Backups

Stache keeps everything in one place: the SQLite database, all photos, and the AI model cache live under /data. The simplest backup in the world is copying that folder.

The dead-simple way

• Docker: back up the data volume (docker run --rm -v stache_data:/data -v $PWD:/backup alpine tar czf /backup/stache.tar.gz -C /data .)
• Home Assistant add-on: the add-on data folder is covered by HA’s own backup system
• Unraid: back up /mnt/user/appdata/stache

Built-in scheduler (opt-in)

Stache can write scheduled backups itself — Settings → Backup. Each one is a plaintext manifest.json plus a payload.zip under /data/backups. Scheduled backups are not encrypted — protect that folder like you’d protect the raw data. Encrypted backup downloads are available manually in the same screen.

The interval is gated by the backup_schedule setting — it’s off until you opt in.

Restore

Place a backup where the app can stage it (/data/restore-pending/) and Stache swaps it in before the database opens, then restarts. Because it’s a plain swap of a self-contained data dir, a manual restore is also just “replace the volume contents.”