KeePass

KeePass
Password Safe


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Help for ABP
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Plugin Development
Plugin Framework for KeePass Test Plugin (PFK)


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Command Line Arguments

A command line argument is a parameter that is passed to the KeePass.exe executable upon start-up. Currently, ABP accepts only one kind of command line argument, the Backup.Path command line argument described on this page. However, for ABP to perform useful work, KeePass must also be passed a KeePass command line argument for the initial database – the password database file to be opened at start-up. See KeePass Help for details.

Backup.Path Command Line Argument

The Backup.Path command line argument specifies a path to which the password database file will be backed up (copied). The Backup.Path argument is written in the form

/backup.path:BACKUP_PATH

where BACKUP_PATH is the absolute or relative path. For example:

/backup.path:D:\DatabaseBackup\

Note that the backup filename cannot be specified. ABP copies the password database file to the same filename.

Quotation Marks: If BACKUP_PATH contains embedded blanks, it must be enclosed in quotation marks. For example:

/backup.path:"C:\Documents and Settings/Gertrude\Application Data"

Separators: Separators can be “\” or “/”. The path can end with a separator, or not. However, ABP transforms all paths to absolute paths with “\” separators, adding a terminating “\” separator if not present.

Prefix: The first, or “flag”, character can be “-” instead of “/”.

Case: All characters in the Backup.Path command line argument are case-insensitive.

Access Through Path: The path specified in a Backup.Path command line argument must exist before KeePass is invoked; ABP will not create it. A file with the filename of the password database file may exist at the backup location, or not. If it exists, it will be overwritten during backup actions.

Multiple Paths: Any number of backup paths can be specified using multiple instances of the Backup.Path command line argument. All paths operate independently of each other. The order in which backup copies are written is indeterminate, and unrelated to the command line argument order. In fact, copies can even be written simultaneously, depending upon the host system capabilities.

Configuration Restrictions: Because ABP preserves the file name of the initial database in the backup copies, no two paths (whether backup or initial database) should represent the same folder.