GUARD is a portable, fully accessible backup and data-protection utility for Windows. It backs up your chosen folders to any destination (a local drive, an external disk, or a network share), creates full bare-metal system images with Windows' built-in wbadmin, and keeps an inventory of your installed apps so they are easy to reinstall after a clean OS install - optionally with their settings.
The release ships as a self-contained portable folder with the .NET 10 runtime and Windows App SDK bundled in, so there is nothing to install. GUARD is built screen-reader-first, with native dark-mode theming, and keeps itself current with a built-in checksum-verified updater.
Features include additive and mirror copy modes (built on Robocopy), one-tick and custom exclusions, dated backup versions with pruning, a dry-run preview, scheduled and run-on-connect backups, scheduled or on-demand system images with a recovery-media wizard, and app-list export/reinstall through winget.
Publisher’s description
What is GUARD?
GUARD by PlanetLinux98 is open-source Windows software in the backup & recovery category. It is written in C#.
Installation and requirements
The publisher provides Portable installers for Any CPU Windows. It runs without installation (portable). It needs Windows 10 1809 or newer.
Updates and version history
The current version is 0.5.5, released on August 14, 2026. The version history goes back to July 9, 2026: 5 releases, all linked to the official files.
Popularity and file types
The source code on GitHub (PlanetLinux98/guard) has 1 stars. Similar programs include restic, UrBackup Client and Duplicacy Command Line Version.
Project description on GitHub: “Protect your Windows PC data and make it easy to recover.”
Pros / Cons
Pros
- Open source: the code can be inspected and built by anyone
- Portable: runs without installation
In short: GUARD is an open-source backup & recovery tool for Any CPU PCs.
Is GUARD safe to download?
- The file is served by github.com, the publisher’s own domain
- The download link uses HTTPS
- A SHA256 hash is published, so you can verify the file:
40F170D465598E03A1F8140AF13CEECCE37DB0C0378D5457E47DD410DF4AB3C8· Open the VirusTotal report for this hash - The link has not been checked yet
- The source code is public
- ExeAtlas does not host, wrap or modify installers
Related guide: How to check a file’s SHA256 hash on Windows
Recent versions
All 5 versions ›| Version | Date | Size | Files |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.5.5Latest | August 14, 2026 | — | Any CPU ZIP |
| 0.5.4 | August 6, 2026 | — | Any CPU ZIP |
| 0.5.3 | August 1, 2026 | — | Any CPU ZIP |
| 0.5.2 | July 22, 2026 | — | Any CPU ZIP |
| 0.5.1 | July 9, 2026 | — | Any CPU ZIP |
Install from the command line
Silent install ›winget install --id PlanetLinux98.GUARD -eRelated guide: How to use winget: install and update apps
Information
- Publisher
- PlanetLinux98
- Category
- Backup & recovery
- Licence
- MIT
- Price
- Free
- Source code
- github.com/PlanetLinux98/guard
- Written in
- C#
- Requires
- Windows 11 / 10 (Windows 10 1809+)
- Architecture
- Any CPU
- Installer
- Portable
- Version
- 0.5.5
- Released
- August 14, 2026
- Added to the catalogue
- July 9, 2026
- Versions listed
- 5
- GitHub stars
- 1
- Website
- github.com
- winget ID
- PlanetLinux98.GUARD
Ratings and reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to rate it.
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Frequently asked questions
Is GUARD free?
Yes. GUARD is open-source software under the MIT licence.
Is GUARD safe to download?
The download comes from github.com, which belongs to the publisher; ExeAtlas does not host or change the file. Compare its SHA256 hash with the one shown here, or open the VirusTotal report for that hash.
How do I install GUARD with winget?
Open PowerShell or Windows Terminal and run the winget command shown on this page. winget downloads the official installer and checks its SHA256 hash before running it.
Which Windows versions does GUARD support?
The installer requires Windows 10 1809 or newer and is available for Any CPU.
Does GUARD run on ARM (Windows on Arm)?
The installer is architecture-neutral.
Where can I download an older version of GUARD?
The versions page lists all 5 versions with links to their official installer files, back to July 9, 2026.
Can I use GUARD without administrator rights?
Yes, it is portable: unpack and run it.
What are alternatives to GUARD?
restic, UrBackup Client, Duplicacy Command Line Version, Veeam Agent for Microsoft Windows and TeraCopy. The alternatives page compares them.
