Take the work with you.
Your work is not app data. Copy a file, back up a workspace, open it with another application, or leave the desktop entirely. None of those actions requires permission from the app that created the work—or from us.
Copy an ordinary file
Use Files to copy a document to another folder, drive or computer. Native apps keep their work in the workspace filesystem rather than in a private application database. Normal Linux apps may use their own storage conventions; Files shows where their documents live before you copy them.
Where the desktop understands a format such as Markdown, ODT or DOCX, that understanding adds search, history and collaboration. It does not replace the file with an account-bound object.
Export a complete workspace
Open Workspace settings → Export workspace. Choose whether to include only the current files or the files together with their history and workspace metadata.
A complete export contains:
- the workspace's files in documented formats;
- a manifest describing file types, authors and relationships;
- history needed to inspect earlier versions; and
- a readable record of collaborators and permissions.
Secrets, device keys, live invitations and access tokens are excluded. Before the export starts, the desktop shows anything that must be flattened or cannot be represented outside Tilo.
Move your setup as well
Export desktop profile saves your added software, sources, appearance, keybindings and declared app settings. It does not mix those settings with your documents. Import the profile on another machine to reproduce the setup, then move or reconnect the workspaces you want there.
Sync is not a backup
Sync keeps authorised copies current, including deletions and bad edits. A backup is an independent recovery point. Use both when the work matters. The separate Backups app creates a transactional snapshot with a SHA-256 manifest; run Verify after creating it. Restore does not overwrite existing files by default.
Leave shared work safely
Leaving a workspace, removing its local copy and deleting it for everyone are separate actions. If you own the workspace, transfer ownership or end access before deleting it. If you are a member, export the work you are allowed to keep, then choose Leave workspace.
Revoking access stops future reads and accepted changes. It cannot make another person forget files they already received or recall an export. The confirmation says that plainly.
Remove the desktop
Export the workspaces and profile you want, verify the exports on another system, then follow the removal path for the complete operating system or desktop session. Removing an app leaves its documents behind; removing the desktop does not turn its files into unreadable account data.