HOW TO — 4 / 6

The file map

AKARI Video does not lock your work inside a proprietary app. Everything lives on your PC as ordinary files and folders. This page maps what goes where and who can edit it. It also explains backups and moving your work.

Last updated 2026-08-10 AKARI Video v0.1.6

1 — Three locations

Three locations on your PC, each with a different role

🏭 Application

~/.akari/app/
/Applications/AKARI Video.app

The engine and tools (CLI and app versions). Nobody edits the contents. Updates replace everything. Nothing irreplaceable belongs here.

⚙️ Machine settings

~/.akari/
~/.config/akari-video/

Automatically installed runtimes, update caches, and credentials such as API keys. These hidden folders are managed only by the app. Secrets stay isolated here and never mix with your work.

📦 Your data

~/Akari/

All your work and accumulated memory. You and the AI edit it. Updates leave it intact. This is the only location you need to back up: one self-contained folder.

Think of a game: the application is the console and game software (replaceable), machine settings are the console settings (Wi-Fi and accounts), and your data is the saved game (the part you treasure).

Windows uses the same three-part structure. The default data location is C:\Users\<name>\Akari\. It sits directly under your home folder rather than Documents (ドキュメント), to keep video footage out of OneDrive's automatic synchronization.

2 — Who may write to each file

Files fall into four color groups

Files in your data folder are grouped into four colors by who may write to them. This color system is the foundation of trust in AKARI Video.

Yours — AI never overwrites it Created together — AI drafts, you approve Organized by AI — plans, reports, and indexes Machine-managed — no need to inspect or edit by hand

🟢 Green matters most: the AI never writes to your original footage. 🟣 Purple means coauthoring: the AI types, and you approve. You do not need to write configuration files yourself.

3 — Inside your data folder

The `~/Akari/` tree

The app creates the data location automatically on first launch. You do not need to make the folders yourself. Here is what is inside:

~/Akari/Root of your data

├─ akari.mdYour preferences and rules, refined through conversation

├─ channels/A space for each channel

│ └─ my-channel/

│ ├─ design.mdChannel design document (optional; add it later)

│ └─ videos/Video projects live here

│ └─ 2026-08-03-my-first-video/→ See §4 for contents

├─ library/Assets shared across projects

├─ inbox/Drop-off point for raw footage and quick ideas

└─ .akari/AI memory, style learning, and caches

In everyday use, the app shows Projects (プロジェクト) and Channels (チャンネル). The location itself appears discreetly in settings as Data location: ~/Akari (データの場所: ~/Akari). Its formal name in the specification is “workspace (creator-root).” See the contract on GitHub for details.

4 — Inside one video project

A project is a self-contained box

One video = one folder. Everything it needs is inside, so you can move, share, or delete it as a unit.

2026-08-03-my-first-video/The project container

├─ edit.jsonEditing source of truth (save data), including drag adjustments

├─ captions.jsonSubtitle data

├─ assets/Footage for this video (AI never overwrites it)

├─ planning/Plans and outlines

├─ exports/Finished video files

└─ .akari/Work logs, reports, and caches

Within .akari/, reports/ is designed to be retained: it holds your approval records and verification evidence. Other caches can be regenerated if deleted.

5 — Moving, backups, and importing

One folder keeps everything simple

🚚 Move everything

Copy ~/Akari/ as-is to a new PC or external SSD to move your data. Reinstall the app and point it to that location. Backups work the same way: copy the entire folder.

📦 Projects also work on their own

To try it out, you can create a project in any convenient folder, as in the terminal steps on the Install page. Cross-project features such as style learning and project listings will not apply.

🏠 Import projects later

Projects created elsewhere join your data simply by moving their whole folder into videos/. Just move; no conversion needed. You can also do this with the app's Add to channel (チャンネルに入れる) button.

🔒 Secrets stay separate from your data

Credentials such as API keys live only in machine settings (~/.config/akari-video/). The data folder is designed to be shared or backed up in full without exposing secrets.