Data, attachments, and backups

Eidos Lite works directly with files on your computer. Opening a Space means opening an ordinary folder, and edits are saved to the original files in that folder.

Local work does not require an account, and opening or editing a file does not upload it automatically.

What an .eidos file contains

An .eidos file stores structured data such as Tables, Fields, Records, and Views. It is a standard SQLite file that you can copy, move, and back up like any other file.

Images, PDFs, and other attachments remain separate files in the Space. They are not stored inside the .eidos file. The Eidos File records where to find them, so copying only the .eidos file may leave its attachments behind.

When moving work that includes attachments, move the whole Space or preserve the same folder structure.

Images in Markdown documents

When you paste an image into a .md or .markdown document in Eidos Lite, Lite saves the image in an assets folder beside that document and inserts a portable relative reference such as assets/diagram.png. Source and Rich text editing use the same storage rule. Existing relative image references are also resolved from the Markdown document’s folder.

Names are made portable and collisions create a new name instead of replacing an existing file. Pasted images are limited to 64 MiB and their actual bytes must be a supported raster image. Deleting a reference or its Markdown document does not automatically delete files from assets; remove unused images explicitly after checking that no other document uses them.

These images are ordinary Space files. Versions and Sync cover them with the rest of the Space, and Markdown Publish includes referenced local images. This document-local rule applies to ordinary Markdown files; a table’s Content field does not acquire a filesystem attachment folder from this setting.

Back up a Space

The safest approach is to back up the whole Space folder:

1. Wait for the current edit to finish saving.
2. Copy the whole Space folder in Finder or your file manager.
3. Keep the copy on another drive or in a backup location you trust.
4. Occasionally open the backup copy to confirm that it works.

CSV is useful for exchanging table data, but it is not a complete backup. It does not preserve Views, Relations, Formulas, or attachment references.

Versions, Sync, and backups

• Versions help you return a Space to an earlier state.
• Sync helps you continue working across your own devices.
• Backups preserve another copy if a computer is lost, a drive fails, or the whole Space is deleted.

They solve different problems. Keep an independent backup even when Versions or Sync is enabled.

Avoid file conflicts

Do not modify the same .eidos file in more than one application at a time. If Eidos Lite says that a file is busy, locked, or changed outside the app, close the other application before reopening the file.

SQLite tools can read an .eidos file. Before writing to it directly, close Eidos Lite and make a backup. For normal edits, use Eidos Lite or the Eidos CLI.