Access and control backup file options in SOLIDWORKS Composer
Article by Vipanjot Kaur, CSWP updated January 30, 2023
Article
SOLIDWORKS Composer stores a backup of the original document before any changes are saved to the file. It is one version before the last saved version of the document. SOLIDWORKS Composer Backup file settings/options can be accessed through File > Preferences > Application Preferences dialog box opens > Advance settings. Ensure that Show Advanced Properties Only is turned off, in order to show the AutoSave options.

Accessing backup settings
Autosave advanced setting:
Automatically backs up the currently open Composer files in a backup folder, at the interval specified by the AutoSaveInterval setting.
The Backup folder is located in the User folder specified in the Application Paths page in File > Preferences.
AutoSave Interval setting:
Specifies the interval, in minutes, at which the currently open Composer files are to be backed up in the backup folder.
AutoSave versioning advanced setting:
Allows versioning by creating an additional backup version of the currently open Composer files in the backup folder, at the interval specified by the AutoSaveInterval setting. In this case, for a given Composer file, backup versions are saved in a dedicated folder in the User\backup folder (the folder name being the same as the file name). The file name format is filename_YYYYMMDD_HHMM (current year, month, day, hour, minute).
Clear the above option if you want each backup to overwrite the previous one.
AutoSave versioning max number of files:
When AutoSaveVersioning is selected, specifies the maximum number of backup files to keep. The higher the number, the more disk space will be required. The value has to entered between 1 and 100.
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