===How can I move my Zotero library to a different computer?===

==Option A: Copy the Library Folder==

The most reliable way to move your entire library to another machine is to copy the Zotero data folder from your Firefox profile on the first machine to the Firefox profile on your new machine.

To locate your Zotero data, open the Zotero preferences under the Actions (gear icon) menu and click “Show data directory” in the Advanced tab. In most cases, you will find your Zotero files here:

On a Mac: \\
''/Users/<username>/Library/Application Support/Firefox/Profiles/<randomstring>/zotero''

On Linux: \\
''/home/<username>/.mozilla/firefox/<randomstring>.default/zotero''

On Windows 2000/XP: \\
''C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<randomstring>\zotero''

On Windows Vista/7: \\
''C:\Users\<User Name>\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<randomstring>\zotero''

Be sure to close Firefox on both machines before copying the Zotero files.

In addition to the above method, you can also [[kb:using_multiple_computers|use a USB drive to sync your data between computers]]. Finally, Windows users can also transfer their entire Firefox profile with the tool [[http://mozbackup.jasnapaka.com|MozBackup]].

==Option B: Enable Zotero Sync==

You can also automatically [[:sync#syncing|sync]] your library between multiple computers via the Zotero server. Note that files (attachments such as PDFs, snapshots, etc.) are synced separately from data, via either [[:storage|Zotero File Storage]] or [[:sync#file_syncing|WebDAV]].

==Warning==

Exporting and importing your library (for instance via Zotero RDF) is not a recommended option. None of the available export formats allow for a complete transfer of your library data.

{{tag>kb}}