Where Drag Shelf Files Live and What Happens When You Quit
Understand Historr Drag Shelf storage: referenced originals, temporary generated files, recent shelves, cleanup, and what to save before quitting.
Conceptual illustration of the workflow, not a screenshot of Historr.
The short answerHistorr Drag Shelf references files dropped from disk, while received images, text, links, and generated outputs use local temporary files. Closed populated shelves can remain in Recent Shelves until the app quits. Quitting discards shelves and cleans up their temporary files; save needed outputs to a real folder first.
Which shelf items need saving?
A shelf can show a PDF from Documents beside text dragged from a browser and a ZIP created by Historr. Those items look equally available, but they do not have the same storage history.
The PDF already has an original location. The text and ZIP may exist only as shelf-managed files until you save them elsewhere. Closing a window, clearing a collection, and quitting the app therefore deserve different expectations.
What is the difference between references and temporary files?
Files from disk are referenced in place. Text and links need file representations so they can be dragged into file destinations; Historr creates .txt and .webloc files for them. Raw images, promised files received from other apps, ZIP archives, and resized outputs can also use shelf-owned storage.
That storage is local and temporary, not memory-only. Closing a populated shelf retains it for possible reopening in the current session, subject to the ten-shelf recent limit. Removing an item, clearing its shelf, evicting an old recent shelf, or quitting can clean up the temporary files involved.
How do you preserve outputs before quitting?
Identify what already has a permanent source
A document dragged from a known Finder folder remains there. Keep that source accessible while using the shelf. Do not assume the shelf made a backup simply because a thumbnail is visible.
Save generated or received work
Before ending the session, use Save to Folder on important text, images, resized copies, or ZIP outputs. You can also drag them into an appropriate permanent destination. Open the saved result to verify it exists independently of the shelf.
Distinguish Close from Clear
Close removes the shelf window and can retain a populated collection in Recent Shelves. Clear Shelf removes its entries and deletes temporary files it owns. Reopening a recently closed shelf is not a way to restore items already cleared from it.
Review before a deliberate share
Keeping the shelf local does not stop an action you choose from transmitting its contents. AirDrop, Share, and drops into online services use the destination's behavior. Select only the items intended for that destination.
Quit after verifying saved outputs
When you quit Historr, active and recent shelves are discarded. The app also purges leftover shelf storage on a later launch. The retained source files and copies you deliberately saved elsewhere are the durable items to rely on.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Confusing local temporary storage with memory-only processing or secure erasure.
- Expecting Recent Shelves to recover a collection after quitting Historr.
- Assuming clipboard auto-expiry settings automatically provide the same lifecycle for shelf items.
What survives shelf cleanup?
- Use the shelf for an active task and a real folder for retained work.
- Removing a referenced disk file from a shelf does not delete that original file.
- After OCR, the extracted text is on the system clipboard; shelf cleanup does not by itself erase every place you pasted or saved that text.
Compare your options
| Option | Best for | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Referenced disk file | An item already stored in a normal folder | Shelf is not a backup; its source must remain available |
| Shelf-owned temporary file | Received or generated content during the task | Needs saving before cleanup or app quit |
| Saved destination copy | Work that must outlast Historr's session | Managed by the destination, not the shelf's cleanup |
Put it into practice with Historr
The feature's local processing and temporary lifecycle are separate properties. Neither implies encryption, guaranteed secure deletion, or a backup policy. Use the documentation's actual retention behavior when deciding where to keep important material.
- Collect files & folders
- Images, links & text
- Multiple shelves
- Quick Look
- Save to Folder
- Compress to ZIP
- Resize Images
- Extract Text
Give your next drag a place to land.
Drag Shelf is included in Historr 0.1.5 and later.
Questions, answered.
Will my original files disappear when I quit Historr?
No. Files referenced from disk are not deleted as shelf-owned temporary files. Save generated outputs separately if you need to keep them.
Are Drag Shelves restored after relaunch?
No. Active and recent shelves are session-only and are discarded when Historr quits.
Are shelf files stored only in RAM?
No. Historr creates local temporary backing files for certain received and generated items, including text, links, and archive outputs.
Does closing a shelf immediately erase its temporary files?
A populated closed shelf can stay in Recent Shelves during the session. Clearing or discarding it has a different cleanup behavior from closing its window.
Take it from here
Temporary does not mean unsafe, but it does mean you need a finishing step. Save the outputs that matter and verify the destination before clearing the shelf or quitting Historr.
For supported actions, shortcuts, and settings, see the Drag Shelf documentation.
