How to back up Ableton Live projects (Live 11 and 12)

Choose File › Collect All and Save so every sample the Set uses is copied into its Project folder, then copy the whole Project folder (not just the .als file) to a second drive or a cloud. Live also keeps the last ten saves of each Set in the Project’s Backup folder, but that folder is inside the project, so it is lost with it.

1. Collect every file into the Project

Choose File › Collect All and Save.
Choose which locations to copy from: other Projects and elsewhere on your Mac always; Packs and the User Library if the backup must open on another computer.
Click OK. Audio goes into the Project’s Samples folder, devices into its Presets folder.

The File Manager (File › Manage Files, then Manage Set) shows the same choice with the size of each location first.

2. Copy the whole Project folder

Every day: a second drive with Time Machine, or a cloud folder.
The folder, not the .als: the Set, its Samples, Presets and Backup folders go together.
Off site: at least one copy that is not in the same room as the computer.

3. Know what Live keeps for you

Backup folder: from the second save, the last ten saved versions of the Set, named with their time.
Older ones: once there are more than ten, Live moves the oldest to the Trash.

Both are inside the Project folder. They let you go back in time; they do not replace a copy on another drive.

4. Check a backup by opening it

Open the copied Set after moving the original away, or on another computer. Play it through: missing samples show at once.

Common questions

Is the .als file enough to back up a Live Set?

No. The .als file holds the arrangement and settings but only points to the audio. Without the samples it opens with missing files. Back up the whole Project folder after Collect All and Save.

Does Ableton Live make backups by itself?

Yes, once a Set has been saved at least twice: the Project’s Backup folder keeps its last ten saved versions, each with a timestamp. They are inside the Project folder, so they do not protect against a lost drive.

Do I need to collect samples from Packs and the User Library?

Only if the backup must open on another computer, or you might move or uninstall those Packs. Collecting them makes the Project folder larger.

Why does a backed-up Set open with missing samples?

Some samples were outside the Project folder. Open the original, run File › Collect All and Save, and copy the Project folder again.

Or let Songcase do it

Songcase keeps backups of Logic, Live and Pro Tools projects, like Time Machine for your sessions: drop the project folder on the page; only files that changed take new space, and any backup downloads as one zip. Backups come with a Songcase membership. See Songcase.