Backup and Restore

This guide explains how to keep your aMule data — settings, credits and downloads — when you reinstall aMule or move it to a new computer.

What to Copy

Everything aMule needs is in its configuration directory. Back up the whole folder, not individual files:

Platform	Configuration directory
Windows	%APPDATA%\aMule\ (C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\aMule\)
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/aMule/
Linux / BSD	~/.aMule/ (the Flatpak uses the same path)

These folders are hidden by default. On Windows, type %APPDATA%\aMule in the File Explorer address bar; on macOS, use Go → Go to Folder… in Finder; on Linux and BSD, enable Show hidden files in your file manager.

Back up a different folder in these cases:

• Portable configuration — if a config folder containing amule.conf exists next to the aMule executable (in its working directory), aMule uses it instead; back up that config folder. See Portable configuration. The Windows portable .zip build still uses %APPDATA%\aMule\ unless you create this folder.
• Custom directory — if you start aMule or amuled with --config-dir=<dir>, back up <dir>.
• System service — if amuled runs as a system service under a dedicated user, back up the configuration directory in that user's home.

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On Windows, a plain reinstall or upgrade does not need a restore: the uninstaller keeps %APPDATA%\aMule\ unless you tick Remove user data (see Installation).

Back Up

1. Close aMule. If you use the daemon or the remote GUI, stop amuled and close amulegui as well. aMule keeps some data in memory and writes it only on exit or periodically (for example clients.met, every 13 minutes), so copying while it runs can leave an outdated or inconsistent backup, including a stale muleLock.
2. Copy the configuration directory to your backup location.
3. If a download directory is outside the configuration directory, copy it too (see Downloads).

Restore

1. Install aMule on the new system (see Installation).
2. Do not start aMule yet. If you already started it, close it before continuing.
3. Copy the backed-up configuration directory to the same location (see What to Copy), replacing any folder the first start may have created.
4. If any directory path differs on the new system, fix it now (see Downloads).
5. Start aMule.

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Once restored, do not run the old and the new installation at the same time: they share the same identity. Peers that see the same userhash from two IP addresses flag the client as a Bad Guy and set its queue score to 0 (see Client Details).

Credits

Your credits are not stored on your computer: other clients keep them, and they recognise you by two files in the configuration directory:

• preferences.dat — your user hash.
• cryptkey.dat — your secure-identification key (see Secure User Identification).

Restoring both files keeps the credits you have earned with other clients. If you lose cryptkey.dat, those credits are lost for good — see What should I do if I lose my cryptkey.dat file?.

clients.met holds the credits you have given to other clients. Restore it as well to keep rewarding the peers that uploaded to you.

Downloads

The download directories may or may not be inside the configuration directory:

Directory	Windows	macOS	Linux / BSD
Temporary (unfinished downloads)	Inside the configuration directory	Inside the configuration directory	Inside the configuration directory
Incoming (completed downloads)	Documents\aMule Downloads	~/Documents/aMule Downloads	Inside the configuration directory

Any directory outside the configuration directory — the default Incoming directory on Windows and macOS, or a Temporary or Incoming directory you moved elsewhere — needs its own backup.

aMule stores these directories as absolute paths. If a path differs on the new system (a different user name or drive letter, or a move between operating systems), fix it before resuming:

• Temporary and Incoming directories — edit the TempDir / IncomingDir keys in amule.conf before the first start, or change them in Preferences → Directories and restart aMule (a Temporary directory change only takes effect after a restart). If the old Temporary path can still be created on the new system, aMule silently starts with an empty folder and your unfinished downloads seem to have vanished.
• Shared directories — select them again in Preferences → Directories (stored in the shareddir-*.dat files). See Shared Directories.
• Per-category incoming folders — right-click the category tab and select Edit category (stored as Incoming in the [Cat#N] sections of amule.conf). See Per-Category Incoming Folders.