Schedule automatic world backups for ARK Ascended dedicated servers

Backups are ZIP archives under a per-server destination (default {installDir}\Backups unless you set another folder).

What each kind contains

Kind	Live source	Inside the archive
World	Active map folder under SavedArks (exact map token, or shorter folder for some mod maps)	SavedArks/{MapToken}/
Players	Join/leave .arkprofile (+ related) under SavedArks / SaveGames	Flat PlayerProfiles/{id}.arkprofile
INI	Game.ini + GameUserSettings.ini in Config/WindowsServer	ConfigWindowsServer/

World backups package one map (primary .ark, bak companions, profiles/tribes in that folder) — not the entire SavedArks tree. Custom maps can set an optional World save folder when the on-disk folder name differs from the launch token.

Caution

Pre–v0.10 world ZIPs that archived the full SavedArks tree (no per-map subfolder matching the launch token) cannot be restored by the current path. Take a fresh world backup after upgrading, or keep an older YARK build if you still need those archives.

On-disk layout:

{backupRoot}/
  World/
  Player profiles/
  INI/

New archives are named {server}-{kind}-{type}-…-{YYYYMMDD-HHmmss}.zip (compact local date at the end). Create and restore require installation health Ready; you can still browse and export archives beforehand. World/INI tabs also support Import.

Where to manage them

• Per server — Workspace → Backups (shared Destination above World / Player profiles / INI; World/INI: Backup now, schedule, restore, export/import; Players: join/leave history, restore, export). Per-kind policy is open by default (collapsible; not kept across kind changes).
• Fleet — sidebar Backups (health, disk pressure, destinations)

Workspace Backups — shared destination, Backup now in the history toolbar, schedule, and restore for one profile.

Fleet Backups — health, disk usage, and destinations across servers.

Triggers

Trigger	Behavior
Manual create	World/INI tabs create that kind; Players has no manual “all players” button; flushes world via RCON SaveWorld when active
World schedule	Optional; world only; server must be active; interval minimum 5 minutes
Player join/leave	Session watcher snapshots (not gated by the world schedule)
INI-on-save	Debounced after a successful INI save
Stop	Best-effort pre_stop (world) after graceful exit
Restart	Fail-hard pre_restart (world) after stop, before start
Safe update	Fail-hard pre_update (world) before SteamCMD work

Default schedule policy (when enabled): interval 60 minutes; retain ~20 world per map / ~20 players / ~10 INI (configurable). Fleet Cleanup “Delete older backups past each server’s keep limit” and Keep only last N per kind use those same per-map / per-player pools (world and players; INI stays flat). The schedule waits a full interval after the process becomes active, counts failed attempts toward the interval, and can pause for the rest of the YARK session after repeated failures (policy stays enabled). Use Clear failed on the history toolbar to drop failed rows that left no archive on disk.

Tip

Stale / “never backed up” warnings on the fleet page only apply when the schedule is on and the process is active. Stopped servers are not nagged for an elapsed interval.

Portable export / import

Use these when moving archives between disks or hosts:

• Export — copy a completed archive to a path you choose (USB, NAS, another folder). The managed original stays put.
• Import — pick a YARK-compatible ZIP for the World or INI tab; YARK validates it, copies it into the backup destination with a unique name, and lists it in history. Import does not restore live files — use Restore when you are ready. World imports still need a per-map SavedArks/{MapToken}/ layout to restore later. The Players tab does not offer Import (use Export on a join/leave archive to move it between hosts).
• Delete — remove one or more completed archives from history and disk from the history row actions.

Unsafe or corrupt ZIPs are rejected before anything is written outside the managed backup folder.

Restore rules

1. Backup must be completed

2. Server must not be running

3. YARK creates a same-kind pre_restore safeguard first

4. Then applies the archive:

   • World — overlays the archived map folder (other SavedArks maps stay put); optional profiles/tribes toggle
   • Players — overlays flat profile files into the current map folder (does not wipe unrelated live profiles)
   • INI — copies present INI files into live config

Caution

Restore history is recorded internally; a full restore-audit UI is still on the roadmap.

Critical path vs best-effort

Snapshot	Failure mode
pre_restart / pre_update	Fail-hard — operation stops; no blind continue
pre_stop	Best-effort — server already stopped; warning event if packaging fails
INI-on-save	Best-effort

Coming later

Richer restore-audit history in the Backups UI is still on the roadmap — see the product site.