📌 Documentation Under Development

Dear Users!

Since OmniCraft ERP is currently in an active beta stage, with regular updates and expansions, the reference materials are also being updated gradually.

At this time, please treat the documentation as a guide—it is currently incomplete, may temporarily lack descriptions for certain features, or contain minor inaccuracies.

🛡️ Backups & Data Security

OmniCraft ERP is a local desktop application. We do not use cloud servers to store your financial operations, which ensures complete privacy and independence from the internet.

However, this also means that the physical safety of your database relies on your local computer. To protect your business from hard drive failures, accidental deletions, or ransomware, a multi-tiered automatic and manual backup system is built directly into the program.

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🔄 Automatic Shadow Copies (GFS Backups)

The program operates using a professional IT strategy: GFS (Grandfather-Father-Son). The background system creates isolated database snapshots without blocking your work or causing any interface lag.

1. On Application Startup (Startup Backups)

Every time you open OmniCraft ERP, the system checks the system time and creates a shadow copy if a new reporting period has arrived:

• 📅 Daily Backup (auto_daily.db) — updated once a day.
• 🗓️ Weekly Backup (auto_weekly.db) — updated once a week.
• 🗓️ Monthly Backup (auto_monthly.db) — updated once a month.
• 🗓️ Yearly Backup (auto_yearly.db) — updated once a year.

2. On Application Exit (Close Backups)

When you close the application, OmniCraft performs two essential tasks:

1. Database Optimization: It executes SQLite system commands PRAGMA optimize and VACUUM. These compress the database file on your drive, reclaim "empty space" left by deleted records, and speed up future queries.
2. Rotational Backups: It maintains a chain of three rotational slots (auto_close_1.db, auto_close_2.db, auto_close_3.db). Each time the application exits, the new backup pushes the previous ones back by one slot, giving you access to the last three exit states.

3. Safety Nets

Before executing any irreversible or potentially destructive actions, the program automatically takes a shadow backup:

• Before an "Accounting Reset" (wiping transaction history).
• Before a "Factory Reset".
• Before automatic database migrations during application updates.

Where are automatic backups stored?

All automatic backups are located in the application's secure system directory (AppData/Roaming/OmniCraft/backups/ on Windows or ~/.config/OmniCraft/backups/ on macOS/Linux). You can copy them to a USB drive or cloud storage at any time.

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📦 Manual Data Export (File Menu)

To create archives that can be emailed, uploaded to cloud storage, or transferred to another computer, use the File ➔ Export Data menu. The program offers two formats:

1. Binary Backup (.db)

Creates an exact 1:1 copy of your current database file.

• How it works: It uses the native SQLite .backup() API, which safely copies data on the fly, even if the program is processing a sale at that exact millisecond.
• What it's for: Fast daily backups to an external drive or flash card.

2. Spreadsheet Archive (.zip with CSV)

An advanced export that dumps absolutely all system tables (stock, receipts, recipes, settings) into separate text files (.csv) and packages them into a single .zip archive.

• What it's for: This is your "digital parachute." If your binary .db file ever suffers corruption due to filesystem failures and fails to load, you can always rebuild your entire history from these CSV spreadsheets. Furthermore, these files can be easily opened in Excel or Google Sheets for external audits.

Global Export in PRO Mode

If you are using the PRO version with Multi-Workspaces, the manual export will package your entire ecosystem into a single ZIP archive: the workspaces.json registry, your personal finance database (personal_finance.db), and all business workspaces you have created.

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⏳ Data Recovery (Import)

In the event of a computer crash, when moving the program to a new PC, or if you simply want to "roll back" to yesterday's state, use the File ➔ Import Data menu.

Restore from Automatic Backup (Time Machine)

Select this option to open a list of all automatic GFS backups. The program will display clear cards with dates and the size of each snapshot (e.g., “Daily Backup (Yesterday | 4.2 MB)”).

• Select your preferred point in time.
• Confirm the action. The program will completely overwrite the current database with the selected snapshot and automatically reboot.

Restore from a File (.db or .zip)

• From a Binary Backup (.db): Completely replaces your current database with the file you select.
• From a CSV Archive (.zip): The program unpacks the archive, clears current database tables, and safely, line-by-line, restores your data. A built-in strict validator protects against SQL injection and accidental loading of corrupt files.

Warning: Full Overwrite

The import process does not merge data; instead, it completely replaces the current state of the application with the state saved in the backup file. Any receipts, purchases, or settings configured after the backup was created will be permanently lost. Always create a fresh export before restoring an old backup!

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⚙️ Under the Hood: Power Failure Protection (WAL)

In addition to backups, the OmniCraft ERP database architecture itself is engineered to survive extreme conditions.

The program utilizes WAL (Write-Ahead Logging) journal mode. Unlike standard databases that can suffer irreparable corruption if a power failure occurs while writing a transaction, WAL mode works differently:

1. Any change is first written to a dedicated "journal" (WAL file).
2. Only after a successful write to the journal is the data safely committed to the main database.
3. If the power blinks or the system freezes, upon next startup, SQLite automatically reads the journal and rolls back any incomplete transactions.

The database remains structurally integral, and your financial history won't turn into a corrupted mess. The maximum you might lose is the very last transaction that was in progress during the failure.

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🧠 Core Rules of Safety

To ensure your business data is secure, develop these simple habits:

1. The 3-2-1 Rule: Keep 3 copies of your data, on 2 different types of media (such as your PC and an external HDD), and 1 copy in the cloud (Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud, Yandex.Disk, etc.).
2. Weekly Manual Exports: Once a week, go to File ➔ Export Data ➔ Spreadsheet Archive (.zip) and upload the archive to your personal cloud or email.
3. Do Not Ignore Updates: When new versions of OmniCraft ERP are released, the built-in migration system automatically adapts your database schema to new features, making a protective backup (auto_before_scale_migration.db) beforehand.