Windows 11/10 get unofficial backup app if you don't like Microsoft's, works offline too

Towards the middle of the year in May, Microsoft released a Backup app for testing on a Windows 11 Dev Insider channel. The company later expanded its functionality in a future build such that it was able to support more scenarios.

Although it was initially planned for as a Windows 11 feature, Microsoft released it to Windows 10 as well in August. This was not the first or the last time the tech giant expanded a Windows 11 feature to Windows 10 as something similar happened to Copilot, as well as a Group Policy for deploying optional updates.

While the backup app on Windows 10 has generally been a welcome addition, it did cause some inconvenience to IT and sysadmins when Microsoft pushed it onto enterprise and managed systems. The tech giant later acknowledged the inconvenience and promised a future Windows update that altered this behavior.

Still, if you don't like the official Windows backup app, there is a new third-party option available in preview. Dubbed "Appcopier," this utility allows the local/offline backing up and restoring Windows 11 preferences and settings; and it could work with Windows 10 too, although the developer does not guarantee that.

However, the app is said to be fairly lightweight in the way it works and users are told to expect super-fast backups, at least initially. You can see the UI of Appcopier in the image above.

The dev says:

It allows you to back up and restore your most important Windows 11 preferences and settings offline and locally. The app mimics the new backup app of Windows 11 - which is part of the Windows 11 2023 Update (23H2) - but without the obligation of the cloud.

 

How does Appcopier works? Quite simple! Only registry entries and/or associated folders and files of the respective area are exported. This process is very quick and lightweight, akin to the weight of a fly. So don't be surprised if the first backups fly through in the nanosecond range.

You can try the app by downloading it from GitHub, though keep in mind that this is an unofficial, third-party software.

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