Back up your notes and move them to a new computer

Where are my notes now?

NotePADD stores notes in the extension's storage, inside your Chrome profile on this computer. That means:

• they are not copied by Chrome Sync to your other computers;
• they are deleted if you remove the extension, or if the Chrome profile is deleted;
• a new computer starts with an empty notepad.

So if your notes matter, keep a copy outside Chrome, in Google Drive or in a file.

Option 1: back up to your Google Drive

1. Click the NotePADD icon, then the cloud icon.
2. Read the notice and click Agree to share your notes with Google Sheets.
3. Sign in with your Google account and allow access. NotePADD asks only for files it creates itself; it cannot open your other documents.
4. NotePADD creates the spreadsheet Notes sheet in your Drive and updates it about two seconds after you stop typing. If you are offline, the changes wait and upload when you are back online.

What ends up in the spreadsheet:

Limits: about 1,000 notes, and Google Sheets allows up to 50,000 characters in a cell, so a very long note may not fit. To stop backing up, use Exit in the extension.

Move notes to a new computer with Google Drive

1. On the new computer, install NotePADD from the Chrome Web Store.
2. Click the cloud icon and sign in with the same Google account.
3. NotePADD finds Notes sheet in your Drive and loads your notes from it.
4. Check the notes, then decide whether to keep the backup on.

Keep in mind:

• Notes restored from the spreadsheet come back without formatting, because the spreadsheet keeps plain text.
• If encryption was on, you need the same password to read them.
• With the backup on in two places, each save rewrites the whole spreadsheet. Work on one computer at a time, or the last save wins.

Option 2: export and import a CSV file

No Google account needed.

1. In NotePADD, open the menu and choose Export. A CSV file named with the date and time is saved to your downloads.
2. Copy the file to the new computer (USB stick, e-mail to yourself, cloud storage).
3. There, install NotePADD, open the menu and choose Import, then pick the file.
4. NotePADD warns that import replaces all current notes. Confirm with Clear and Import.

The content column of the file is in NotePADD's own format, which keeps formatting but is not meant to be read in Excel. If encryption is on, the content is exported encrypted, and you need the same password after importing.

Which option should I use?

Using both is the safest: the backup for everyday, an export before big changes such as reinstalling Chrome. If your notes are private, turn on encryption first so both copies are encrypted.