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FileMaker Pro basics
F
ILEMAKER PRO HELP 54
Saving and copying files
By default, FileMaker Pro automatically saves changes to your data as you work, so there is no
Save command. You can, however:
• save a copy of your file as a backup
• save a clone of your file with no data
Some actions do not cause a file to be saved. For details, see “What FileMaker Pro doesn’t save,”
below.
To make a copy or clone of your database file:
1. Choose File menu > Save a Copy As.
2. Navigate to where you want to save the copy on your disk.
3. For File name (Windows) or Save As (OS X), type a filename.
4. For Save as type, choose FileMaker Files (Windows only).
5. For Save a (Windows) or Type (OS X), choose one of the following options:
Note To have a copy of a file that includes container data that's stored externally, choose self-
contained copy. The copy of current file and compacted copy options do not copy externally
stored data. If you want to use either of those options, you'll need to embed data in the container
fields first. For more information, see
Setting up container fields to store data externally.
6. For After saving, choose one or both of the following options if you wish:
7. Click Save.
What FileMaker Pro doesn’t save
FileMaker Pro doesn't save changes to the state of a file, if they are the only changes you make
while the file is open. For example, here are some changes that are not saved:
• Displaying a different record or layout
• Sorting records or modifying a sort order
Choose To
copy of current file Duplicate the current file.
compacted copy (smaller) Optimize the file (remove blank space). See Saving a
compacted copy.
clone (no records) Save a file’s tables, layouts, scripts, page setup options, and
field definitions without the data.
self-contained copy (single file) Create a copy of the current file with all container data that is
stored as a file reference or stored externally (by both open and
secure storage)
embedded in the file’s container fields.
Choose To
Automatically open file Open the file after it is saved
Create email with file as
attachment
Create an email with the saved file attached