Data Storage

Where Dayflow stores your data and how to manage it

All Dayflow data is stored locally on your Mac. This page explains exactly where your data lives and how to manage it.

Storage Location

All Dayflow data is stored in a single directory:

~/Library/Application Support/Dayflow/

This is the standard location for macOS application data. You can navigate to it via:

• Finder: Press Cmd+Shift+G and paste the path above
• Dayflow menu: Click the Dayflow icon in your menu bar → Open Recordings

Folder Structure

Inside the Dayflow directory, you’ll find:

Dayflow/
├── recordings/           # Video chunks of your screen activity
│   ├── 2026-03-01/      # Organized by date
│   ├── 2026-03-02/
│   └── 2026-03-03/
└── chunks.sqlite         # Timeline database

recordings/ Folder

Contains screen recording video files:

• Format: Lightweight video chunks (MP4 or similar)
• Organization: Files are organized by date in YYYY-MM-DD/ subdirectories
• Content: Short segments of your screen activity that are analyzed to generate timeline entries
• Size: Varies based on your screen resolution and activity; managed by automatic cleanup

Recordings are the largest component of Dayflow’s storage footprint. Use automatic cleanup to manage disk usage.

chunks.sqlite Database

Contains timeline metadata and analysis:

• Format: SQLite database
• Content: Timeline entries, activity summaries, metadata
• Size: Relatively small compared to recordings
• Structure: Standard SQLite - can be inspected with tools like DB Browser for SQLite

The database does not contain the raw video data, only metadata and analyzed summaries.

Automatic Storage Cleanup

Dayflow includes automatic cleanup to prevent unlimited disk usage:

How It Works

1. Set a storage limit in Settings (1GB, 5GB, 10GB, 20GB, or unlimited)
2. Dayflow monitors total storage usage
3. When the limit is exceeded, oldest recordings are deleted first
4. Timeline entries remain in the database (only video files are removed)

Configuring Cleanup

1. Open Dayflow Settings
2. Go to Storage
3. Choose your preferred limit:
   • 1GB: ~1-2 days of recordings (ultra-compact)
   • 5GB: ~5-7 days of recordings (recommended for most users)
   • 10GB: ~2 weeks of recordings
   • 20GB: ~1 month of recordings
   • Unlimited: No automatic cleanup (manual management required)

Storage usage varies based on screen resolution and activity. Higher resolution displays and longer recording sessions consume more space.

What Gets Deleted

• Deleted: Old video recording files from recordings/
• Kept: Timeline entries, summaries, and metadata in chunks.sqlite

This means your timeline history remains searchable even after recordings are cleaned up.

Completely Removing All Data

To fully reset Dayflow and delete all stored data:

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Quit Dayflow

   • Click the Dayflow menu bar icon
   • Select Quit Dayflow
   • Ensure the app is fully closed

2. Delete the data folder

   rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/Dayflow/
   

   Or use Finder:

   • Press Cmd+Shift+G
   • Navigate to ~/Library/Application Support/
   • Move the Dayflow folder to Trash
   • Empty Trash

3. Relaunch Dayflow

   • The app will create a fresh Dayflow/ directory
   • All previous recordings and timeline data are permanently deleted

This action is permanent and cannot be undone. Make sure you want to delete all timeline data before proceeding.

Data Portability

Exporting Your Timeline

Dayflow supports exporting timeline data:

• Format: Markdown
• How: Use the Export Timeline feature in the app
• Date range: Choose any date range to export
• Use cases: Backup, sharing, personal archives

Accessing Raw Data

Since all data is stored locally in standard formats:

• Video files: Access directly in recordings/ - viewable in any video player
• Database: Open chunks.sqlite with any SQLite tool
• No proprietary formats: Your data isn’t locked into Dayflow

Privacy Notes

Cloud storage caution: If you use iCloud Drive or another cloud sync service, ensure ~/Library/Application Support/ is not synced. Dayflow recordings contain sensitive screen content.

• All data remains on your Mac only
• No automatic cloud uploads or backups
• You control retention through storage limits
• Full deletion is straightforward and complete

Disk Space Monitoring

To check current Dayflow storage usage:

du -sh ~/Library/Application\ Support/Dayflow/

Or check individual components:

# Recordings only
du -sh ~/Library/Application\ Support/Dayflow/recordings/

# Database only
du -sh ~/Library/Application\ Support/Dayflow/chunks.sqlite

Next Steps

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