GameSaver

Screenshots

GameSaver is a desktop app that protects save files for standalone Windows games (CD installs, DRM-free downloads, portable installs, and other non-launcher setups).

It tracks your games, watches save locations, creates versioned snapshots, and lets you restore or verify backups from a simple Electron UI.

Why GameSaver

• Designed for non-Steam / non-launcher workflows.
• Multiple save locations per game (folders and single files).
• Automatic backups from file watcher events and periodic scans.
• Session-aware protection: detects game start/stop and triggers backup on exit.
• One-click restore with a required pre-restore safety snapshot.
• Snapshot integrity verification with SHA-256 checksums.
• Portable-friendly data root support (USB workflows).
• Tray integration and compact widget mode.

Current Feature Set

• Add/remove games manually with executable + install path.
• Auto-suggest save locations from common Windows paths:
  • %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\{GameName}
  • %APPDATA%\{GameName}
  • %LOCALAPPDATA%\{GameName}
  • %PROGRAMDATA%\{GameName}
  • {InstallDir}\Save, {InstallDir}\Saves, {InstallDir}\Profiles
• Manage save locations per game:
  • add, remove, enable/disable, missing-path visibility
• Snapshot operations:
  • backup now
  • restore
  • verify
  • delete
  • scan/import snapshots from disk into library state
• Global settings:
  • backup frequency (minutes)
  • retention count per game
  • storage root
  • data folder (with migration + restart prompt)
• Recovery mode when startup data paths are unavailable.

Tech Stack

• Electron (main + preload + renderer)
• React 18 + TypeScript
• Vite 7
• Tailwind CSS 4 + Radix UI primitives
• Vitest + ESLint
• electron-builder (NSIS on Windows)

Requirements

• Windows 10/11
• Node.js 22.17.0 (see .nvmrc)
• npm

Quick Start (Development)

npm ci
npm run dev

npm run dev runs:

• Vite renderer on http://localhost:5175
• TypeScript watch build for main/preload/shared
• Electron app launch once renderer + main build are ready

Quality Checks

npm run typecheck
npm run lint
npm test

Build and Package

npm run build      # compile renderer + electron code into dist/
npm run pack       # unpacked app via electron-builder --dir
npm run dist       # NSIS installer + publish config

Configured build target:

• Windows NSIS installer (build.win.target = nsis)

How It Works

1. Add a game with name, executable path, and install path.
2. GameSaver auto-detects candidate save locations and stores manual/auto locations.
3. Backup engine creates timestamped snapshot folders and per-file checksums.
4. Watchers + periodic scan + session monitor trigger automatic backups.
5. Retention policy keeps only the latest N snapshots per game.
6. Restore requires a successful pre-restore safety snapshot first.

Data and Folder Layout

GameSaver uses two key paths:

• Data Folder: app state (settings.json, library.json, etc.)
• Storage Root: backup payloads (defaults to <Data Folder>\Backups)

Typical layout:

<Data Folder>\
  AppState\
    settings.json
    library.json

<Storage Root>\
  <GameFolder>\
    metadata.json
    Snapshots\
      2026-02-09_20-14-18-120\
        snapshot.manifest.json
        <LocationFolderA>\...
        <LocationFolderB>\...

Notes:

• In packaged mode, GameSaver prefers a portable local data root at <InstallDir>\GameSaverData when writable.
• A bootstrap file is kept under Electron app-data to remember the selected data root.

Security Model

• contextIsolation: true
• nodeIntegration: false (renderer)
• sandbox: true
• strict navigation/window restrictions
• CSP enforced for renderer content
• IPC payload validation in main process before handling actions

CI / Release

GitHub Actions workflow (.github/workflows/release.yml) on pushes to main:

1. Resolves version from package.json
2. Creates/pushes tag v<version>
3. Builds and publishes via electron-builder --publish always

publish is configured for NeaMitika/GameSaver.

Project Structure

src/
  main/        # Electron main process + services
  preload/     # secure renderer API bridge
  renderer/    # React UI
  shared/      # shared types/contracts
tests/         # Vitest coverage for core services
scripts/       # dev runtime helpers

Game Catalog JSON (Auto Save-Path Detection)

• Development path: data/games-db.json (project root).
• Packaged app: bundled as resources/data/games-db.json via electron-builder extraResources.
• The add-game flow can use this catalog to detect save paths from Windows entries and runtime validation.

Known Limitations

• Windows-focused implementation.
• Snapshots are full copies (no dedup/delta yet).
• compressionEnabled exists in settings/state but compression is not active yet.
• No explicit license file is present yet.