Backups

2Do automatically takes snapshots of its database on a schedule you choose — every 24 or 48 hours. It also makes a one-off safety backup automatically before a Replace Local Data sync, so if the data pulled down from the server isn't what you expected, you can roll back on this Mac with one click. Backups are kept locally on your Mac, completely independent of whatever sync method you use, and they can be saved, restored, or migrated without touching the cloud.

Because they're local, keep an extra copy somewhere else. Save a Copy…, in a backup's ⋯ menu, writes a backup to iCloud Drive, Dropbox, Google Drive, or any other folder. Without an off-Mac copy, a drive failure or an accidental uninstall takes every local backup with it.

Backup Settings

Open 2Do > Settings > Backups to configure:

• Automatic Backups — the Create backups picker: choose None, Every 24 Hours, or Every 48 Hours. This is the schedule 2Do uses for its routine snapshots.
• Keep at most — choose how many automatic backups 2Do keeps; after each new backup, the oldest beyond that count are pruned automatically.
• Create Backup Now — take a fresh backup on the spot.
• Restore from File… — pick a saved backup file from disk and open it in the restore browser.

Each backup in the list also has a ⋯ (more) menu with three commands: Restore…, Save a Copy… (save that backup somewhere else), and Delete.

2Do does not back up before every sync. Routine backups follow the Automatic Backups schedule above. Separately, 2Do makes a safety backup automatically right before a Replace Local Data sync — when the server's data overwrites this Mac's copy — and again right before a Restore Everything…, so both destructive cases are handled for you and aren't settings you toggle.

Backup files use the .2dodb extension and are named after the moment they were taken, e.g. 2Do_(2026-07-12-09_30_00).2dodb — handy when picking one out of a folder later.

What Gets Backed Up

A backup is a snapshot of 2Do's local database, including:

• All lists, list groups, projects, checklists, and tasks.
• All tags and tag groups.
• All Smart Lists and saved list settings, including Focus Filter choices.
• App preferences stored in the local database.
• Locked-list state and password-protected list information. Sync credentials and license state are not part of the backup.

Restoring a Backup

1. 2Do > Settings > Backups.
2. Open the backup's ⋯ menu and choose Restore… (or click Restore from File… to pick a saved backup file from disk).
3. The Restore Backup browser opens. Pick individual lists and click Restore Selected, or click Restore Everything… for a full rollback (see below).

Of the two, Restore Selected is the safe one: it adds the chosen lists alongside your current data and changes nothing else. Restore Everything… replaces your current data, so if you're unsure, use that backup's Save a Copy… first to keep something to come back to.

Restoring Individual Lists

Sometimes you don't want to roll back everything — you just want one list back the way it was in an older backup. The backup restoration browser lets you preview a backup and pull individual lists out of it without disturbing anything else.

Open the browser from 2Do > Settings > Backups:

• Click the ⋯ (more) menu on any backup row and choose Restore…, or
• Click Restore from File… to pick a saved backup on disk.

The browser (window title Restore Backup) previews the backup's restorable lists in sections. You can tick the checkbox next to any regular list or Smart List you want back, and each section has Select All and Deselect All. Built-in system lists aren't listed — only lists that can actually be restored are shown.

At the bottom you'll find two buttons:

Restore Selected

Restore Selected is additive and completely non-destructive. 2Do confirms with "The selected lists will be duplicated under a Restored group. Your existing lists and tasks will not be replaced." It then copies the chosen lists into your current 2Do under a new "Restored" group and shows a banner such as "Restored N lists under the Restored group." Your existing lists and tasks are left exactly as they were, so you can compare the restored copies side by side and delete them again if they aren't what you needed.

Selective restore only duplicates regular lists and Smart Lists. If a task's attachment file is missing from the backup, that attachment is skipped and the count is reported to you.

Restore Everything…

Restore Everything… is the full, destructive restore. 2Do confirms with "Restore Everything will replace your current 2Do database with this backup… may quit after the restore completes.", asks for one final confirmation, replaces your current database with the backup, and then quits — relaunch 2Do to continue with the restored data.

warning

Restore Everything… replaces your entire current 2Do database. Anything not in the backup — recent changes, local-only state, pending sync work — is gone. If you only need one or two lists back, use Restore Selected instead.

The Restore Backup window can't be closed while a restore is in progress.

Recovering Deleted Tasks

2Do has no trash or recycle bin. Deleting a task removes it right away, and there is no trash folder to fish it back out of later.

If you've only just deleted it, Edit > Undo (⌘Z) brings it straight back. Otherwise, recover it from a backup:

1. Open 2Do > Settings > Backups and pick a backup taken before the deletion (open its ⋯ menu > Restore…).
2. In the Restore Backup browser, tick the list that contained the deleted tasks and click Restore Selected. The list is duplicated into a Restored group; your current data isn't touched.
3. Copy or move the recovered tasks from the restored copy back into your real list, then delete the restored copy.

You can't restore a single task on its own; the backup browser restores whole lists. Restoring the list a task lived in, then copying the task back over, is the supported way to recover it.

Migrating to a New Mac

If you sync, start with sync. Install 2Do on the new Mac, connect the same sync account, and choose Replace Local Data on the first sync to pull everything down. With a complete method such as Dropbox (or WebDAV once it ships), that's the whole migration: everything comes over as-is, and no backup is needed.

With a partial method (iCloud CalDAV, other CalDAV servers, Todoist, Apple Reminders, Toodledo), some 2Do-only data such as Smart Lists, tag groups, and list groups stays on the old Mac. To carry those over too, migrate by backup:

1. On the old Mac, open Settings > Backups, open a backup's ⋯ menu, and choose Save a Copy….
2. Copy the archive to the new Mac (AirDrop, USB, iCloud Drive, anything works).
3. On the new Mac, open Settings > Backups, click Restore from File…, pick the file, and choose Restore Everything….
4. Set up sync again, and when 2Do asks how to combine the two sides, choose Merge Sync so nothing on either side is lost.

The same backup steps work on their own if you don't sync at all, and they can be faster than a first sync on a slow network.

Backups vs. Sync

Backups and sync solve different problems:

• Sync keeps your devices in step in real time. Sync is great for "keep my Mac and iPhone matching." It's not great for "I deleted a task three weeks ago and I need it back."
• Backups are time-machine snapshots. If sync has a bad day, a synced delete propagates everywhere — and the only way back is a backup. Run both. Sync for daily life, backups for the rainy day.

Where the Files Live

By default, backups live inside 2Do's own Application Support data. The safest way to work with them is through 2Do > Settings > Backups, where you can save a selected backup elsewhere or restore it.

Use Save a Copy… when you want a backup file you can move to another Mac, keep in cloud storage, or attach to a support request.

Tips

• Take a milestone backup before large changes, such as switching sync methods or restoring another device, and put it somewhere off this Mac with Save a Copy….
• Be especially careful when changing sync providers. Switching can lose task properties the new provider doesn't support, so an extra copy on hand is worth the minute it takes.