BackupOnShutdown is a restic GUI for Windows that lets you back up and restore files without using the command line. It bundles official restic 0.18.1 and saves standard restic backups on a drive or accessible NAS share, which you can also open with the official restic CLI. BackupOnShutdown is proprietary; restic is a separate project licensed under BSD-2-Clause.
What can you do through the app?
Choose the folders to save, add one or more backup locations, and enable password protection if you want it. Each location holds a standard restic repository. Back up runs your included backups and leaves the PC on; Back up & shut down runs them and shuts down afterward. Save your work in other programs first, because Windows closes them during shutdown. Use the app's button or optional desktop shortcut — shutting down from the Start menu doesn't start a backup.
Later runs store changed data and reuse data already saved. The global Keep old versions setting defaults to 1 year, keeping a selection of recent and older versions rather than every backup from that period.
To restore files, choose the backup, location, password if needed, saved version, and files. You can put them back in their original place or choose another folder. On a new PC, I already have a backup opens an existing BackupOnShutdown backup. See restoring files for the full steps.
A network share can hold your backup, but the app cannot currently restore backups of folders that were themselves on a UNC network path, such as \\server\share. That limit is different from using a NAS to store backups of local folders.
Can the official restic CLI open the backup?
Yes. BackupOnShutdown uses the standard restic format, so you don't need to export or convert the backup first. Use the same password you set in the app. A lost password cannot be recovered; the password guide explains protection and how to add it later.
Pass the actual repository folder to restic's -r option:
- If the folder you selected was empty, use that folder.
- If it already contained other files, the app creates a backup folder inside
BackupOnShutdown, named after your backup. Use that inner folder. The name may be adjusted to avoid invalid characters or a folder-name collision.
For example, if your backup is named Documents, the second case might look like this. Replace the path with your own:
restic -r "E:\BackupOnShutdown\Documents" snapshots
Restic asks for the backup password. If you left password protection off, use restic 0.17.0 or newer and include --insecure-no-password:
restic -r "E:\BackupOnShutdown\Documents" --insecure-no-password snapshots
Without password protection, anyone with the drive can open the files. Let the app finish its work before running CLI commands against the same backup.
How does retention work alongside the CLI?
BackupOnShutdown applies its retention preset after a complete backup. The presets keep selected daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly versions; they aren't a strict cutoff that deletes everything older than the displayed period. The newest version is always kept.
If you're happy with the app's presets, leave forget and prune to the app. In restic, forget removes saved versions, while prune reclaims data no retained version needs. Running prune by itself doesn't select a different set of versions. If you change retention manually, remember that the app will apply its own setting again after future backups.
See keeping old versions for the app's choices and restic's retention documentation for CLI policies.
How do you include open files with Volume Shadow Copy?
Start BackupOnShutdown as administrator to let restic use Windows Volume Shadow Copy through --use-fs-snapshot. Without administrator rights, files open in another program are skipped and listed after the run. If a run skips unreadable files, Back up & shut down keeps the PC on.
There's no separate VSS checkbox in the app. The open-files guide explains the practical steps.
When is another restic front end a better fit?
BackupOnShutdown writes to folders Windows can already access: internal or external drives, USB sticks, and mapped drives or network shares. It doesn't expose restic's S3, Backblaze B2, SFTP, or rclone backends. Use the CLI or another front end if you need those destinations or scheduled backups.
You can exclude whole folders, and temporary files and cache-tagged folders are always skipped. There are no custom exclusion patterns or a button for checking repository integrity. The app also doesn't create whole-disk images.
BackupOnShutdown runs on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 and on macOS 13 or later with Apple Silicon. Restic's license text is available under Settings → About → Third-party notices.
Download BackupOnShutdown to try the restic GUI free for 14 days, with no credit card. The app uses a one-time license; the pricing page has the current terms.