Doodle Dragon Studio

Back up and move your projects

Export a portable .ddstory archive or use optional Studio Plus cloud backup to restore projects on another device.

3 min read

Free

  1. Open the project and choose Export

    From Projects, open the book, tap Export, and choose Project file (.ddstory).

  2. Save it somewhere that is not this phone

    Share it to a cloud drive, email it to yourself, or save it to Files and sync it. A backup that only exists on the device you are backing up is not a backup.

    Tip. Do this whenever you finish a book. It takes about thirty seconds and it is the difference between keeping and losing it.

  3. To restore, import on any device

    Install the app, go to Projects, and choose Import project. Pick the .ddstory file. The archive is validated before it loads, so a damaged file fails cleanly rather than half-importing.

  4. Check it came back whole

    Open the restored project and page through it. Text, layouts, pictures, audio, and provenance labels should all be there.

Choose the backup that fits

Local-first does not have to mean one copy Projects are edited on your device. Studio Plus can optionally keep a private cloud backup, while .ddstory export gives every user a portable copy they control. Use both for projects you would be upset to lose.

Use Studio Plus cloud backup

  1. Sign in to the same parent account on each device.
  2. Open Account → Cloud backup & device sync.
  3. Choose Back up now, or opt in to automatic backup.
  4. On another device, open the same screen and choose Restore.

If both devices changed the same project, the app asks whether to use the cloud copy or keep the device copy. It does not silently replace either one. Cloud backup includes referenced image, video, and audio files and is separate from AI generation.

Existing backups remain restorable after Studio Plus expires, but creating or updating a backup requires an active subscription. Cloud Trash retains deleted cloud projects for up to 90 days unless you permanently delete them sooner.

What is inside a .ddstory file

The editable project: pages, text, layouts, page order, original imported media, generated media, audio, cached video frames, and provenance labels. Finished PDF and MP4 files in the project’s exports folder are deliberately excluded, so save those separately if you need them too.

Good backup habits

  • Export an archive when you finish a book, and again after any big edit, even if automatic cloud backup is enabled.
  • Keep the exported PDF alongside it. Even if an archive ever fails to import, a PDF is readable forever by anything.
  • Give the file a name you will understand later.
  • Before changing phones, export everything you care about first.

Sharing a project with someone else

A .ddstory file can be sent to another person running the app. They can import it and edit their own independent copy. Cloud sync is private to devices signed in to the same parent account; .ddstory is the sharing format.