Backing Up a Project (Magic xpa 3.x)

It is always important to back up your work. You may have a good source control product in place that will handle backups automatically, but even without one, you have some easy options for doing good backups:

• Make backups of the operating system files

• Use the Magic xpa Export to create a packaged version of the XML files

• Make copies of programs as you work

We’ll take a look at each of these below.

Backing up the operating system files

When Magic xpa creates a new project, the structure of the project consists of a root level, which has the .edp (project) file, and some subdirectories. The actual program source is held in a series of XML files in the Source subdirectory. Usually, other supporting files, such as images or HTML templates, would also be located in subdirectories.

So, the quickest and easiest way to back up the entire project is to simply compress the folder at the top layer. You can keep multiple compressed versions of the project, if you want. This method ensures that you have a complete snapshot of your current project.

You can also copy this directory onto other media (such as a CD or an external hard drive), which is good insurance in case of hardware failure.

Creating export files

You can also export objects from your Magic xpa project, or export the entire project. This allows you to create a “bundled” version of the project. You do this using the Export/Import Utility.

Making copies of programs as you work

Before you start working on a program, you can always make a backup copy of it, using Edit->Entry->Repeat Entry (Ctrl+R). This is not as comprehensive as backing up the entire project, but it is a quick way to make sure you can get back to your original copy. This is especially useful if you are trying something experimental.