Configuration

Tune behavior for your workflow.

Settings save automatically. Configure retention, Quick Pick, privacy filters, startup, backups, storage, and appearance from the app, with config-file editing available for advanced Linux workflows.

Data paths

  • Linux database: ~/.local/share/yanklog/history.db
  • Linux config: ~/.config/yanklog/config.toml
  • macOS database: ~/Library/Application Support/YankLog/history.db
  • macOS config: ~/Library/Application Support/YankLog/config.toml

Settings surface

  • General: startup, appearance, history limit, preview length, and retention.
  • Quick Pick: shortcut, visible item count, opacity, and registration status.
  • Privacy: secret-like values, one-time codes, text length limits, and ignored patterns.
  • Storage: database details plus encrypted backup, restore, and export.
  • About: version, distribution channel, privacy policy, and update controls.

Config file format

Advanced users can edit settings directly in config.toml.

max_history_size = 1000
poll_interval_ms = 500
max_preview_length = 100
window_width = 500
window_height = 600
retention_days = 0
theme = "system"

[keybindings]
quick_pick = "Ctrl+Shift+V"
quick_pick_items = 10
quick_pick_opacity = 0.95

[privacy]
ignore_secret_like = true
ignore_one_time_codes = false
min_text_length = 1
max_text_length = 0
ignored_patterns = []

Encrypted backup and restore

  1. Open Settings → Storage.
  2. Choose all history, pinned clips, or selected entries.
  3. Choose a destination and protect the backup with a password.
  4. Use Restore on another YankLog installation and enter the same password.

Backups include the selected history and its metadata. They are written only to the location you choose and can be used to move history between direct and Mac App Store builds.

Encryption keys

macOS stores the database key in Keychain. Linux uses the desktop Secret Service when available, with a restrictive-permission local key file as a compatibility fallback. Backup passwords are not stored by YankLog.

Troubleshooting

Error: "Failed to initialize database: file is not a database"

This can mean an older or damaged database is present. Quit YankLog, preserve the data directory first, then contact support or move the directory aside so the app can create a fresh database. Do not delete the original until you have recovered or intentionally discarded its history.

# Linux — preserve the original
mv ~/.local/share/yanklog ~/.local/share/yanklog-backup
# macOS — preserve the original
mv "$HOME/Library/Application Support/YankLog" "$HOME/Library/Application Support/YankLog-backup"