A code guardian for your projects
Automated, intelligent backup system for developers. Encrypted cloud sync, native dashboard, universal database support. Never lose work again.
Checkpoint
Everything you need, nothing you don't
Set it once, forget about it. Checkpoint handles the rest.
Install & Forget
One install, then it runs silently forever. Add projects from the Dashboard or just run backup-now in any directory.
Automatic Backups
Background daemon backs up all your projects on autopilot. Hourly by default, or set your own schedule — cron expressions, work-hours-only, every 5 minutes, whatever fits. Just works.
Database Support
Auto-detects SQLite, PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB — local, remote (Neon, Supabase), and Docker.
Encrypted & Compressed
Cloud backups compressed with gzip then encrypted with age. Parallel encryption across all CPU cores. Your keys, your data. Zero-knowledge cloud storage.
Cloud Backup
Encrypted off-site sync via Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, or iCloud. Direct folder sync or rclone API.
Version History
Every file version preserved automatically. Browse snapshots, compare changes, and restore any point in time.
Native macOS Integration
Menu bar dashboard, native desktop notifications on failures, and system-level daemon — all built into macOS. No terminal required.
Docker Support
Auto-detect databases in docker-compose.yml. Docker volume backup. Auto-start Docker Desktop if needed.
Search, Browse & Restore
Search across all backup history. Browse and restore from cloud backups with checkpoint cloud browse. Interactive fzf mode for snapshots. Auto-decrypt on download.
Native macOS Dashboard
A SwiftUI menu bar app that puts backup status at your fingertips
Menu Bar Widget
Lives in your menu bar. Click to see all projects, backup status, file counts, and last backup time at a glance.
Native Notifications
macOS desktop notifications alert you when backups fail or haven't run in 24 hours. Configurable: all, failure-only, or off.
In-App Settings
Configure schedules, retention, encryption, and notifications — all without touching config files. Press ⌘, to open.
One-Click Actions
Backup All, Pause/Resume, Check for Updates, and per-project context menus — right from the menu bar.
Cloud Browse & Restore
Browse cloud backups and download files directly from the dashboard. Auto-decrypted and decompressed on download.
Checkpoint
How it works
Three steps to peace of mind
Install once
git clone https://github.com/fluxcodestudio/Checkpoint.git
cd Checkpoint && ./bin/install-global.sh
Add your projects
Run backup-now in a project directory — or add projects from the Dashboard. Each one is auto-registered and backed up on your schedule. Hourly by default, or use cron expressions, work-hours presets, and custom intervals.
Forget about it.
That's it. Backups run silently in the background. Add more projects anytime. Cloud sync and encryption just work. Go build something.
Organized backup structure
Every project gets its own backup directory.
No shared dumps, no tangled archives —
just clean, isolated snapshots you can actually find.
my-saas-app/backups/
├── databases/ # Compressed timestamped snapshots
│ ├── MyApp-2025.01.03-10.45.12.db.gz
│ └── MyApp-2025.01.03-14.30.45.db.gz
├── files/ # Current versions (readable)
│ ├── src/
│ ├── .env
│ └── credentials.json
└── archived/ # Old versions with timestamps
├── src/app.py.20250102_104500
└── .env.20250101_093015Encrypted & compressed
Your backups, your keys — zero-knowledge cloud storage
age encryption
Files encrypted with age — a modern, simple alternative to GPG. Small, auditable, no config files.
Compress then encrypt
Text files are gzip-compressed before encryption for smaller cloud storage. Already-compressed formats (images, video, archives) skip compression automatically.
Parallel & automatic
Encryption runs in parallel across all CPU cores when backing up 100+ files. One command setup: checkpoint encrypt setup or toggle in Dashboard settings.
Cloud-only encryption
Local backups stay unencrypted for fast access. Only files synced to cloud storage (Dropbox, iCloud, etc.) get encrypted.
Built for the terminal
Dashboard optional. Everything works from the command line.
Familiar Territory
No GUI required. Every feature is a simple bash command — backup, restore, search, browse, encrypt, and configure.
Search & Browse History
Find any file across all backups. Browse snapshots interactively with fzf. View full version history for any file.
Scriptable & Composable
Pipe output to other tools. Hook into CI/CD. Trigger backups from cron, git hooks, or any automation you already use.
# First backup — just cd and run
$ cd my-saas-app
$ backup-now
📦 First time backup - creating configuration...
✅ Configuration created
✅ Project registered
🚀 Backup complete!
Files: 2,847 backed up
Encryption: enabled (cloud backups)
Next: in 59 minutes (hourly)
# Check status across all projects
$ checkpoint --status
Daemon: running (PID 4821)
Projects: 8 registered
Last backup: 12 min ago
Cloud sync: enabled (encrypted)
Storage: 1.4 GB local / 890 MB cloud
# Search across all backups
$ checkpoint search "API_KEY"
Found in 3 files across 2 projects
# Restore a file from 3 days ago
$ checkpoint restore src/config.js --from "3 days ago"
Restored src/config.js (v2025-02-14_10:30)
# Browse and restore from cloud backups
$ checkpoint cloud browse MyProject
Feb 17 1:49am - 213 files, 2 databases
Select file to download (auto-decrypted)Download Checkpoint
Free for noncommercial use, forever
Checkpoint v2.6.0
For macOS & Linux
- ✓ Global multi-project backups
- ✓ Compressed & encrypted cloud sync
- ✓ Cloud browse & restore
- ✓ Parallel encryption (multi-core)
- ✓ Native macOS dashboard
- ✓ Remote & Docker databases
- ✓ Search & browse history
- ✓ Storage monitoring
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know
What does Checkpoint back up?
Everything that matters and nothing that doesn't. Source code, databases (SQLite, Postgres, MySQL, Mongo), your precious .env files, API keys, credentials, IDE configs. It sniffs out databases on its own — local installs, cloud-hosted on Neon or Supabase, even buried inside Docker containers.
Is Checkpoint free?
For personal projects, side hustles, and open-source work — completely free, no strings. Commercial teams need a license from Fluxcode Studio. That's the deal.
Does it work on Linux?
First-class. Native systemd units for the daemon, watchdog, and file watcher. If your box doesn't run systemd, there's a cron fallback that works just as well. Same features, different init system.
Why not just use Git for backups?
Because Git was never designed to be one. Your .env files? Not in Git. Your database? Not in Git. That half-finished feature you haven't committed yet? Gone if your drive dies. Checkpoint backs up the stuff Git was built to ignore.
How does cloud backup work?
Your files get encrypted locally with age — a modern, auditable encryption tool — then synced to Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, or iCloud via rclone. The upload happens in the background after each backup. Your cloud provider sees ciphertext. You hold the only key.
Do I need the macOS dashboard?
Not even a little. Every single feature works from the terminal. The SwiftUI menu bar app is there for people who like a visual pulse check, but CLI-only users aren't missing anything. It's a preference, not a requirement.
How do I restore a file?
checkpoint restore drops you into an interactive picker. checkpoint search "filename" hunts across every snapshot you've ever taken. Want to browse? checkpoint history --interactive fires up fzf for full-speed time travel through your backup history.
What happens if a backup fails?
You'll know. Checkpoint fires a native desktop notification the moment something goes wrong. Behind the scenes, a watchdog process monitors heartbeats and sounds alarms if backups go stale — warning at 24 hours, critical at 72. Crashed daemons restart themselves automatically.
Can I restore files from cloud backups?
Yes. checkpoint cloud browse lets you browse all your cloud backups, pick files, and download them — auto-decrypted and decompressed. Works with fzf for interactive browsing or plain numbered lists. Download individual files or everything as a zip.
What if I lose my encryption key?
Your encrypted cloud backups become permanently inaccessible. There is no recovery mechanism — that's the point of zero-knowledge encryption. Back up your key file (~/.config/checkpoint/age-key.txt) somewhere safe. Your local backups are always unencrypted and unaffected.