Moving Legacy Family Files Between Computers

One of the most commonly asked questions of Legacy Technical Support is “How do I move my family file to another computer – my laptop or my spouse’s computer?” There are a couple of ways this can be done, but in all methods the first thing to do is to install Legacy on the second computer. The program can be downloaded from http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/DownloadLegacy.asp or installed from the Legacy installation CD. For Legacy Family Tree 6.0 or earlier please visit http://legacyfamilytree.com/helpDownloadVersion6.asp.

If installed from the CD, make certain that both computers have the same “build” of Legacy. What version of Legacy do you currently have? Within Legacy, click on Help on the menu bar and select General Information to find out. If your build date and version is earlier than 30 December 2008 - ver. 7.0.0.86 - then download the update your Legacy Family Tree program. For Legacy Family Tree 7.0 please visit http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/DownloadUpdate.asp. For Legacy Family Tree 6.0 or earlier please visit. http://legacyfamilytree.com/helpDownloadVersion6.asp

Backing up and restoring is an excellent way of moving your family file to a second PC or laptop. Just backup to a CD or flash drive on the first computer and restore the family file in Legacy on the second. It makes a perfect copy – nothing is lost! (Make sure that Legacy is installed on the second computer.)

If not already done, we recommend that you set your Legacy options to automatically prompt for backups each time you exit the program. Here’s how:

1. Click Options on the menu bar and select Customize from the options menu.
2. At the Customize screen, click on the Other tab.
3. Next click the Turn on or off Optional Reminder Messages button, then select the Prompts/Reminders tab and check mark the box to Automatically Prompt for Backup. Close the screen and click the Save button.

Now each time you quit the Legacy program, you will see a message asking if you want to backup the family file(s) you had open. Just click the Backup button and the process will start.

Here are the backup steps for Legacy 7.0:

1. You can click on backup when exiting Legacy or click on File and select Backup Family File at any time.
2. When the Backup window appears, make the following changes:
   • Save in = Select the backup location. Make certain a writable CD/DVD, flash drive or other medium is inserted.
   • File name = Enter a name.
   • Save as Type = Make no changes - Leave this as is
3. Click the Save button.
4. If you have a previous backup file of the same name on the drive, a message box will ask you if you want to overwrite it. Click the Yes button.
5. A message box may ask, “Would you like to Delete any existing files on the disks as we go?” Click the Yes button.
6. After the Legacy program has shut down, remove the backup medium (CD/DVD, flash drive, etc.).

You can also backup at any time while the program is running by clicking File on the menu bar, selecting Backup Family File from the file menu, and following Steps 1 through 4. above. More information on this topic is available at http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/helpLegacy7Backup.asp.

To restore the family file on the second from the backup:

1. First insert the disk or flash drive into the second computer and then start Legacy.
2. Click File on the menu bar and select Restore Family File from the file menu.
3. If any family files are open, you will see a message box prompting you to close them. Click the OK button.
4. The Restore window appears, make the following changes:
   • Look in = Choose the CD/DVD drive, second hard drive or flash drive where the backup resides.
   • The name of the backed up family file will appear in the large box. You can recognize it because it has a .zip extension. Click once on the filename to highlight it.
   • File name = Should be the same as the filename in the large box described above.
5. Click the Open button and the Restore Location window will appear.
6. Check the drive in the small box at the bottom of the screen. It should be your hard drive (not the drive that the backup is on). The default or normal location for Legacy family files is the C:\Legacy\Data folder. Starting with the top folder (the drive) double-click on the folders in the large box until you come down to the subfolder where you keep your family files.
7. Click the OK button.
8. Next a progress bar will move across your screen as the program restores your backed up family file. When done you will see a message box asking, “Would you like to Open the Restored Family File?” Click the Yes button.

More information on this topic is available at http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/helpLegacy7Backup.asp.

Moving Legacy Pictures between Computers

For the steps to move multimedia files (pictures, sound and video) from one computer to another, please visit http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/tipsPicturesMoving.asp.