Documentation

What is Permanent Media Backup?

When you save a post from Instagram, Threads, TikTok, or Facebook, the images and videos in that post are served through the platform's CDN (Content Delivery Network). These CDN links are temporary — they expire after hours, days, or weeks depending on the platform.

Without backup

Once a CDN link expires, the image or video in your saved post stops loading. The text content and metadata remain, but the visual media is gone. Re-saving the post won't help if the original content has been deleted by the author.

The Problem: Expiring Media Links

Social media platforms rotate their CDN URLs regularly as a security measure. This means:

  • Instagram — Image and video URLs typically expire within 24–72 hours
  • Threads — Same CDN as Instagram, similar expiry windows
  • TikTok — Video URLs are session-bound and expire within hours
  • Facebook — Image and video URLs expire within days to weeks

Platforms like X (Twitter), Reddit, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Bluesky, and YouTube use permanent media URLs that don't expire. Posts from these platforms are not affected.

The Solution: Permanent Media Backup

With Permanent Media Backup enabled, Savebase automatically creates a secure, permanent copy of every image, video, and author profile picture from your saved posts. These copies are stored in encrypted cloud storage under your personal account and are accessible only to you through signed, time-limited URLs.

The backup happens silently in the background. You save posts exactly as before — the extension captures the media and author details. If you have backup enabled, the system queues the media for permanent storage. Within seconds, the temporary CDN links are replaced with permanent ones that never expire.

Supported Platforms

PlatformMedia Backed UpExpires Without Backup?
InstagramImages, videos, carousels, author avatarYes (24–72 hours)
ThreadsImages, videos, carousels, quote post media, author avatarYes (24–72 hours)
TikTokVideos, thumbnails, author avatarYes (hours)
FacebookImages, videos, carousels, author avatarYes (days–weeks)
X, Reddit, Pinterest, etc.Not needed — URLs are permanentNo