# Research Backup > Back up untracked research report directories (outputs/, results/, report(s)/) from local projects into the locally synced Dropbox folder, organized by category/project. Discovers candidate directories that git does not track, keeps a registry under ~/.config/research-backup/, and mirrors additively with rsync (deletions are never propagated). Use when the user asks to back up research outputs or… - **Type:** Skill - **Install:** `agentstack add skill-axect-skills-research-backup` - **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior - **Seller:** [Axect](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/axect) - **Installs:** 0 - **Category:** [AI & ML](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/ai-and-ml) - **Latest version:** 0.1.0 - **License:** MIT - **Upstream author:** [Axect](https://github.com/Axect) - **Source:** https://github.com/Axect/skills/tree/main/research-backup ## Install ```sh agentstack add skill-axect-skills-research-backup ``` Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent. ## About # Research Backup Backs up the report/output directories that research projects keep outside git (`outputs/`, `results/`, `report/`, `reports/`) into the locally synced Dropbox folder. The Dropbox daemon handles the actual upload; this skill only writes files under `BACKUP_ROOT` with rsync, so backups are incremental and need no API credentials. ## Which Dropbox skill? - `research-backup` (this skill): bulk, recurring backup of whole report directories into the local `~/Dropbox` sync folder. Requires the Dropbox client to be syncing this machine. - `dropbox`: one-off upload/download/share of individual files through the Dropbox HTTP API. Works without a local sync client. ## How projects are separated Sources are mirrored relative to `SCAN_ROOT` (default `$HOME/Documents/Project`), so the Dropbox side keeps the full `//` layout: ~/Documents/Project/Research/MyProject/results -> ~/Dropbox/ResearchBackup/Research/MyProject/results Same-named projects in different categories (e.g. two `pytorch_template` checkouts) never collide because the category directory is part of the destination path. ## Prerequisites (check before any operation) 1. `rsync` on PATH. 2. A locally synced Dropbox folder. Verify the parent of `BACKUP_ROOT` exists (default check: `test -d ~/Dropbox`). If it does not exist, tell the user the Dropbox client is not syncing this machine and stop; do not fall back to the API. ## Config and registry Both live under `~/.config/research-backup/` (override the directory with the `RESEARCH_BACKUP_CONFIG_DIR` env var; both files are auto-created with defaults on first run): - `config`: shell KEY="value" lines. `SCAN_ROOT` (project root), `BACKUP_ROOT` (destination inside Dropbox, default `$HOME/Dropbox/ResearchBackup`), `DIR_NAMES` (basenames discover looks for, default `outputs results report reports`), `RSYNC_EXCLUDES` (optional space-separated rsync exclude patterns such as `*.ckpt wandb`). - `registry`: one absolute source directory per line, `#` comments allowed. Backups run only over this file, never over a live scan, so the set of backed-up directories is always explicit. To stop backing a directory up, delete its line (already-uploaded files stay in Dropbox). ## Workflow ### 1. Discover (scan for new candidates) bash scripts/discover.sh Scans `SCAN_ROOT` for `DIR_NAMES` directories and prints a `STATE GIT PATH` table: - `NEW`: not in the registry and git does not track it (`ignored`, `untracked`, or `no-git`). Candidate for registration. - `REGISTERED`: already in the registry. - `TRACKED`: contains git-tracked files, so git already backs it up. Skipped, never registered. - `MISSING`: registry entry whose directory no longer exists on disk. Show the user the `NEW` rows and ask which to register (default: all of them). Then run: bash scripts/discover.sh --register which appends every `NEW` path to the registry. To register a subset instead, append the chosen paths to `~/.config/research-backup/registry` directly, one per line. ### 2. Status (preview before syncing) bash scripts/backup.sh --dry-run --all Same matching as a real backup but passes `-n` to rsync, printing `PEND N item(s) would sync` per directory. Use this when the user asks "what changed" or before a first large sync. ### 3. Backup bash scripts/backup.sh --all # everything in the registry bash scripts/backup.sh MyProject # entries whose path contains "MyProject" (case-insensitive) bash scripts/backup.sh Research/ AI_Project/ # multiple filters, OR-matched Per-directory output is `OK N item(s) synced -> ` or `up to date`, with a one-line summary at the end. Missing sources are warned and skipped, never fatal. ## Safety rules - Backups are additive: rsync runs without `--delete`, so deleting or renaming files locally leaves the old copies in Dropbox. This is intentional (the backup protects against accidental deletion). If the user explicitly wants the Dropbox side pruned to match local, do not add `--delete` yourself; tell them to clean the Dropbox folder manually or get their confirmation first and run a one-off `rsync -a --delete` for the specific directory they name. - Never register a `TRACKED` directory; git already preserves it. - Do not run `discover.sh --register` without showing the user the `NEW` list first, unless they asked for a fully automatic run. ## Exit codes - 0: success - 2: config invalid, `SCAN_ROOT` missing, or Dropbox sync folder absent - 3: no registry entry matched the filter - 5: at least one rsync invocation failed (stderr shows which) - 64: usage error - 127: rsync not installed ## Source & license This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code. - **Author:** [Axect](https://github.com/Axect) - **Source:** [Axect/skills](https://github.com/Axect/skills) - **License:** MIT Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above. ## Pricing - **Free** — Free ## Security capabilities Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access: - **Network access:** no - **Filesystem access:** no - **Shell / process execution:** no - **Environment & secrets:** no - **Dynamic code execution:** no *"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.* ## Versions - **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source. ## Links - Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/skill-axect-skills-research-backup - Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/axect - Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse --- Listed on AgentStack — the marketplace for AI agent skills and MCP servers. Every listing is security-reviewed. Creators keep 70%.