Keep an archive of your own videos
A SaveContentMe guide · Updated
Separate originals from publications
Your source file, editing project and publication export are different parts of an archive. A captioned export does not let you revise captions as easily as a project. Keep all three if you plan to revisit the work.
Give each recording session a dated folder with a short name, such as 2026-10-13-interview. Separate originals, project and exports inside it. For a published version, record your post's address and publication date so you can connect the file with the uploaded copy.
Use your account's official export
Get your own YouTube upload through YouTube Studio: Content, the video's menu, Download. Use Google Takeout to archive your account data. Check the official help for export availability and conditions.
A platform export can differ from the camera original. Check its duration, picture and sound. Prefer the original you retained for future editing. Viewing someone else's public video does not replace the platform's and creator's permission to download it.
A backup should survive losing a device
A second folder on the same disk does not help when that disk fails. Keep another copy on a separate device or in the cloud storage you choose. For valuable recordings, a copy away from the main device's location is useful.
After copying, open several backup files and check their beginnings and endings. Confirm that the editing project's referenced media survived. Do not remove your working copy as soon as synchronization starts: wait for completion and verify the result.