Archive

An archive is a macOS package—a folder containing multiple files, but acts like a single document in the Finder. Use the Finder's Show Package Contents command to reveal its inner secrets.

The files inside an archive package are:

• repository.data: This is the archive's primary data file. It contains all of the information about the captured items.
• repository_*.* files (optional): These files contain redundancy data and correction codes for the primary file.
• *.index files: Index files help QRecall search and update the primary repository.data file in an efficient manner.
• *.plist files: Property list (or .plist) files store miscellaneous settings, preferences, and security information.
• *.qrstackconfig files: Stack definition and connection information.

The repository.data file is essentially a massive database. It's organized as a collection of small records, each with a unique identifier plus additional information to ensure the record has not been corrupted or damaged.

File data captured in an archive is stored in small data records called quanta. Archive data records are always unique. No matter how many items contain the same quanta of data, only one copy of that data is stored in the archive.

All of the .index files are derived from the repository.data file. When you repair or reindex an archive, QRecall deletes all of the .index files and reconstructs them from the information in the repository.data file.

The settings.plist file contains your per-archive preferences. If your archive is encrypted, the security.plist file holds important information and possibly your recovery key. The remaining .plist files remember view settings, archive status, and other ephemeral information.

If the archive is connected to one or more stacks, each stack will have a .qrstackconfig file containing the stack's settings, location, and any connection information. There will also be one or more .index files for each stack with cashed information about that stack.