Destination location for versioning

[Snellybob]

I have successfully set an external volume on my Mac OS for mirror backups which works well. But despite selecting the same volume with a dedicated folder for versioning, running FFS keeps putting the versions in my applications folder on the Mac hard rive.
These files start: Applications/%FFSRevisions/
Anybody got any idea what I'm doing wrong?

[lexirose]

Most likely, FreeFileSync has a relative path specified for storing versions in its settings, and it is interpreted as a folder inside the current location. Specify an absolute path to a folder on the external drive

[Snellybob]

@Lexirose; many thanks. I have specified an absolute path (volumes/etc) for my versioning destination in the same way that i have successfully done for the backup destination.
So I think I’ve already done what you suggest.
Not sure I understand your phrase ‘relative path’ and where or what this might be? ‘Inside current location’ I take to be the Applications folder where FFS sync sits - and is where the versions are ending up.
Could you kindly expand on your advice?

[Stingray]

@Lexirose
Apparently, I'm having the same issue as @Snellybob, but on Windows.
As an example, I copy the folder b:\Videos to g:\backup\Videos.
I use the Synchronize / Mirror option, and in the Versioning Control, I move the files (modified or deleted) to the folder G:\BACKUP_ALT, organized by date/time.
However, when the video b:\Videos\Teste.avi is deleted, it gets placed in G:\Backup\YYYMMDD\Teste.avi instead of G:\Backup\YYYMMDD\Videos\Teste.avi.
It's as if the first folder level is being "lost"
I don't know what I'm doing wrong...
Please, could anybody help me?

[xCSxXenon]

Can you both post a screenshot of your Synchronization Setting (F8) window, where it displays the versioning settings?

[Snellybob]

Attached - showing destination for versioning on external drive - same destination (though different folder) that works for the main backup.

Image 29-06-2025 at 11.16.jpg

[Stingray]

I worked around the situation by using the 'Use Local Settings' option for each pair of folders to be synchronized.
I created the top-level path below the backup destination folder, as shown in the image.
I added a timestamp (file) and retention for the last 5 files.
This way, when a file is deleted (or modified) by applications, it is placed in 'G:\BACKUP_EXC_ALT_EMERSON\aplicativos\install.log 2025-06-29 084028.log'.
When the 6th modification of the file occurs, the oldest one is deleted, keeping only 5

[Snellybob]

Stingray - thanks for the advice- it works!
I hadn't spotted this setting and would never have guessed that it had something to do with versioning!

[xCSxXenon]

@Lexirose
Apparently, I'm having the same issue as @Snellybob, but on Windows.
As an example, I copy the folder b:\Videos to g:\backup\Videos.
I use the Synchronize / Mirror option, and in the Versioning Control, I move the files (modified or deleted) to the folder G:\BACKUP_ALT, organized by date/time.
However, when the video b:\Videos\Teste.avi is deleted, it gets placed in G:\Backup\YYYMMDD\Teste.avi instead of G:\Backup\YYYMMDD\Videos\Teste.avi.
It's as if the first folder level is being "lost"
I don't know what I'm doing wrong...
Please, could anybody help me?

This make sense, actually. Since you are syncing to "G:\backup\Videos", 'videos' is not part of the item's relative location, and the item itself, along with it relative path (there isn't one here), gets sent to the specified versioning location, ending up as "G:\Backup\YYYMMDD\Teste.avi".
I'm guessing setting things up in local options does prepend the original parent folder's name to the versioning location, which is why it now ends up in "G:\Backup\YYYMMDD\Videos\"

For Snellybob, the versioned items going to "Applications/%FFSRevisions/" was likely a typo to be honest. Glad it's working though!