feat enhanced TOOL: Add `diff`, `backup --user-only`, and `migrate --auto` to BackupRestore.ts by sauldataman · Pull Request #974 · danielmiessler/LifeOS

sauldataman · 2026-03-20T03:26:43Z

Summary

Enhance Tools/BackupRestore.ts with three new capabilities for safer PAI release updates:

diff --release <path> — Preview which local files differ from a release using SHA-256 comparison
backup --user-only --release <path> — Back up only user data (PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, user-generated files, modified system files) instead of the entire ~/.claude directory
migrate --auto --release <path> — Automatically restore user data from a user-only backup after applying a new release

All existing commands (backup, restore, list, migrate) are completely unchanged.

Motivation

The current migrate command identifies only _-prefixed skills, settings identity fields, and MEMORY subdirectory names — missing PAI/USER/ content, user-modified hooks/skills, installed Packs, Claude Code auto-memory (projects/), and other user-generated data. It also only produces a text report without performing any restore.

These additions give users visibility into what a release update will change (diff), a way to capture only their data (backup --user-only), and an automated restore path (migrate --auto) — reducing the manual effort and risk of losing customizations during updates.

Changes

Single file changed: Tools/BackupRestore.ts

New commands:

diff --release <path> — SHA-256 comparison against release, excluding PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, PAI-Install/ from conflict reporting (handled separately)
backup --user-only --release <path> — Backs up user data in three categories: always-backup dirs (PAI/USER/, MEMORY/), modified system files, and user-generated files not in the release. Supports --exclude for fine-grained control
migrate --auto --release <path> — Restores user data from the latest user-only backup (or --backup <path>), skips CLAUDE.md (regenerated by BuildCLAUDE.ts), then runs BuildCLAUDE.ts

Unchanged commands:

backup, restore, list, migrate — no behavioral changes

Migration Flow

# 1. Full backup (safety net)
bun Tools/BackupRestore.ts backup --name "pre-v4.1"

# 2. Preview changes
bun Tools/BackupRestore.ts diff --release ./Releases/v4.1.0/.claude

# 3. Smart backup of user data
bun Tools/BackupRestore.ts backup --user-only --release ./Releases/v4.1.0/.claude

# 4. Apply new release
cp -r ./Releases/v4.1.0/.claude ~/

# 5. Restore user data
bun Tools/BackupRestore.ts migrate --auto --release ./Releases/v4.1.0/.claude

# 6. Merge settings
cd ~/.claude && bash install.sh

# 7. Rebuild CLAUDE.md
bun ~/.claude/PAI/Tools/BuildCLAUDE.ts

Test plan

diff --release correctly shows new/unchanged/conflict files
diff excludes PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, PAI-Install/ from conflicts
backup --user-only includes PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, CLAUDE.md, and all user-generated files
backup --user-only --exclude correctly removes specified files from backup
list distinguishes full vs user-only backups with [user-only] tag
migrate --auto restores files from user-only backup, skips CLAUDE.md
migrate --auto auto-finds latest user-only backup when --backup is not specified
migrate (without --auto) works exactly as before
backup, restore, list work exactly as before

sauldataman · 2026-03-20T03:36:47Z

related to issue #973

… upgrades Add three new capabilities to BackupRestore.ts for safe upgrade workflows: - `diff --release <path>`: Compare local installation against a release using SHA-256 hashes. Shows new files, unchanged files, and conflicts (locally modified system files). Automatically excludes PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, PAI-Install/, and CLAUDE.md from conflict reporting since they are handled separately. - `backup --user-only --release <path>`: Smart backup that saves only user data: always-backup dirs (PAI/USER/, MEMORY/), settings.json, CLAUDE.md, modified system files, and user-generated files not in the release. Excludes CC runtime dirs (debug/, telemetry/, etc.). Supports --exclude for fine-grained control. - `upgrade --release <path>`: Automated upgrade cycle — checks for full backup, diffs, backs up user data, applies release via cp -r, restores user modifications, and rebuilds CLAUDE.md. Skips restoring CLAUDE.md (regenerated by BuildCLAUDE.ts) but restores settings.json before install.sh runs so its merge logic preserves user config. Ignore patterns are read from the repo's .gitignore rather than hardcoded. All existing commands (backup, restore, list, migrate) are completely unchanged. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

…re.ts Add three new capabilities for safer PAI release updates: - diff --release <path>: SHA-256 comparison against release, auto-excludes PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, PAI-Install/ from conflict reporting - backup --user-only --release <path>: Smart backup of user data — always includes PAI/USER/, MEMORY/, settings.json, CLAUDE.md, plus modified system files and user-generated files not in the release. Supports --exclude for fine-grained control - migrate --auto [--backup <path>]: Auto-restore user data from a user-only backup after applying a new release. Skips CLAUDE.md (regenerated by BuildCLAUDE.ts), runs BuildCLAUDE.ts after restore All existing commands (backup, restore, list, migrate) unchanged. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

- Replace execSync("bun BuildCLAUDE.ts") with dynamic import of build() to eliminate the only shell command dependency. All operations now use Node.js/Bun APIs exclusively (cpSync, readFileSync, createHash, etc.) - Remove unused execSync import - Remove empty BACKUP_EXCLUDE_DIRS constant (no dirs are excluded) - Fix stale --release parameter references in migrate --auto comments, header docs, and printUsage Migration Flow - Fix "upgrading" → "migration" in diff output text Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

Instead of copying files one by one, use cpSync(backup, target, {recursive: true}) matching the approach used by the original restoreBackup function. Then remove auto-regenerated files (CLAUDE.md) and the backup manifest afterward. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

cpSync with recursive:true fails on read-only files (e.g. .git/objects/). Switch back to per-file copy with try/catch to skip permission errors gracefully instead of aborting the entire restore. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

danielmiessler · 2026-06-21T04:02:32Z

Hey @sauldataman, thanks for raising this, and sorry it sat for a while.

We're changing how LifeOS ships. Instead of cloning a full ~/.claude directory and running it as a complete system, LifeOS is becoming a skill you install through an agentic installer. The installer hands integration to your own AI, which reads your actual machine (your OS, your paths, your harness) and wires the hooks and system prompt in where they belong.

That's aimed right at what you hit here. The old "one directory, one layout, hope it matches your setup" approach is exactly what broke for so many people, and the new model should handle it far better because your AI does the integration per machine instead of us guessing.

So we're closing this in prep for that release. If it still bites you once the skill-based version is out, reopen or file a fresh one and we'll jump on it. Appreciate you taking the time.

sauldataman · 2026-06-24T02:25:26Z

@danielmiessler cool, looking forward to the new sys design XD

sauldataman force-pushed the feat/enhance-backup-upgrade branch 2 times, most recently from 3af0f47 to e9d3533 Compare March 20, 2026 03:48

sauldataman and others added 3 commits March 19, 2026 20:50

refine Tools/BackupRestore.ts for better usage

dbb36e0

sauldataman force-pushed the feat/enhance-backup-upgrade branch from e9d3533 to b6d1418 Compare March 20, 2026 03:50

sauldataman and others added 4 commits March 19, 2026 22:49

Merge branch 'danielmiessler:main' into feat/enhance-backup-upgrade

efeaab7

danielmiessler closed this Jun 21, 2026

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feat enhanced TOOL: Add `diff`, `backup --user-only`, and `migrate --auto` to BackupRestore.ts #974

feat enhanced TOOL: Add `diff`, `backup --user-only`, and `migrate --auto` to BackupRestore.ts #974
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Summary

Motivation

Changes

Migration Flow

Test plan

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sauldataman commented Mar 20, 2026

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danielmiessler commented Jun 21, 2026

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sauldataman commented Mar 20, 2026 •

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