Offline operation and backups with FotoboxSuite

What works without internet?

The photo booth stores captures locally. Live view, countdown, finished photos, layouts and Windows printing do not themselves need an online gallery connection. They require a working camera, an accessible local printer and all necessary event files on the computer.

How long can the offline licence be used?

From Studio 0.40.19, offline access covers the confirmed plan period. The initial sign-in must be completed on the device and an active licence must have been confirmed by the server. The app shows how long local operation remains available.

A paid or time-limited manual plan remains usable offline until its stored end date. There is no additional 14-day deadline. An explicitly unlimited manual grant remains unlimited. Trial accounts still end at their confirmed trial deadline.

Restarting, signing out or losing the connection does not extend the plan period. A new payment or manual extension must be synced successfully once so the photo booth knows the new period. Older app versions should be updated for this.

A connection error preserves the last confirmed licence status. A confirmed inactive licence or a required version update, however, is not merely an internet outage. Before the event, check the current status and specific end date in Studio.

Prepare online before an event: Sign in on the photo booth, synchronise the active plan and fully load the event, layouts, overlays and any greenscreen backgrounds. Then check that the prepared event starts without internet. A newly installed computer without completed initial sign-in is not yet enabled for offline guest operation.

How does a QR code work without internet?

A QR code contains a link. For an online gallery, the link leads to images available on the server. For local offline sharing, it leads to the gallery service on the photo booth. These two routes have different requirements.

For local sharing, connect the photo booth and guest's phone to, for example, a travel router, a suitable existing Wi-Fi network or a prepared Windows hotspot. The router does not need internet access for this. The phone must be able to reach the computer on the local network. Guest-network isolation, an unsuitable computer address or the Windows firewall can prevent this.

The local gallery runs with Studio and is accessible only while the computer, sharing service and network are available. After leaving this network, a guest cannot simply continue using a locally accessible link at home. Test the Wi-Fi connection and photo access on an actual guest's phone.

Local sharing uses HTTP. It is intended for a controlled local network. Sharing keys, an optional PIN, download permissions and expiry dates limit access. A PIN does not replace an encrypted network connection. The Online gallery is suitable for later delivery over the internet.

What is copied to USB and the cloud?

The additional copies contain the finished individual photos and generated layout from the session. With greenscreen, these are the finished composites. Unchanged camera originals remain in the private local subfolder _originals and are not backed up by this automatic USB or cloud copy.

A photo backup is therefore not a complete backup of the Windows computer, app settings, drivers, licence data or all private files. If you want to keep unchanged camera originals long term, explicitly back them up as well.

USB copies

1. Select the storage device you want under “Save & Share” in Studio and enable the additional USB copy in the event.
2. FotoboxSuite remembers the drive identity. This lets it find the selected storage device again even if its drive letter changes.
3. The file is first copied provisionally. Its size and SHA-256 checksum are then compared with the source. Only a successful check completes the job.
4. If the destination is missing or copying fails, the job is retained for retry. Reconnect the appropriate storage device and check the backup status.

If PIN protection for USB exports is enabled, an encrypted .fbsenc archive containing the finished photos and layout is copied. This requires a PIN stored in the event. The protected export is not a regular ZIP archive. Before delivery, clarify the appropriate way to open it through Support.

Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive

Availability: Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive are configured on the public FotoboxSuite service. Connect the account you want under Save & Share and approve access with the provider. Microsoft work accounts may require approval from the organisation. The portal shows the providers actually available.

Connect accounts for the available providers under “Save & Share” in the portal and enable the additional copies in the event. Several providers can be selected at the same time and have separate jobs. A private cloud copy does not make a guest gallery public.

The photo booth keeps a persistent local job log. Outstanding copies are processed again after connection interruptions or an app restart. Cloud files are forwarded through the FotoboxSuite server to the relevant provider. The status changes to “Completed” only after the provider confirms the file. “Pending” or an active transfer is not a completed backup.

Insufficient storage, an expired account connection or missing authorisation may require intervention. An expired backup deadline or an explicitly deleted event ends the relevant job. Check the status and the actual destination files before cleaning up.

What happens to local photos when a problem occurs?

A failed additional copy does not remove the local source file. Automatic retention clean-up skips session folders while they have outstanding backup jobs. This protection does not continue indefinitely for jobs that are completed, cancelled or expired.

A faulty drive or manually deleting a source file can still prevent a later copy. Checksums demonstrate a successfully verified transfer, not the long-term availability of a storage device. Plan sufficient local storage and an additional copy at an independent destination.

Deleting an online gallery does not automatically remove existing downloads, USB copies or files already created in your external cloud accounts. Account for these copies in your own retention policy and deletion requests. Further details are available in the privacy notices.

Prepare print quotas and several photo booths for offline use

For events with print limits, quotas are allocated to individual photo booths. Distribute quotas in the portal and synchronise devices before offline use. A photo booth cannot obtain additional copies offline from a shared quota that has not yet been allocated.

The print log counts copies submitted to Windows. A print job with an uncertain outcome reserves quota until its state has been clarified. This count does not confirm paper output. Check an uncertain job at the printer before triggering it again.

Prepare for an event without internet

1. Start the app, sign in and check the valid licence status, including plan expiry and offline end date.
2. Synchronise the correct event, all layouts and image files. Allocate print quotas if several devices are involved.
3. Check the camera and printer with a complete workflow. The camera and printer overview helps you assess compatibility.
4. Select the USB destination and verify a completed copy job. Connect cloud destinations in advance and check a test job.
5. Disconnect the internet, restart Studio and run a complete guest workflow, including printing.
6. If sharing locally, connect a phone to the intended Wi-Fi network and test the QR link, including downloading.
7. After the event, restore internet access, check synchronisation and outstanding copies, and only then clean up local files according to your desired retention policy.