TBB Backup 0.5.2: start with Windows, stay in the tray

TBB Backup 0.5.2 adds Start with Windows in Settings. It is off by default. Turn it on to launch the app into the system tray when you sign in. Turn it off at any time; uninstall also removes the startup entry. Double-click the orange TBB icon to reopen.

## Tray and background schedules
The tray setup now uses explicit menu actions and window hide/restore controls. A first-use notice explains that the app keeps running. The menu opens TBB Backup, cancels the current backup with cleanup or exits when no operation is running.

Schedules support daily, weekdays, weekly, monthly, specific dates and intervals. Windows Task Scheduler checks due jobs while you are signed in, even with the desktop app closed. Missed jobs catch up, failures retry after about 15 minutes, and jobs run one at a time. Pause one or all schedules and review the next run. These schedules do not wake a sleeping PC or run after sign-out.

## Progress and cancellation
Backups show progress, file and byte counts, elapsed time and estimated remaining time. Scanning begins with Calculating. Compression, verification and network access can change the estimate.

Cancel & clean up stops the backup and removes its incomplete output while protecting completed versions. Successful runs record a summary of file count, size, duration, exclusions and verification.

## Storage and archives
Clean up storage provides a preview before deleting unused content. Retained and pinned versions stay protected. Nested TBB-Backups folders, System Volume Information and $RECYCLE.BIN are excluded automatically.

7-Zip is bundled: no separate installation is needed. Optional RAR creation requires your installed WinRAR/Rar.exe, detected in common locations or selected with the custom tool picker. NAS/network destinations are optional and can use Windows authentication and access testing.

## Install and upgrade
Close TBB Backup before installing. Existing jobs and versions remain compatible. Setup checks prerequisites and attempts supported missing Microsoft runtime installation. First installation downloads the verified private Python runtime; no separate Python installation is needed.

The incomplete earlier 0.5.0 installer was rebuilt. This 0.5.2 installer passed its NSIS declared-length and CRC checks before upload.

## Validation and current limits
46 backend tests ran: 45 passed, and one native archive-tool test was skipped because its executable was unavailable. Browser checks cover the new startup toggle as well as navigation, restore browsing, job editing, reordering and updates. Native Windows sign-in startup, tray, Task Scheduler, prerequisite installation and WinRAR acceptance testing remains limited. Test a small backup and restore on your setup first.

[Download TBB Backup 0.5.2](/apps/tbb-backup) · [Startup, schedules and troubleshooting](/guides/tbb-backup-manage-and-troubleshoot)