Installation Guide

Windows

Supports Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows Server 2016–2025 (64-bit).

• •Download BackupEngine-Setup-x64.exe from the download page
• •Run the installer — no admin rights required for per-user install
• •The agent starts automatically after installation
• •Optional: enable "Start on boot" in Settings

BackupEngine-Setup-x64.exe /S

Updating an existing install (Windows)

Running a newer installer over an installed copy is an in-place update, and the installer says so: the first page reads "Update Backup Engine — version X to Y", a What's new page lists the changes, and there are no folder or shortcut questions to answer again. Your account, backup sets, schedules, encryption keys and backup history are kept exactly as they are. Before the files are replaced the installer asks the running app to close itself; if a backup or restore is in progress it waits and offers Retry / Cancel rather than interrupting it (the app shows "An update is waiting" and closes by itself when the work finishes). The finish page confirms "Backup Engine was updated to Y" and offers to open the app again. Running the same version again offers a Reinstall; an older installer warns before downgrading. In-app updates (About → Check for Updates) go through the same installer silently. After an update the app comes back the way you left it — in the tray if the window was hidden. Opening Backup Engine while it already runs brings the existing window to the front instead of starting a second copy.

macOS (file backup)

Supports macOS 12 (Monterey) and later on Apple Silicon and Intel. The desktop agent code is cross-platform and the macOS build path is in place, but a pre-built Mac binary is not yet in the current distribution.

When the Mac binary ships, install will work as follows:

• •Download BackupEngine.dmg, open it, and drag BackupEngine to Applications.
• •Launch from Applications or Spotlight — install runs as a .app bundle, no sudo required.
• •Grant Full Disk Access in System Settings → Privacy & Security so the agent can read protected directories.
• •Auto-start at login uses launchd: a LaunchAgent is registered at ~/Library/LaunchAgents/net.techbench.backupengine.plist. Per-user — no admin password required.

Linux (file backup)

Supports Ubuntu 22.04+, RHEL 8+, Debian 12+, Fedora, and openSUSE (64-bit). Background-service support landed in v1.5.1 and the agent code is code-complete on Linux. A pre-built Linux binary is not yet in the current distribution.

When the Linux binary ships, install will work as follows:

• •Install via tarball or DEB/RPM (final packaging is TBD).
• •Auto-start at login uses a systemd --user unit at ~/.config/systemd/user/backup-engine.service.
• •Per-user — no sudo required to install or to enable the unit.

systemctl --user enable backup-engine.service
systemctl --user start backup-engine.service

Note on Server Workloads

Hyper-V, SQL Server, Bare-Metal Recovery, and System State backup are Windows-only by Windows API constraint and are not available on Mac or Linux. The Mac and Linux builds ship file-backup parity with Windows: source selection, schedules, multi-destination fan-out, encryption, and retention all work identically.

Verifying Your Install

Once the agent is installed, confirm it's on your PATH and reporting the expected version. Both the GUI and the CLI ship in the same installer — there is no separate CLI download.

backupengine version
backupengine connectivity test

System Requirements