Backup jobs - 3to1go

A job is a folder Edge backs up. Any folder under the scan root that contains a file named .upload_dir becomes a job. You can create the marker yourself, or let Edge’s UI write it for you.

Create a job from the UI

Find the folder

In Directories Under Scan Root, browse to the folder you want.

Open the Job Editor

Click Edit on the folder’s row to open the Job Editor. Browse files on the row lets you look inside first.

Set options and save

Fill in the fields below and click Save Job. Edge writes the folder’s .upload_dir for you.

Field	Default	Description
Job Name	Folder name	Name used on Central. Letters, digits, `.`, `_`, and `-` only.
Exclude Patterns	none	One pattern per line. See Exclusions.
Include hidden files	on	Back up files and folders whose names start with `.`.
Follow symlinks	off	Back up the targets of symbolic links instead of skipping them.

Stop Backing Up removes the marker. Existing snapshots on Central are kept.

Edge Job Editor with directory, job name, exclusion patterns, hidden files, and symlink settings — The Job Editor writes the folder's .upload_dir settings.

Create a job with a file

Create .upload_dir in the folder. An empty file uses the folder name as the job name:

touch /home/alice/photos/.upload_dir

Or write YAML to set options:

.upload_dir

job_name: photos
include_hidden: true
follow_symlinks: false
exclude:
  - "*.tmp"
  - cache/
  - /exports/old/

If the YAML is invalid or job_name has disallowed characters, Edge skips the job and shows the error on it.

Job names must be unique across the whole Edge. Two folders both named photos need different job_name values, such as main-photos and projects-photos.

Once Edge finds a marker, it doesn’t look for more markers inside that folder: a nested folder is already covered by its parent job. Archives contain regular files. Empty directories and special files are not archived, and the job root’s .upload_dir is excluded. A job with no included files is skipped. With Follow symlinks enabled, Edge stores the target’s files rather than preserving the links themselves.

Exclusions

Patterns are matched against paths relative to the job folder, using / as the separator.

Pattern	Excludes
`*.tmp`	Any file or folder whose name matches, at any depth
`cache/`	Every folder named `cache`, at any depth, and everything inside it
`logs/*.log`	Paths matching the glob from the job root, such as `logs/app.log`
`/exports/old/`	Exactly `exports/old` under the job folder, and everything inside it
`/photos/image[1].jpg`	Exactly that file. Patterns starting with `/` are literal, so `[1]` is not treated as a glob.

Exclude from the file browser

On a job, click Files & exclusions to browse its files with their sizes.

Exclude on a file, or Exclude folder on a folder, adds a literal /… pattern to the job’s .upload_dir immediately.
Calculate folder size totals a folder on demand. Totals are source sizes before compression, include excluded files, and skip symlinks and Edge’s own runtime data.
To include something again, remove its pattern in the Job Editor.

Exclusions apply to the next archive. If the job already has a staged archive, click Clear staged backup so it’s rebuilt with the new exclusions.

Job actions

Button	What it does
Files & exclusions	Browse the job’s files and manage exclusions.
Force Upload	Upload this job even if its fingerprint is unchanged. Reuses a staged archive if one exists; clear it first to build a fresh backup. Central may report an identical encrypted archive as a duplicate.
Restore	Restore a snapshot from Central into this folder. See Restore.
Edit	Open the Job Editor.
Clear staged backup	Shown when an archive is waiting to upload. Deletes it and resets retry state. Your files, backup history, and Central snapshots are kept.

Cancel operation at the top of the page stops the backup cycle or forced upload in progress, including compression and upload retries. Incomplete archives are discarded; a fully built archive stays staged for retry. Cancel before clearing a staged backup.

When a job is backed up

On each scheduled cycle, Edge compares the job’s file paths and sizes with its last backup. It only builds and uploads a new snapshot when they differ. If a failed upload has a staged archive ready for retry, Edge retries that archive first. New edits and exclusions are picked up when a fresh archive is built. To run a cycle for all jobs without waiting for the schedule, click Run Backup Cycle Now. It follows the same rule, so unchanged jobs are skipped.

An edit that keeps a file’s size the same isn’t detected automatically. Use Force Upload to capture it. See Design decisions.

​Create a job from the UI

​Create a job with a file

​Exclusions

​Exclude from the file browser

​Job actions

​When a job is backed up

Create a job from the UI

Create a job with a file

Exclusions

Exclude from the file browser

Job actions

When a job is backed up