Automatic backup of smart rules & groups

DEVONthink Automation
1

Hi,

as the number of intelligence sticking in smart rules is exponential increasing on my end, i wonder how smart rules can be backuped automatically?

I could not find any reference in help, apart from that I can manually drag and drop smart rule to desktop:

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Where exactly are smart rules located on hard disk and is there a way to script the backup of all smart rules at once?

  • via apple script (if they are somewhere on the disk?)
  • via DT menu command

If i click on smart rule, there is a menu option for export (but this only for one rule > i am looking for a button for all rules):
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Cheers

2

If you’re observing proper primary backups, the smart rules would be backed up already.

~/Library/Application Support/DEVONthink 3/SmartRules.plist.

3

Interesting.

I am using “Daily backup archive” script which is automatically running every day (with the help of keyboard maestro).

Are the smart rules part of a backup for specific database or all of them will be backuped with a backup of any database?

I was under impression that smart rules are “global” objects and do not belong to any db.

4

Local smart rules are part of the database they’re in.
Global smart rules are in the file I mentioned and not backed up by that script.

5

Should be probably “local smart groups” as there are no local smart rules.

6

That is basically my question. As there are no “local” smart rules and rules are global objects, I was concerned with their backup to preserve all the intelligence which is built with them.
What would be the TL;DR for recommended backup strategy for them? I am still confused, sorry. Shall I backup
~/Library/Application Support/DEVONthink 3/SmartRules.plist.
as part of my backup procedure? Looking into “Daily backup script” it does not include smartules.plist. Does it make sense to include it in there?

7

Shall I backup ~/Library/Application Support/DEVONthink 3/SmartRules.plist. as part of my backup procedure?

Under normal circumstances, a backup is backing up the entire Home directory so it would already be backed up. If you’re doing something different, then you could back up DEVONthink’s Application Support folder.

Looking into “Daily backup script” it does not include smartules.plist. Does it make sense to include it in there?

They are part of no database so I think it would be an odd thing to add.

8

a backup is backing up the entire Home directory so it would already be backed up.

I.e. you are speaking about normal mac backup? like time-machine/arq? Then > yes, indeed.

I was really wondering if smart-rules are part of the backup of the database (because in my perception they belong to it as they make zero sense w/o a particular database in place).

The answer based on what was stated above is: no.

9

Smart Rules are global entities and don’t belong to databases. They can only target a database.
If they were local, the could be made in the database itself.

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