Balise has two separate mechanisms for different moments.
Crash recovery handles abrupt interruptions: crashes, power loss or forced restarts. Local versions let you return to an earlier state of a file you saved.
Neither replaces a backup or Git repository.
Crash recovery
While you work on a modified document, Balise periodically writes a rescue copy.
After an interruption, Balise opens recoverable copies as separate documents marked Recovered.
A recovered session has no write connection to the original file. You must save it explicitly, avoiding overwriting a valid file while figuring out what happened.
Local versions
For named Markdown, Mermaid, CSV and TSV files, Balise also keeps bounded local history.
Snapshots are created on open, after a successful save, before major transformations and before discarding a local version during a conflict.
File > Local Versions… shows the timeline: date, reason, size and a comparison with the current document.
Restore a Copy… opens a detached Recovered session. As with crash recovery, it connects to a file only after you explicitly save it.
Disable or delete
Disable local history globally in Settings or exclude a document you consider sensitive.
Delete History… always asks for explicit confirmation.
What this surface does not do
- Neither recovery nor local versions rewrite your file unless you save.
- History is local to this Mac and does not follow a file sent elsewhere.
- History is bounded: the oldest snapshots eventually disappear.
- A never-saved file has no local versions, only a recovery copy.
Follow this walkthrough from start to finish: Recover lost work.