We have written a Mac OS X AppleScript application called Back up user prefs, that backs up a user's ~/Library/Preferences folder for safety in the event of corruption of either individual preferences or the entire folder. It also backs up the ~/Library/Application Support/AddressBook and the preferences folders for Camino, OmniWeb, and OmniWeb 5 that lurk in the ~/Library/Application Support folder and Mozilla, Firefox, Safari, and Safari in the ~/Library folder. (Netscape, iCab, Opera, and Microsoft Internet Explorer preferences are automatically backed up when the ~/Library/Preferences folder is saved.) Back up user prefs allows the user to elect to save previously backed-up preferences in the event that something goes wrong. In addition to the capabilities of earlier versions, which include the ability not only to restore preferences that have previously been saved using the application and allow the user to choose the location of saved preference files, all versions since v 2.3.7 include a feature that permits the user to choose to restore 1) the Preferences folder only, 2) the browser files only, or 3) both the Preferences folder and the browser files. The application includes the option of backing up the user's Mail folder, as well as the Address Book and Calendars folder, and it sports a very robust error-recovery capability that, in the event of a copying error caused by the presence of a file or files whose owner name is "system" or "root", which will result in an aborted backup, flags the culprit file(s) and lists it/them, offering suggestions as to how the user can reset the owner name to allow the application to work successfully.

New in version 4.4

Adds "Tiger" (Mac OS 10.4) compatibility
Adds support for Shiira in the list of browsers
Allows the user to select the browser used to display messages
Delivers a marked speed boost under some (but not all) conditions

Version 1.2, which backs up but does not restore preferences, is downloadable elsewhere on this page (see below) for those still using Mac OS 10.1.x (see below).

Important: Back up user prefs conflicts with FileVault in Mac OS 10.3.x or later! Do not use this application with FileVault enabled!

Version 4.4, like all earlier versions, poses no risk to the user's system if run in "back-up" mode. However, in "restore" mode, the program can cause serious damage if an error occurs! In all cases, this damage can be rectified — in fact, the application will attempt to rectify it itself. However, in the event that the automatic recovery routine should fail when it attempts to restore the system to its earlier state, the user can quickly restore things to normal by following the directions in the documentation.

on Versiontracker!

Check out these comments posted on Versiontracker and MacUpdate by satisfied users! 

Download Back up user prefs 4.4 here.

We have carefully tested these applications on several different computers running Mac OS 10.2, Mac OS 10.3.x, and Mac OS 10.4.x, and they have performed as intended on all of them.

For those having trouble with v 4.4, version 4.3.3.1 is available here and v 3.0.3 can be downloaded here.

Version 2.4.x and later, including v 4.4, will not run on any version of Mac OS X earlier than Jaguar (v 10.2). However, Back up prefs 1.2 is still available to those Mac OS X users running Mac OS 10.1.x. The principal difference between v 1.2 and v 4.x is that v 1.2 will back up preferences but will not restore them. It also does not support the backing up of (among others) Safari or Firefox files, as well as many other features added in later versions. It is not our intention to update any version of Back up user prefs for Mac OS X 10.1.x. Instead, we urge all users of Mac OS X to upgrade to the latest version.

Download Back up prefs 1.2 here.