# Backup, export, or audit trail? Getting data out of Content Central

Four different things hide behind 'I need a backup of everything' — a SQL database backup, a document download, a metadata CSV, and the audit history. Pick the right one in two minutes.

Product: content-central · Versions: 7.x · Audience: system-administrator · Time: 5 minute read · Last verified: 2026-08-30

Canonical: https://help.ademero.com/content-central/administration/backup-export-or-audit-trail

**Content Central has four different ways to get data out — a SQL database backup, a document download, a metadata (CSV) export, and the on-screen audit history — and this page tells you which one you actually need before you spend an afternoon producing the wrong one.**

## Start with what the data is *for*

"I need a backup of everything" almost always means one of these four:

- **"We need to restore Content Central if the server dies."** You want a **SQL database backup** plus a copy of the document storage folders. Nothing else on this page can restore the system.
- **"An auditor, a departing department, or a records request needs to *read* the documents."** You want a **document download** — the actual files — usually paired with a **metadata CSV** so each file's field values travel with it.
- **"We need a spreadsheet of what's in the system."** You want a **metadata export**: field values, one row per document, no files attached.
- **"We need to see who did what, and when."** You want the **Event Viewer** — the user-activity audit history. It is separate from every export above: exporting documents and metadata tells you nothing about who viewed, searched, or deleted them.

> **IMPORTANT:** A SQL backup file (`.bak`) is not human-readable. You cannot open it, read documents out of it, or hand it to an auditor — it only restores into SQL Server. If someone needs to *read* the data, they need an export, not a backup.

## Side by side

|  | SQL database backup | Document download | Metadata export | Audit history (Event Viewer) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **What it contains** | Every record about your documents, users, and settings — but not the document files themselves | The document files, as stored | Field values, one row per document | User activity: logins, searches, captures, deletes, emails, faxes, and more |
| **What it can't do** | Be read by a human; include the files on disk | Carry field values or activity history | Include the files or any activity history | Be downloaded — it is viewed on screen only |
| **Restores into Content Central?** | Yes, together with the document storage folders | No — it's a copy for use outside the system | No | No — view-only |
| **Typical format** | `.bak` file | Original files | CSV (Excel export available in some views) | On-screen list with filters |
| **Who runs it** | A server administrator, with SQL Server tools | Any user with access to the documents | Any user from search results; an admin for scheduled reports | Users with the **Event Viewer** permission (admins see all users' activity) |

## Where each one lives

**SQL database backup.** Taken with SQL Server tools on the server — Content Central does not back up its own database. Your documents are files on disk, so the `.bak` alone is not a complete restore point; the full guide covers both halves: [Back up your Content Central database](/content-central/administration/back-up-your-content-central-database).

> **NOTE:** Content Central can mirror every file write to a secondary storage location when that option is enabled in system settings. That's redundancy, not a backup — a bad delete is mirrored too, so you still need real backups.

**Document download.** Users with the Download permission can save a document's file from search results. For anything beyond a handful of documents, the supported bulk path is a workflow export — the step-by-step is in [Export documents and metadata](/content-central/administration/export-documents-and-metadata).

**Metadata export.** Run a search, then click **Export CSV** in the results header. The export covers the complete result set — up to 50,000 documents — not just the rows loaded on screen.

> **NOTE:** Large exports run in the background: you'll see an **Export Queued** notification, and when the export finishes you receive an internal message with a download link rather than an immediate download. That's expected, not an error — but download promptly, because the link expires.

Depending on the view, an Excel export may be available alongside CSV. For a recurring extract, an administrator can set up **Report Templates** (**Administration > Report Templates**) to generate CSV reports automatically on a schedule.

> **NOTE:** Report Templates are scheduled, aggregate extracts. A separate admin feature — export-data templates (**Administration > Workflow > Export Templates**) — exports metadata per document when workflow events fire: useful for integrations, overkill for a one-time archive. For a one-time pull, the search **Export CSV** is usually all you need.

**Audit history.** Open **Event Viewer** from your user menu. Access requires the **Event Viewer** permission: users with it see their own activity, and administrators get additional filters — by **Action**, by user, and by **From**/**To** dates — across everyone's activity.

Every auditable action is recorded automatically — logging can't be switched off per action type — but there is no export or download button: the audit log is reviewed on screen.

> **WARNING:** Audit retention is controlled by **Purge Days** (**Admin > System Settings > Event Log**). Empty means events are kept indefinitely; a number there permanently deletes anything older than that many days. Check this setting *before* you need months of history, not after.

## Plan the export before you run it

Five questions decide whether an export is usable or gets re-run. Agree on them with whoever receives the data:

- [ ] **Catalogs** — which catalogs (and document types) are in scope?
- [ ] **Date range** — from when to when, and what happens to documents that fall outside it?
- [ ] **Metadata fields** — exactly which fields must appear in the CSV?
- [ ] **Delivery** — where does the output go, who picks it up, and is it large enough that it will arrive in your **Messages** inbox?
- [ ] **Validation sample** — pick 5–10 documents you know well and confirm they appear in the export with the right files and field values, *before* declaring it complete.

## What's next

- [Export documents and metadata](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/administration/export-documents-and-metadata)
- [Back up your Content Central database](https://help.ademero.com/content-central/administration/back-up-your-content-central-database)