I want to start using more portable software since it has a lot of benefits. But I’m running into an issue, after setting up all my preferences, whenever I update to a new version, those settings get overwritten when I unpack it.
How do people handle this?
Would backing up the settings be helpful? But then, wouldn’t that risk missing out on new features or settings in the updated version?
You can use tools like Everything search to see what a program changes and writes to when it closes, these are usually your settings files. Just make sure not to overwrite those files during an update.
Sites like PortableFreeware often list where these files are located and their names.
PortableApps has a system to handle this with a standardized installer, but it’s still a common issue with portable software compared to installed ones.
How each portable app behaves depends on the app itself. Ideally, good portable software shouldn’t overwrite your old settings. What you’re describing sounds like a bug, so you might want to report it to the app’s developer.
Yeah, a lot of portable apps come in ZIP files (like Notepad++). When you unzip them, it doesn’t really check which files should stay or go. Developers can’t really change that behavior.
The developer decides what goes into the ZIP file of their portable app. Including settings files in the ZIP can overwrite your custom settings, which is a bug that should be reported.
To avoid this, you can use an extraction tool that prevents overwriting existing files. Still, it’s poor practice on the developer’s part. I ensure my portable apps don’t have this issue.
Unzip the new version into a separate folder, then copy the new .exe file into the old folder. After that, you can delete the new folder. This way, you’re only updating the app itself and keeping all your settings and data intact.
Setting files shouldn’t be overwritten, I’ve used almost all portable apps and this hasn’t happened to me.
It’s always a good idea to back up by copying the entire folder of portable apps.
If a portable app’s zip file does overwrite settings, that’s a bug and should be reported.
You can also use dual-panel file managers to compare files. Tools like FreeCommander Portable ZIP let you check if setting files are included in the zip.