Blender add‑on that keeps a rolling set of automatic backups for the current .blend file.
- latest – snapshot of the most recent save
- prev1/prev2/… – older checkpoints that are only overwritten when they exceed a user‑defined age
The add‑on lets you pick a common backup folder and fine‑tune how frequently each checkpoint may be replaced.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Centralised storage | Redirects Blender’s auto‑generated *.blend1 files to a single folder (local or custom path) |
| Rolling backups | Renames files to latest, prev1, prev2, … instead of cryptic version numbers |
| Age thresholds | Each slot can have its own minimum age (minutes) before it may be overwritten |
| Hash‑based prefix | Prevents collisions between files with the same name in different folders |
| Respect Save Versions | The count in Edit ▶ Preferences ▶ File Paths ▶ Save Versions limits the maximum number of backups |
- Open Blender ▶ Edit ▶ Preferences ▶ Add‑ons ▶ Install…
Select thesave_versions_redirector.py(or a ZIP containing it) and enable the add‑on. - (Optional) Set a Backup Save Directory in the add‑on preferences.
If left blank, Blender’s temp folder is used. - Save any
.blendfile – backups will now appear in the chosen folder.
| Option | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Backup Save Directory | empty | Target folder for all backup files |
| prev1 Threshold (min) | 30 | prev1 is replaced only if it is at least 30 minutes old |
| prev2 Threshold (min) | 60 | Same rule for prev2 |
| prev3 Threshold (min) | 480 (8 h) | Same rule for prev3 |
| prev4 Threshold (min) | 1440 (1 d) | Same rule for prev4 |
Tip · Additional slots beyond prev4 inherit an expanded threshold (prev4 + n × prev4).
- Blender saves a backup
yourfile.blend1. - The handler:
- Copies it to latest.
- Scans prev1 … prevN to find the first slot that is either empty or older than its threshold.
- If that slot already exists and is old enough, every older file is shifted back one position to make space.
- Places a fresh copy into the eligible slot.
- Anything beyond Save Versions is deleted.
- The original
.blend1file is removed to avoid clutter.
scene_95ab38c0_latest.blend ← most recent save
scene_95ab38c0_prev1.blend ← ≥ 30 min old
scene_95ab38c0_prev2.blend ← ≥ 60 min old
When you save repeatedly within 30 minutes, only latest changes. Once 30 minutes pass, prev1 is shifted to prev2 and the new save becomes prev1.
- Increase Save Versions to keep more history (slots appear as prev5, prev6, …).
- Set one of the thresholds to 0 to force overwriting on every save.
- Sync the backup directory to cloud storage for off‑site safety.
- Backups are created only on manual File ▶ Save or autosave events that generate
.blend1. - Extremely long filenames may hit OS path‑length limits.
- The add‑on does not currently restore files; you must open the desired backup manually.
| Version | Highlights |
|---|---|
| 1.2.0 | Switched to latest/prevN naming & renamed preferences to prevN_minutes |
| 1.1.0 | Added custom thresholds, improved clean‑up |
| 1.0.0 | Initial release |
This add‑on is released under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.