Solved How to save software data?


dedq

dedq

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Hey!

This may be a little bit off topic but I know lots of people here have helped me a lot so far.
Where is application data stored? I know where it is for Android but I cannot find it for Windows. I want to uninstall software and then install it again. I want to restore the data.

Thank you for reading!
 

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Hi dedq

Application data may be stored in %appdata% file location. Type %appdata% into the address bar of file explorer and explorer will take you to the location.
%appdata% has been available to Windows since Windows Vista. The folder is a hidden folder by default, so you have to enable show hidden files and folders in file explorer.
 
Last edited:

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    AMD Ryzen 5 5600
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    MSI B550-A Pro
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It depends on which software programs you have, too. I have some programs that offer the option of exporting a settings file or copying back a settings file from another folder, and that allows you to uninstall a program, install a new copy, and import the old settings. Check your programs for a "Save Settings" option, and Google the program's name with "how to save the settings of <name of program>?".
 

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System One System Two

  • OS
    11 Pro 24H2 26100.2454
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo ThinkCentre M920S SFF
    CPU
    i7-9700 @ 3.00GHz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo 3132
    Memory
    32GBDDR4 @ 2666MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 630 Graphics onboard
    Sound Card
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    LG E2442
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    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1 x Samsung 970 EVO PLUS 500GB NVMe SSD, 1 x WD_BLACK SN770
    250GB NVMe SSD (OS and programs), 1 x WD_BLACK SN770
    500GB NVMe SSD (Data)
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  • Operating System
    11 Pro 24H2 26100.2454
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    Lenovo ThinkCentre M920S SFF
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    i5-8400 @ 2.80GHz
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    Lenovo 3132
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    32GB DDR4 @ 2600MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel HD 630 Graphics onboard
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    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG FULL HD (1920x1080@59Hz)
    Screen Resolution
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    Case
    Lenovo Think Centre SFF
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    Cherry Stream TKL JK-8600US-2 Wired
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    LogiTech M510 wireless
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    Malwarebytes Premium and MS Defender, beautiful together
Wisewiz said:
It depends on which software programs you have, too. I have some programs that offer the option of exporting a settings file or copying back a settings file from another folder, and that allows you to uninstall a program, install a new copy, and import the old settings. Check your programs for a "Save Settings" option, and Google the program's name with "how to save the settings of <name of program>?".
Click to expand...
That's definitely happens with some programs but that is not a case. Thank you!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Athlon X4 860K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte F2A58M-S1
    Memory
    8 gigabytes DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7200 Series
    Hard Drives
    SSD.
iko22 said:
Hi dedq

Application data may be stored in %appdata% file location. Type %appdata% into the address bar of file explorer and explorer will take you to the location.
%appdata% has been available to Windows since Windows Vista. The folder is a hidden folder by default, so you have to enable show hidden files and folders in file explorer.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I will give it a try.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Athlon X4 860K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte F2A58M-S1
    Memory
    8 gigabytes DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7200 Series
    Hard Drives
    SSD.
Don't forget C:/ProgramData (another 'hidden folder'); and additionally some software will save data/templates/settings etc. in User/Documents and Windows Registry. Some software also, of course, installs other necessary dependency files which are not included in a native Windows installation. So there is a variety of places where you might find "application data". It's very much dependent on the application and what settings, data and 'helpers' it needs to be in place; and also whether the developer sticks to using the conventional/recommended locations.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    macOS 14.x (plus Windows 11, Debian, FreeBSD for ARM64)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MacBook Pro M1 MAX
    CPU
    Apple M1 Max (T6001) - 8 performance 2 efficiency cores
    Memory
    32GB LPDDR5
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    Apple M1 Max (32-core)
    Hard Drives
    a) 1TB SSD + + 1TB SD Card + external SSD Drives
    Browser
    1. Safari 2. DuckDuckGo
    Antivirus
    -
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro, plus VirtualBox VMs: various Windows & Linux
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio
    CPU
    i7
    Memory
    32GB
    Hard Drives
    1TB SSD, plus external SSDs for Virtual Machines etc.
    Browser
    1. MS Edge 2. DuckDuckGo
    Antivirus
    Defender
LeLibran said:
Don't forget C:/ProgramData (another 'hidden folder'); and additionally some software will save data/templates/settings etc. in User/Documents and Windows Registry. Some software also, of course, installs other necessary dependency files which are not included in a native Windows installation. So there is a variety of places where you might find "application data". It's very much dependent on the application and what settings, data and 'helpers' it needs to be in place; and also whether the developer sticks to using the conventional/recommended locations.
Click to expand...
Whoa! Thanks!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Athlon X4 860K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte F2A58M-S1
    Memory
    8 gigabytes DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7200 Series
    Hard Drives
    SSD.
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