Smart AutoSave+ Pro
The Blender Auto Save Addon Built for Real Projects

Freelance 3D Artists

Save milestones like "Client_Submission_v1" that never get pruned, and update them in one click when the client asks for changes.

Heavy Scene & VFX Artists

Big EXR sequences, high-poly meshes, simulations? Push checkpoints to the cloud and auto-delete the local copy to keep your SSD free.

Studios & Pipelines

User tags in filenames, custom autosave folder names, and exportable save history keep every backup traceable.

Anyone Who Has Ever Lost Work

It runs quietly in the background until the day you need it. Then you get a timeline with thumbnails and one-click restore.

Edit-Based Autosave FLAGSHIP

Compares a scene hash on every timer tick and saves only when something actually changes. No duplicate files while you're idle. Inactivity autosave runs independently, so it fires exactly when you set it to.

Crash Detection & Smart Recovery

Tells the difference between a normal close and a crash or force-quit. After a crash, you get a dedicated recovery message pointing straight to your latest backup, not a generic "newer file found" pop-up.

Google Drive & Dropbox Backup

Authenticate once. Checkpoints and manual saves upload silently in a background thread. Switch providers any time, and optionally delete the local copy after a successful upload. Large files over 150MB upload in chunks.

Named Checkpoints

Save milestones with real names, like MyProject_Before_Rigging.blend. They're protected from auto-pruning forever, and you can rename or overwrite them any time.

4 Dedicated Save Folders

Auto, Edit, Manual, and Checkpoints each get their own subfolder, and Max Backups applies per folder. Checkpoints never crowd out your regular saves.

Legacy _Backup_N.blend files from older versions migrate into auto/ on first save. Nothing is lost.

Session Timeline

Browse every save with timestamps and reasons. Filter by type, search by name or date, then restore a version or open it in a new Blender window.

Viewport Thumbnails

Every backup gets a 320×180 preview of your viewport at save time. Capture now locks onto the actual 3D viewport (not the N-panel), and your shading and render resolution are always restored afterwards, even if a capture fails.

Render Start / End Saves

Automatic backups before and after every render, with the engine name and frame range in the filename. Your pre-render state survives even if the render crashes.

First Undo Safety Net

One silent save fires on your first undo after each autosave, then stays quiet until the next autosave resets it. No saving on every undo, no waiting for N steps.

Compositing Freeze Fix

All background processing pauses during renders and compositing, so heavy EXR sessions run without interference.

Safe Restore

Restoring saves the backup as _restored_1.blend next to your original, so you never end up working from inside the autosaves folder.

Session Summary & Backup Log Export

Export a styled HTML report of your session (duration, saves, checkpoints, total size, full history), or the full backup log as HTML or CSV. Handy for project audits and client handoff.

And More

✓ Compress backups to .zip
✓ Auto-pack resources (fixes pink textures)
✓ Custom sound on save
✓ Grace period on file open
✓ Backup health report
✓ User tags and custom autosave folder name
✓ Save before undo/redo

Google verification notice

On first connect, Google may say "Smart AutoSave Pro hasn't been verified by Google." This is normal for independent developer tools. Click Advanced → Go to Smart AutoSave Pro (unsafe) and sign in. The addon only asks permission to upload files to your own Drive. It cannot read, modify or delete your existing files. Credentials are stored locally and never shared.

Dropbox security notice

Dropbox may show "This app only has a small number of users." That just means the app is new and hasn't been reviewed by a big user base yet. It only reads and writes inside its own designated folder, and you can disconnect any time under Connected Apps in your Dropbox settings.

Fixed: Backup Thumbnails

Thumbnail capture could sometimes target the wrong region (like the N-panel instead of the 3D viewport), giving blank or black previews in some layouts. It now locks onto the 3D viewport canvas every time.

Fixed: Viewport Settings Could Get Stuck

If thumbnail generation was interrupted, your viewport shading and render resolution could stay changed. Your original settings are now always restored, even if a capture fails.

Fixed: Inactivity Autosave Timing

If your Autosave Interval was longer than your Inactivity timeout, inactivity saves could be blocked from ever firing. Inactivity autosave now works independently and fires exactly when configured.

Fixed: Unsaved File Backup Naming

Backups from different never-saved Blender sessions could share the same identifier and get mixed together. Each session now gets its own unique backup identity.

v8.7.4 · Crash Detection & Smart Recovery

Dedicated recovery message after a crash or force-quit. Also fixed the "Show Recovery Dialog on Load" preference so it's respected both on and off.

v8.7.3 · Dropbox, Undo Safety Net & Fixes

Added Dropbox backup and the First Undo Safety Net. The Enable Autosave toggle now stops all saves (timer, triggers and undo), and the timer now waits for the full interval you set.

Does Blender autosave if it crashes?

Only partially. The built-in autosave keeps a single temp file that gets overwritten. Smart AutoSave+ Pro keeps a full history of backups and detects crashes, so on the next launch you get a clear recovery message pointing to your latest backup.

Where is my Blender autosave location?

Blender's default location is a system temp folder that's easy to lose track of. This addon creates an autosaves/ folder right next to your .blend file, split into auto, edit, manual and checkpoint subfolders.

Blender autosave not working. Will this fix it?

If the built-in autosave saves too often, not at all, or over your only backup, that's a limit of the built-in feature. This addon replaces it with edit-based detection, multiple backup types, crash detection and a searchable timeline.

Does it work with Blender 5.x?

Yes. Tested and compatible with Blender 4.0 through 5.1+.

Will it slow down Blender?

No. The background scene hash runs every 5 seconds and is very lightweight. Cloud uploads run in a separate thread, and all processing pauses during renders.

What happens to my backups if I move my project folder?

The autosaves folder is created next to your .blend file, so history doesn't follow automatically. The files are still wherever you left them. The Timeline shows missing entries for files it can't find, but your existing backups stay intact.

What if Google Drive or Dropbox disconnects mid-upload?

The upload fails gracefully with a warning in the N-Panel. Your local file is only deleted after a successful upload, and the next save tries again.

Can I use it on multiple computers?

Yes. Install it on as many machines as you own. The Studio license covers personal use across all your devices.

Do two .blend files in the same folder conflict?

No. Backups are prefixed with the project filename, so ABC.blend and DEF.blend get completely separate backup sets.

Are future updates included?

Yes. Updates are free for Studio license holders for the duration of your support period, and the addon is actively developed based on user feedback.