Are you creating diagrams, technical drawings, simple brochures, or graphics in LibreOffice Draw? Make sure you do not lose your work due to an accidental program closure or system crash. Fortunately, Draw offers AutoSave and backup copy features that you can enable in just a few clicks.

In this guide, you will learn how to activate AutoSave in Draw step by step and gain peace of mind knowing that your projects are protected.

Why use AutoSave in LibreOffice Draw?

Even if you save your files regularly, a sudden computer failure can result in the loss of hours of work. Thanks to the built-in AutoSave feature, Draw protects your files in the background, allowing you to recover them quickly. In addition, the backup copy feature provides an extra layer of protection for every project.

How to enable AutoSave and backup copies in Draw?

Launch LibreOffice Draw.

Go to the menu:

Tools → Options

(or LibreOffice → Preferences on macOS)

In the left panel, select:

Load/Save → General

Check the following options:

Save AutoRecovery information every X minutes (e.g., every 3 or 5 minutes)

Always create backup copy

Click OK to confirm the changes.

Where are backup copies stored?

By default, LibreOffice Draw saves backup copies in the following folder:

Windows:

C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Roaming\LibreOffice\4\user\backup

Linux:

~/.config/libreoffice/4/user/backup

To change this location, go to:

Options → LibreOffice → Paths → Backups

Additional tips:

AutoSave works only when the document is open and actively being edited.

A backup copy is created when you manually save the document (Ctrl + S) — do not confuse it with AutoRecovery.

It is a good idea to create a separate backup on an external drive or in the cloud from time to time.

The AutoSave and backup copy features in LibreOffice Draw provide simple but effective protection for your diagrams, schematics, and graphic projects. Configure them once and enjoy the peace of mind of knowing that your work will not be lost.