Your first archive

Step 01

Prepare your drives

• Install ArchiveHive. Download the current release for Windows 10 or later, 64-bit. Or use macOS 13 or later on Apple silicon. Intel Macs are not supported.
• Connect the source drive. For a retired computer’s system drive, connect it to another computer. A running system changes its drive while it is being captured.
• Connect a separate physical drive for the archive. Another partition on the source drive is not a separate destination. Use a reliable connection and keep your computer powered and awake during capture.
• Install your licence. Open Licence and updates on Windows or Licence on macOS. Choose your licence file, paste its text, or enter an activation code. Only the code option needs to fetch the licence online.

If the source is already failing: when it holds the only copy of something irreplaceable, stop using it and consult a specialist recovery lab before another read. Archive repair fixes stored archive damage; it cannot restore bytes the drive never returned.

Step 02

Choose the source, then the destination

Find the physical drive in the app. Match its model, capacity, and serial number to the drive you connected. Do not rely on a drive letter or the order of the list.

Windows

In Create archive, choose Use this drive.

macOS

In Drives, choose Archive….

Choose a destination folder on your other drive, then give the archive a name you will recognise later. Keep the default recovery protection for your first archive.

Before continuing: the source is the drive you want to preserve; the destination is on a different physical drive. ArchiveHive reads the source without erasing it.

Step 03

Review the plan and create the archive

Review the selected drive, destination, and maximum space required. Resolve any access or destination warnings, then choose Create archive. Raw drive access requires administrator permission; the app will guide you through it.

Allow hours for a large drive. Speed depends on the hardware, connection, contents, and read errors. Keep the drives connected. If you need to stop, choose Pause safely and wait for it to finish pausing before disconnecting anything.

The result is a folder containing compressed image chunks, checksums, recovery data, capture records, and RECOVERY.md. Keep the whole folder together.

At the end: read the capture result, including any unreadable regions. “Finished” does not mean the source returned every sector.

Step 04

Check the archive and inspect your files

In Archives, select the new archive. Use its individual check action first.

Windows

Standard integrity check verifies stored data. Under More actions and what they do, Full image verification also decompresses and checks the full image.

macOS

Verify checks stored data. Full verify also decompresses and checks the full image.

Allow extra time for the deeper check. A successful check means the captured data matches its records. It does not prove that unreadable source sectors were captured; review that record separately.

Next, use Browse files read-only under the same Windows actions menu, or Mount on macOS, to inspect the image. Open a few important files and confirm they are what you expect. Browsing requires support for the filesystem inside the image; encrypted data still needs its passwords or recovery keys.

Before retiring the original: confirm the capture’s read-error record, pass the archive checks, inspect important files, and complete the second copy below.

Step 05

Keep a second copy in another location

1. Use File Explorer or Finder to copy the whole archive folder to another physical drive or independent storage location.
2. Wait for the copy to finish. In Archives, choose Add archive folder… on Windows or Add folder… on macOS and select the parent folder that contains the copied archive. Add a second copy… can also guide you through the copy and registration steps; it does not transfer the files for you.
3. Check the new copy with the individual check action from step 4. Confirm that both locations are present and healthy.

For ongoing maintenance, Check all copies checks and can repair the copies in folders you have added. It is different from an individual read-only check. A listed copy count only covers those registered locations.

Keep copies apart so one failed drive or local accident does not take both. You can enable scheduled checks and optional repair; they run while the computer is awake and the locations are connected.

You now have: two checked copies, the capture records, and recovery instructions kept with the image. Store any passwords or recovery keys securely so you can access encrypted contents later.