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Back Up and Restore Espframe Settings

Export your settings to a JSON file and import them back — useful for backups, migrating to a new device, or cloning a configuration across multiple frames.

Export

  1. Open the device web UI at http://<device-ip>/.
  2. Expand the Backup card.
  3. Click Export. A file named espframe-config-YYYY-MM-DD.json downloads to your browser.

The export captures all user-facing settings from the current session:

CategorySettings
ConnectionImmich server URL, API key
PhotosSmart-filter groups and matching, favorites, rating, location, inclusions and exclusions, dates, orientation, portrait pairing, and display mode
FrequencySlideshow interval, connection timeout
Firmware UpdatesDisplay auto update, update frequency, WiFi firmware auto update
ClockShow clock, format, timezone
Screen BrightnessDaytime brightness, nighttime brightness
Night ScheduleEnable, on time, off time, wake timeout
RotationRotation
Screen ToneTone adjustment, display tone, night tone adjustment, warm tone intensity, warm tone override

Firmware version, update status, sunrise/sunset, and current brightness are not included — these are device-specific or read-only.

Import

  1. Open the device web UI at http://<device-ip>/.
  2. Expand the Backup card.
  3. Click Import and select a previously exported .json file.
  4. Each setting is pushed to the device individually. The page refreshes when complete.

Partial config files work — only settings present in the file are applied; everything else stays unchanged.

Album IDs, Album Labels, Person IDs, Person Labels, Tag IDs, and Tag Labels each must be 255 characters or fewer after trimming, which matches the device storage limit. If an import file exceeds that for any of those fields, the web UI reports the skipped setting and keeps importing other valid fields.

File Format

The export is a standard JSON file with a version field and grouped settings:

json
{
  "version": 3,
  "exported_at": "2026-03-29T12:00:00.000Z",
  "connection": { "immich_url": "...", "api_key": "..." },
  "photos": {
    "source": "Custom",
    "albums_enabled": false,
    "people_enabled": false,
    "tags_enabled": false,
    "inclusion_matching": "Match all enabled groups",
    "favorite_mode": "Any",
    "minimum_rating": "Any",
    "album_order": "Random albums",
    "album_ids": "",
    "album_labels": "",
    "person_ids": "",
    "person_labels": "",
    "tag_ids": "",
    "tag_labels": "",
    "date_filter_enabled": false,
    "date_filter_mode": "Fixed Range",
    "date_from": "",
    "date_to": "",
    "relative_amount": 1,
    "relative_unit": "Years",
    "orientation": "Any",
    "portrait_pairing": true,
    "portrait_pairing_range": "Same Day",
    "portrait_pairs_only": false,
    "display_mode": "Fill"
  },
  "frequency": { "interval": "15 seconds", "conn_timeout": "10 minutes" },
  "firmware_updates": {
    "auto_update": true,
    "update_frequency": "Daily",
    "wifi_auto_update": true
  },
  "clock": { "show": true, "format": "24 Hour", "timezone": "..." },
  "screen": {
    "brightness_day": 100,
    "brightness_night": 75,
    "schedule_enabled": false,
    "schedule_on_hour": 6,
    "schedule_off_hour": 23,
    "schedule_wake_timeout": 60,
    "base_tone_enabled": false,
    "base_tone": 0,
    "warm_tones_enabled": false,
    "warm_tone_intensity": 50,
    "warm_tone_override": false,
    "rotation": "0"
  }
}

You can edit the file by hand before importing — useful for scripting or bulk-configuring devices.

Frame names

Firmware with frame naming includes optional identity: { "name": "Living Room" } metadata in the existing version 3 backup format. Named frames download backups as <hostname>-config-YYYY-MM-DD.json; unnamed frames retain the default filename.

When importing a backup containing a name, Also restore frame name is unchecked by default. Keep it unchecked to preserve the destination frame's name, or check it to restore the saved name. The hostname always uses the destination frame's own MAC suffix. After restoring a name, use Device → System → Frame Name to review the new address and choose Save & Restart. Restoring an empty name restores firmware defaults. Backups without identity metadata continue to import as before.

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