Project-folder rollback checkpoints for Ableton Live.
Ableton Project Checkpoints is a small Windows helper for making fast, timestamped rollback points while working in Ableton Live.
Use it before risky edits, big arrangement changes, resampling, flattening tracks, sound-design experiments, or anything else you might want to undo cleanly. After saving or collecting the project, press F8, write a quick note, and the script copies the current Ableton project into a timestamped checkpoints folder inside that same project.
If the experiment works, keep going. If it does not, open the copied .als file inside the timestamped checkpoint folder and you are back at the project state from the moment you pressed F8.
Ableton Project Checkpoints is not an instant in-session recall tool. Restoring a checkpoint means opening the copied .als file from the timestamped checkpoint folder.
Ableton Project Checkpoints is for producers who want quick project-level rollback points before destructive or messy changes.
It is useful when you are about to resample, flatten tracks, rearrange a project, try a risky sound-design idea, or make changes that may be annoying to undo later.
Unlike an incremental .als save, this creates a timestamped checkpoint copy of the project folder, plus a note, inside that project's own checkpoints directory.
This is not an instant mixer, device, or performance recall system. It does not switch states inside the currently open Ableton set.
Restoring a checkpoint means opening the copied .als file from the timestamped checkpoint folder.
- Works only while Ableton Live is the active window.
- Press
F8to checkpoint the current project. - Prompts for a short note describing what you are about to try.
- Detects the active Ableton set from the window title.
- Finds the matching
.alsfile under your configured project search root. - Copies the project folder into
checkpoints/YYYY-MM-DD_HH-mm-ss. - Writes a
note.txtfile with the timestamp, project name, source path, and your note. - Skips existing
checkpointsfolders so checkpoints do not recursively copy themselves.
Each project keeps its own rollback history. You do not end up with one giant central checkpoint directory full of unrelated projects.
My Song/
My Song.als
Samples/
checkpoints/
2026-07-04_14-32-10/
2026-07-04_15-08-44/
2026-07-04_16-21-03/
Ableton Project Checkpoints copies the current project folder. For the most complete rollback point, run File > Collect All and Save in Ableton before pressing F8, especially after adding new samples, recordings, resampled audio, or external media.
If you have not done that and the checkpoint needs those files included, cancel the checkpoint, run Collect All and Save, then press F8 again.
If nothing new has been added since the last time you collected and saved, you usually do not need to run Collect All and Save again before every checkpoint. In that case, make sure the set is saved, then press F8.
Ableton Project Checkpoints does not automate Collect All and Save. That keeps the tool predictable and avoids brittle menu/dialog automation across Ableton versions and setups.
F8: create a checkpoint.Shift+F8: clear the cached project folder.
The hotkeys are active only while Ableton Live is the active window, so F8 and Shift+F8 keep their normal behavior elsewhere.
- Windows
- Ableton Live
- AutoHotkey v2
- PowerShell
Ableton Project Checkpoints uses AutoHotkey v2 for the F8 and Shift+F8 hotkeys. AutoHotkey v1 is not compatible with this script.
Download or clone this repo, then run the installer once from the project folder:
.\Install-AbletonCheckpoints.ps1If you are not comfortable with PowerShell, right-click Install-AbletonCheckpoints.ps1 and choose Run with PowerShell.
The installer asks where your Ableton projects live and creates or updates a Desktop shortcut named Ableton Live with Project Checkpoints.
Use that shortcut instead of launching Ableton directly. The generated shortcut starts Ableton Live and the AutoHotkey checkpoint helper together. The helper stays running while Ableton is open, then the launcher stops it after Ableton closes.
The generated shortcut uses the default PowerShell or Windows script icon. If you want it to look like Ableton, right-click the shortcut, choose Properties, select Change Icon, and pick Ableton Live's icon or any custom icon you prefer.
By default, the script searches recursively under:
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Ableton Projects
That default works for simple setups where all Ableton projects live under one folder.
For larger libraries, it is better to point the script at the most specific folder you are actively using. This keeps project detection faster and reduces duplicate matches when different projects or years contain Ableton sets with the same name.
If you organize projects by year, point the search root at the current year:
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Ableton Projects\2026
You do not have to organize by year. You can point Ableton Project Checkpoints at any folder structure that makes sense for your setup, such as:
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Ableton Projects\Active
D:\Music\Ableton Projects
E:\Sessions\Client Work
The installer stores your choice in the user environment variable ABLETON_CHECKPOINT_PROJECT_ROOT. You normally do not need to edit that manually.
You can run Install-AbletonCheckpoints.ps1 again at any time to change where the script looks for Ableton projects.
Use this when a new year starts, you move your Ableton projects to a different drive, you want to focus on a smaller active folder, or you switch between personal projects, client work, and archive folders.
For example, if you organize projects by year:
Documents\Ableton Projects\2026
Documents\Ableton Projects\2027
When 2027 starts:
- Right-click
Install-AbletonCheckpoints.ps1. - Choose Run with PowerShell.
- Choose the option to select a specific project folder.
- Pick
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Ableton Projects\2027. - Choose yes when asked to create or update the Desktop shortcut.
- Keep using the same
Ableton Live with Project Checkpointsshortcut.
The shortcut does not need to change unless you move the Ableton Project Checkpoints tool folder itself. If you do move this folder, run the installer again and choose to update the shortcut.
Checkpoints live inside the project they came from:
My Song/
My Song.als
Samples/
checkpoints/
2026-07-04_14-32-10/
My Song.als
Samples/
note.txt
2026-07-04_15-08-44/
My Song.als
Samples/
note.txt
This keeps each project's rollback points with that project. Checkpoints are full copied project states, not diffs.
Ableton Project Checkpoints can run alongside your other AutoHotkey scripts. The launcher starts this project's AbletonCheckpoint.ahk helper and stops only that helper after Ableton closes.
Launching the shortcut again replaces any previous instance of this same helper script, but it does not intentionally close unrelated AutoHotkey scripts.
If you already use F8 or Shift+F8 in another AutoHotkey script while working in Ableton, change the hotkey lines near the top of AbletonCheckpoint.ahk:
F8:: {
+F8:: {This project requires AutoHotkey v2. AutoHotkey v1 is not compatible with this script.
- Large projects may take time and disk space to copy.
- This is not a replacement for full backups.
- This is a project rollback tool, not an instant in-session mixer or device recall system.
- Checkpoints copy the project folder as it exists on disk. Use Collect All and Save before
F8when you need external samples copied into the project. - Project detection depends on the Ableton window title matching an
.alsfile under your configured project search root. - If multiple matching sets are found, the script asks you to select the correct project folder.
- If no matching project is found, the script asks you to select the project folder manually and caches that choice until you clear it or close the helper.
MIT