You found an older AI backup, but your current computer already has new conversations you want to keep. OGAD (Off Grid AI Desktop) can add missing chats, projects, and knowledge files from its desktop backup without replacing the records already there. Use Choose backup in Settings > Backup & restore to import the ZIP.
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This guide restores an OGAD desktop backup. It does not import arbitrary chat exports from other apps. Backup and restore are free core desktop features.
What happens to the chats already on your computer?
The restore adds missing records. It keeps existing project records and conversation records, and adds messages from the archive when they are missing. It does not overwrite your current project instructions with an older version just because those instructions exist in the backup.
The restore implementation checks existing records before inserting data. This is an additive restore, not a rollback of the whole app to an earlier date.
Create a new backup of your current work before you begin. Keep the old ZIP unchanged so you can retry from the original file if needed.
How do you restore the local ZIP?
Open the restore section, choose the backup file, and wait for the summary. Then check a known conversation and project document. The restore summary reports added records; it is not a substitute for checking the work you need.
- Open Settings > Backup & restore.
- Use Create backup to save a current copy if you have new work to protect.
- Under Restore from a backup, select Choose backup.
- Select the original OGAD ZIP file in the file dialog.
- Wait for the result. The app reports the number of projects, chats, messages, and documents added.
- Open a restored chat and inspect a message you expected to recover.
- Open a restored project and check one of its knowledge files.
If nothing was missing, the app can report Backup checked. This device already has everything in it. A zero-additions result is not automatically a failure.
Keep enough disk space for temporary extracted files and the restored documents. Do not rename files inside the ZIP or edit its manifest to make a failed archive pass validation.
Will your restored documents answer questions immediately?
The restore brings back project documents and their stored text. The app also tries to rebuild the local search vectors used to find relevant passages. If the required embedding model is unavailable, the file can restore successfully while document retrieval still needs attention.
Prepare the local embedding and chat models before disconnecting if you want to ask questions immediately. Installed models are separate from this backup.
After restore, ask a narrow question whose answer you can verify in one restored document. Open the source and compare it with the reply. A document appearing in the project list does not by itself prove that retrieval found its text.
What should you check if something is missing?
| Problem | Check | Action |
|---|---|---|
| No new records appear | Backup date and summary | Check whether those records already existed or were created after the backup. |
| An old project instruction did not replace the current one | Existing project | This is expected. Restore keeps existing records. Compare and edit instructions deliberately if needed. |
| A document is visible but not used in answers | Local search model and document state | Confirm the embedding model is available and the document is enabled. Re-import the original into a separate test project if you need to check indexing. |
| The ZIP is rejected | File type, completeness, and backup origin | Use the original desktop backup. Copy it again if the transfer was incomplete. |
| Images or models are missing | Backup scope | Restore separate original media and download or transfer model files as needed. |
What should a successful recovery look like?
Suppose you made a backup before moving computers. Since then, the destination has a new chat you want to keep. After restoring, open that new chat first and confirm it is still there. Then find an older conversation from the archive and check a specific message you remember. Finally, open a restored project document and compare its contents with the original source.
These checks answer different questions. The current chat shows that existing work remains available. The older message shows that missing conversation data arrived. The document check shows that a file you need is present. If you also want document questions, run the retrieval check described above; successful file recovery alone does not establish that search is ready.
Keep the result summary with a note of what you checked. If the summary reports no additions, compare the actual records before assuming failure. If you repeat an import, already-present records may mean there is nothing new to add.
Do not expect the archive to replace a current project instruction with an older one. If you need to recover old wording, compare it deliberately rather than treating restore as an undo button. The same distinction applies when troubleshooting: a restore can add missing content without returning every app setting and later edit to its previous state.
Can you restore without internet?
Reading a local backup does not require cloud storage. Restoring useful offline AI work also needs the relevant models on the destination computer. Complete app installation and model downloads first; the ZIP does not include all those resources.
If device sync is enabled, restored records can enter the normal sync process. Review the paired devices before restoring material you intend to keep on only one computer. The backup itself also contains readable private data; store it accordingly.
Get OGAD, save a current backup, then restore the older ZIP. Check one recovered chat and one project document before you depend on the restored copy.