restore can override with --include.
restore.exclude_globs	empty	Dedicated: restore-excludes add / remove.

[exclusions]

Key	Default	Notes
exclusions.use_recommended	false	Settable. exclusions recommended --enable / --disable is the dedicated command.
exclusions.global	empty	Dedicated: exclusions add <pattern> / exclusions remove <pattern>.
exclusions.per_game	empty	Dedicated: exclusions add <pattern> --game <name>.
exclusions.registry_global	empty	Dedicated: exclusions add <key> --registry.
exclusions.registry_per_game	empty	Dedicated: exclusions add <key> --registry --game <name>.

[notifications]

Key	Default	Notes
notifications.enabled	true	Master switch for OS notifications.
notifications.scheduled_run_mode	changes_or_errors	After a scheduled pass: changes_or_errors, always, or off.
notifications.scheduled_startup_failure	true	When the scheduled runner fails to start.
notifications.manifest_updates	true	After a game-database refresh.
notifications.manual_backup_complete	true
notifications.smart_backup_complete	true	After a Dashboard Smart Backup or a wrap post-exit backup.
notifications.restore_complete	true
notifications.cloud_sync_complete	true
notifications.live_hotkey_checkpoint	true	When a checkpoint hotkey or chord fires.
notifications.backup_restore_only_when_unfocused	false	Suppress backup/restore toasts while the SaveVault window is focused.
notifications.app_update_available	true

Test any of these with savevault-cli notifications test <kind>.

[cloud_backup]

Key	Default	Notes
cloud_backup.enabled	false	Machine-local on/off.
cloud_backup.setup_complete	false	Internal.
cloud_backup.source	managed	Dedicated: managed (bundled or cloud install) vs external, chosen in the setup wizard.
cloud_backup.external_binary_path	unset	Dedicated: external-rclone setup flow.
cloud_backup.config_path	unset	Dedicated: external-rclone setup flow.
cloud_backup.installed_version	unset	Internal; recorded by cloud install.
cloud_backup.active_remote	unset	Internal; set by the wizard.
cloud_backup.remote_path	SaveVault/Backups	Folder on the remote.
cloud_backup.sync_after_backup	true	Push after each backup pass.
cloud_backup.sync_on_launch	false	Pull when the GUI opens.
cloud_backup.bisync_resynced	false	Internal.
cloud_backup.bisync_filters_version	0	Internal. Which sync-exclusion set the last --resync ran under; an update that changes the exclusions forces one more resync.
cloud_backup.sync_extra_args	empty	Extra rclone arguments. Empty string clears.
cloud_backup.bisync_confirm_deletes	true	Ask before a sync that would delete files.
cloud_backup.scheduled_sync_skip_on_deletions	false	Scheduled passes skip a sync that would delete rather than prompt.
cloud_backup.check_access_unsupported	unset	Internal.

[app_update]

Key	Default	Notes
app_update.check_enabled	true	Automatic update checks (GitHub and Direct builds; the Steam edition updates through Steam).
app_update.check_interval	on_launch	on_launch, daily, weekly, or monthly. Periodic checks also run at the end of each scheduled pass.
app_update.last_check_at	unset	Settable (and config unset). Written by the update checker.
app_update.banner_dismissed_version	unset	Settable (and config unset). Written when you dismiss the update banner.

[detection] and [manifest]

Key	Default	Notes
detection.archived_fallback	true	Settable. detection archived-fallback --enable / --disable is the dedicated command.
detection.archived_optout	empty	Dedicated: detection optout <game> / detection optin <game>.
manifest.auto_update_on_launch	true	The GUI checks for a game-database update on launch.
manifest.source	unset (built-in Ludusavi URL)	An http(s):// URL or a local file path. manifest source <value> and config set manifest.source write the same key.

Settings backup

Settings → General → Settings Backup (or savevault-cli settings export / import) copies portable preferences to a TOML file: schedule (including on/off), Live Protection options, notifications, manual install roots, cloud-sync preferences, built-in theme selection, and Show Themes in Sidebar — optionally plus custom games and path redirects.

It does not export machine-local state: backup_dir, scheduled and snapshot output folders, cloud sign-in, rclone paths, or the device name. The live on/off (live.enabled) and cloud on/off (cloud_backup.enabled) values are written to the bundle but never applied on import, so importing never turns Live Protection or cloud backup on or off. User theme files in themes/ aren’t bundled either; export them individually from the Themes page. Importing with schedule.enabled = true re-registers the OS scheduler on the new machine, and a bundle that includes custom games opens the same Add / Replace / Skip flow as a standalone custom-games import.

savevault-cli settings export --include-custom-games --include-redirects -o savevault-settings.toml
savevault-cli settings preview savevault-settings.toml
savevault-cli settings import savevault-settings.toml --dry-run

See the CLI reference for every flag.