Software Bisque Knowledge Base Article – 1237

BACKING UP AND RESTORING THESKY‘S SETTINGS

ISSUE

Your TheSky settings can be altered or lost through unwanted configuration changes, file corruption, or drive failure. Back them up regularly so you can restore them later or set up another computer with the same settings.

These settings include preferences, toolbar and window configurations, .SKYX documents, observing notes, custom horizons, imaging system profiles, field-of-view indicators, TPoint data and models, and your name and serial number.

RESOLUTION

All of these settings are stored in one folder, named for your edition:

• TheSkyX First Light Edition
• TheSkyX Student Edition
• TheSkyX Serious Astronomer Edition
• TheSkyX Professional Edition

To find the settings folder

Windows: In File Explorer, open Documents, then Software Bisque.

macOS: In Finder, hold down the Option key, click the Go menu, and choose Library. Open Application Support, then Software Bisque.

To back up your settings

1. Exit TheSky.
2. Find the settings folder (see above).
3. Copy the settings folder to your backup location.

A copy in the same location protects against unwanted changes. A copy on a different drive (a second internal drive, network drive, or USB flash drive) also protects against drive failure.

To restore settings from a backup

These steps assume TheSky has been run at least once on this computer. If it has not, install and start TheSky, then exit.

1. Exit TheSky.
2. Find the settings folder (see above).
3. Rename the existing settings folder (for example, add “old” to its name).
4. Copy your backed-up settings folder into the Software Bisque folder.
5. Make sure the copied folder’s name matches your edition exactly (see the list above).
6. Start TheSky.

Your restored settings, including your name and serial number, should now be present. If not, see Troubleshooting below.

Tips:

• Add the date to the backup folder’s name to identify each backup.
• Backup software can copy the settings folder automatically on a schedule.
• Advanced users can mark certain files in the working settings folder read-only so they are not accidentally overwritten.

Troubleshooting:

• If TheSky asks for your name and serial number after a restore, the settings folder is in the wrong location or is not named correctly. If the folder came from another user, they may have removed their name and serial number.
• If the chart does not look as expected (appearance, site location, horizon, etc.), use the File > Open command to open your preferred .SKYX file.
• If the backup came from a different operating system, user account, or edition, see Transferring TheSky‘s Settings.
• If TheSky reports read-only or locked files, the copy may have marked the files read-only (Windows) or locked (macOS). Clear that property on the settings folder and its contents.
• If TheSky does not remember settings (Windows), your account may lack permission to write to a folder copied from another computer.

To check the permissions on Windows:

1. Sign in to Windows as an Administrator.
2. In File Explorer, right-click the settings folder and choose Properties.
3. On the Security tab, click Advanced.
4. On the Permissions tab, double-click the account you use with TheSky.
5. Make sure Full Control is enabled.

NOTE: TheSky‘s User Guide refers to the settings folder as the Application Support Files (ASF) folder.

APPLIES TO

• TheSky First Light Edition
• TheSky Student Edition
• TheSky Serious Astronomer Edition
• TheSky Professional Edition

• This topic was modified 5 years, 7 months ago by Daniel R. Bisque.
• This topic was modified 5 years, 7 months ago by Daniel R. Bisque.
• This topic was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by Daniel R. Bisque.
• This topic was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by Daniel R. Bisque.
• This topic was modified 2 weeks, 6 days ago by Matt Bisque.