| Tool | Use case | |------|----------| | | Simple backup of app packages (no user data). | | wsappdeploy | Restore side of the pair. | | Windows Backup (Settings) | One‑click user app backup (Windows 11 only). | | Manual copy of %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages | Most reliable for data‑only backups. |
Download the latest compiled release from the official WSAppBak Releases GitHub page . Launch WSAppBak.exe via an administrative command prompt or click the executable directly. Paste your copied application path into the prompt and hit enter. 3. Specify Output and Handle Certificates
For developers or archivists, it provides a way to "rip" an app before it is removed from the official store. Troubleshooting:
Once these are provided, it uses the Microsoft Windows Build Appx tools to compile the files into a standard package format. Related Tools and Alternatives wsappbak
When software publishers abandon older UWP games or media applications, they often purge them from online marketplaces. WSAppBak allows users to preserve exact working builds safely on external storage media. Network Sideloading
is a niche utility designed to back up and repackage Windows Store apps into installable
To understand why a wsappbak file appears on your device, you must understand how WhatsApp manages rotation and deduplication. | Tool | Use case | |------|----------| |
To understand why a tool like WSAppBak is necessary, one must look at how application deployment has changed on the Windows platform.
Select the app you wish to back up by following the on-screen prompts.
“I deleted my WhatsApp folder by mistake. A recovery app brought back a file named msgstore.db.crypt12.wsappbak . Can I use it?” Yes, rename to msgstore.db.crypt12 and copy to /WhatsApp/Databases/ . Then reinstall WhatsApp. | | Manual copy of %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages | Most
If you do not want to risk manual renaming, using one of the above tools may offer a safer restore path.
Move an app from one PC to another without using the Microsoft Store. Version Downgrading:
UWP app data is located in: C:\Users\Username\AppData\Local\Packages\[PackageFamilyName] 3. Backup the Folder
WSAppBak/WSAppBak. cs at master · Wapitiii/WSAppBak · GitHub.