A lost laptop, a ransomware incident, or a file that was overwritten overnight can undo months of design, music or writing work. A good backup keeps copies and earlier versions you can restore. That is a different job from showing that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches. This guide covers both: how to back up and version creative files, and how to keep a dated record of the versions that matter. A TimeBind is a dated, checkable record of an exact file. The fingerprint is made in the browser, and the file stays on your device. It does not replace a backup, and a backup is not a TimeBind.
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Backup is not the same as a dated record
Cloud folders are easy to treat as “the official copy”. They are useful, but they answer a different question from a timestamp.
Backup and versioning answer: can I get a copy back if this disk dies, or if I overwrite the file? A dated record answers: can someone later check that this exact file existed no later than a particular time, and that the copy in hand still matches? Provider version history lives on systems the provider (and often you) can change. Retention periods expire. Accounts get closed. “Date modified” on a downloaded copy can change when you move or zip the file. See is Google Drive or Dropbox version history proof a file existed? and what happens to file dates when you copy, zip or download.
You usually need both. Keep off-site copies so the work survives. Keep an independent record of the milestone files you may have to point to later — the pack you sent a client, the mix you delivered, the drawing set you issued, the manuscript you submitted.
A simple routine for creative files
Use the same routine whether you design, compose, write, or build product CAD.
- Decide what the “working” copy is. One project folder, named clearly, is easier to back up than files scattered across desktops and chat apps.
- Keep an off-site backup that runs on a schedule. A second copy in the same bag as your laptop is not off-site. Cloud backup or a drive that lives somewhere else both count.
- Turn versioning on and learn the retention window. If versions are kept for 30 or 60 days, a dispute that appears six months later will not be helped by a version that has already been purged.
- Export a milestone file when the work leaves your desk. A “final” PSD, a bounced WAV, a PDF issue set, or a compiled manuscript is easier to date than a live project with fonts, caches and autosave files still changing.
- Record that exact milestone. Fingerprint it with TimeBinder before you send or post it. Your first Pooled TimeBind is free; after that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15. How to timestamp a file walks through the steps. Click here to start.
- Store the certificate with that exact file. If you later re-export “the same” design, you have a new file with a new fingerprint. Keep the dated original.
One TimeBind can hold up to 10 files, which is enough for a small delivery pack. For a longer draft trail, see Draft History.
What to back up, and what to date
Not every autosave needs a timestamp. Back up the working project. Date the versions you might have to show.
Back up (broadly): the project folder, plugin or font lists you rely on, licence files, and the raw captures — camera cards, voice memos, session files, scan sets.
Date (selectively): the file you sent or issued; a mid-project milestone if a lot of work hangs on it; the signed or approved copy that comes back; and any export you publish or enter into a competition.
Architects and designers will recognise this from protecting a design before sending it to a client and from timestamping Revit or BIM versions before issue. Musicians can use the same idea before a file leaves the studio — see protect your music before sending. Writers can date compiled drafts; more on that workflow is in a manuscript workflow with drafts and dated proof.
Private cloud storage versus computer backup
These products overlap, but they are not identical.
Private or encrypted cloud drives (files you open and share from a cloud folder) are close to how many people already use Dropbox or Drive, with stronger privacy options on some services. Computer backup tools copy the disks and folders you already have, keep historical versions, and are built for restore after a crash or ransomware. A sync folder that only mirrors the latest state can propagate a deletion or a corrupted file to every device. That is why a backup with a version history is safer than sync alone.
Encryption details matter. On some services, ordinary files are encrypted on the server and the provider can still offer previews, rewind and version restore, because the provider holds keys. A separate client-side or “zero-knowledge” folder encrypts the file on your device first. That can be the right choice for unpublished work or confidential client files, but it often comes with a trade-off: the provider cannot restore versions it cannot read. If you use a zero-knowledge folder, keep a second copy of anything you cannot afford to lose, and do not assume rewind will be there.
Where your data is stored can also matter if you work with EU or UK clients. Some providers let you choose a region. Check the current official options rather than assuming.
How to combine a backup with a TimeBind
Think of three layers, each doing one job:
- Working files stay in your project folder and are backed up on a schedule.
- Milestone exports are frozen files you can send, post or issue.
- A TimeBind attaches a dated fingerprint to a milestone export (or to a small pack of them). Anyone later can check that the file still matches. It does not show who made the file, who owns it, or that the contents are true.
If a client, a publisher or another professional later needs to see what was sent on a given day, you want the exact file, the Proof of Time Certificate, and whatever transfer or email record you already keep. Our free SHA-256 hash checker and file comparison checker can show whether two copies still match. For the wider method, see how to prove a file existed before a date and how TimeBinder works.
This sits under the same idea as the creator and architecture hubs: keep the work, and keep a checkable record of the versions that left your hands. For a broader view of AI-altered copies and backdating, see how to protect yourself from AI forgeries.
Mistakes that leave you with a copy you cannot use
- Syncing without version history. A mirrored folder will happily spread a bad save or a ransomware encrypt to every device.
- Relying only on “Date created”. Those stamps are easy to change and often change when you copy the file.
- Dating a live project file, then keeping working in it. The fingerprint is for the bytes you submitted. Open the file, save it again, and you have a different file.
- Putting the only copy in a zero-knowledge folder and losing the password. Some providers cannot help you, by design.
- Assuming provider history will still be there next year. Check the retention window, and export milestones you care about into a folder you also back up yourself.
- Backing up but never recording the delivery pack. Restore will give you a file. It will not, by itself, show when that exact file existed.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Is cloud version history enough if a client later disputes the date?
Usually not on its own. It can help you recover a copy, and it may show what the provider’s log says. It is not the same as an independent, checkable fingerprint of an exact file. See cloud version history as proof.
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Should I timestamp every daily save?
No. Back up daily work. Timestamp the versions you send, issue, submit or publish, and any internal milestone you would want to point to later.
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Does a TimeBind back up my files?
No. The fingerprint is made in the browser, and the file stays on your device. You still need your own copies. A TimeBind shows that an exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches.
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What if I only have a shared link, not a local file?
Download or export a copy you actually hold, then record that copy. A “shared with me” file you never saved is hard to date reliably.
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Do I need a paid cloud plan for this routine to work?
You need some off-site copy with a retention window you understand. That can be a paid plan, a free plan with a shorter window, or an offline drive. The dated record is separate, and your first Pooled TimeBind is free.
Record a milestone file free
Your first Pooled TimeBind is free, with no credit card required. After that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15. Click here to start, or see plans and pricing.
