ChatGPT or Claude edited the wrong file. Get it back in one click.

CoworkRestore quietly saves versions of the Mac folders you give to AI tools. See what changed, restore one file or roll back the whole folder - without learning Git.

Example conversation: Q3 launch plan

Claude: Updated the pricing section with the new tiers. While I was in there I tightened the exec summary intro so it matches the new tone, and reorganized the roadmap into quarters. Reads a lot more consistent now.

User: wait WHAT you rewrote the exec summary?? i spent all week on that opening

Claude: You're right - I edited the exec summary intro, not just the pricing table. I don't have a way to restore the previous version from my end. If you have the original wording saved somewhere, I can put it back.

User: ok please tell me there's a way to get it back

Claude: Not from my side - I don't retain prior versions of files I've edited. If the folder isn't backed up separately, the earlier exec summary is gone.

Download for Mac
First project free · Local-only · No account required
Works with the AI tools you already use

One safety net for ChatGPT Work and Claude Cowork.

  • ChatGPT Work

    Protect folders used by ChatGPT Work

    Add the same folder to CoworkRestore, choose automatic folder watching, then open it in ChatGPT Work. CoworkRestore saves versions as file changes settle.

    No ChatGPT extension or MCP setup required.

    Set up ChatGPT Work protection
  • Claude Cowork

    Cleaner snapshots around Claude Cowork tasks

    Use automatic folder watching, or install the existing Claude integration so CoworkRestore can create save points before and after a task.

    Folder watching works with or without the integration.

    Set up Claude Cowork protection

Automatic folder watching also works alongside Codex, Claude Code, Cursor and other tools that edit local folders.

Every captured change is reviewable and reversible.

CoworkRestore records versions automatically while an AI tool works in your folder. Open the timeline, inspect what changed, and restore only what you want. Five minutes to set up; under 60 seconds to add each new folder after.

Screenshot of the CoworkRestore Mac app. Left column: a chronological list of snapshots for a project folder, each row tagged 'auto' (filesystem change), 'claude' (Claude finished a task), or 'manual' (you pressed 'Snapshot now'), with a timestamp and short label. Right pane: the selected snapshot's summary paragraph followed by a red/green line diff of every file that changed. A 'Restore' control sits at the top of the diff pane; a smaller 'Undo restore' becomes available after any restore, because restores are themselves snapshots.
Screenshot of the CoworkRestore Mac app window, annotated with 5 numbered callouts that mark distinct regions of the interface:
  1. Pick a folder once. Add the folder Claude is editing. Choose auto-watch (every change) or let Claude Cowork trigger snapshots between tasks. Pause anytime.
  2. Snapshots land themselves. Every change shows up here, tagged auto, claude, or manual so you can tell what made it. Browse by time, search by content.
  3. See what changed, see what will change. Claude provides the summary, you can see what changed in the snapshot, or what would change if you were to undo.
  4. Restore in one click. Restore one file, undo just one change, view the file as it was. Every restore is itself reversible.
  5. See exactly what changed. Text show the lines that came and went. Spreadsheets, documents, and PDFs open in their usual Mac app - so you can put the previous version next to the current one and compare. No guessing.

  • Native macOS app

    Snapshots happen in the background - you won't feel them.

  • Data never leaves your Mac

    No cloud sync, no servers, no accounts. We can't see your files.

  • Signed and notarized

    Apple-notarized build with automatic updates. Install with confidence, stay current effortlessly.

Download for Mac
First project free. Pay €19 once for unlimited projects. Signed & notarised
Two ways to protect a folder

Pick a mode once. Then forget it’s there.

  • General purpose

    Watch every file change

    • Works with ChatGPT Work and any application that edits the folder.
    • Requires no AI extension or setup inside the tool.
    • Saves a snapshot once file activity settles.

    Best all-round choice, and the one to use with ChatGPT Work.

  • Claude Cowork only

    Agent-triggered snapshots

    • Available today through the Claude Cowork integration.
    • Creates clearer before-task and after-task save points.
    • Adds a small extension CoworkRestore installs into Claude for you.

    Best when you mainly work inside Claude Cowork.

With Claude Cowork, every task is bracketed by a snapshot.

Install the optional Claude integration and Claude takes a save point before each task and another when it’s done - automatically, with nothing for you to remember. Prefer not to? Plain folder watching covers Claude too.

What you’re watching
  1. You send Claude a task on a project folder - here, an edit to the style of a transactions report.
  2. The instant Claude picks up the task, CoworkRestore is pinged and saves a 'pre-task' snapshot.
  3. Claude runs the edit and modifies the file.
  4. When Claude reports done, CoworkRestore is pinged again and lands a 'post-task' snapshot.
  5. The two snapshots appear next to each other. You can diff them, or restore either one, from the menu-bar app.
No developer skills needed

Version history without becoming a developer.

Developers get an undo button for their files from a tool called Git. It’s powerful and it’s not going anywhere - but it wasn’t built for people who work in documents, spreadsheets and research files. CoworkRestore gives you the same safety net, without the learning curve.

Under the hood your history is kept in that same standard format, so it’s as durable as the tooling professionals rely on - you just never have to see it.

What you skip
  • No terminal commands
  • No commits to remember
  • No branches to manage
What you do instead
  • Select a folder once
  • Browse changes by time
  • Restore one file with a visible action
The moments this is for

An AI mostly did the job - and changed one thing you needed.

Clear about what it does

What CoworkRestore is - and what it isn’t.

A safety net is only useful if you know its edges. Here’s the honest version, so nothing about CoworkRestore surprises you later.

CoworkRestore is
  • Automatic local version history for the folders you choose
  • A way to inspect exactly what an AI changed
  • A way to restore a single file, or roll back the whole folder
  • A safety layer for AI-assisted file work on your Mac
CoworkRestore is not
  • A cloud backup or an off-site copy
  • Able to recover files it never captured
  • A way to recover unsaved changes held only inside an app
  • A guarantee that an AI task will be correct
  • Necessary for every experienced Git user

The questions you might ask.

Something else on your mind? Ask us directly.

Does CoworkRestore work with ChatGPT Work?
Yes - through automatic folder watching. You add the same local folder to CoworkRestore and to ChatGPT Work. When ChatGPT Work edits files in that folder, CoworkRestore saves a version once the changes settle, so you can review them and restore whatever you want. It works alongside ChatGPT Work; it isn't a plugin inside it.
Does ChatGPT need an extension or MCP server?
No. Automatic folder watching doesn't require any configuration inside ChatGPT. You point CoworkRestore at the folder, choose folder-watching mode, and that's it - nothing to install into ChatGPT Work.
Can ChatGPT Work trigger before-and-after snapshots like Claude can?
Not currently. There's no dedicated ChatGPT Work integration that creates explicit pre-task and post-task save points. ChatGPT Work changes are captured through folder watching instead, which saves a version whenever file activity settles. The before-and-after task snapshots are available today through the Claude Cowork integration.
Does it protect Google Docs or Google Sheets?
CoworkRestore protects local files saved inside the folders it watches. Cloud-native documents that live in Google Docs or Sheets should use their platform's own version history. If those files are also exported or synced as local files in a watched folder, those local copies are captured.
Does it work with Codex?
Yes - automatic folder watching can record local changes made by Codex. That said, Codex is developer-focused and includes Git and worktree features, so experienced Git users may already have the version history they need and may not need CoworkRestore.
Does it replace Time Machine?
No. Time Machine solves the broader problem of backing up your whole Mac. CoworkRestore gives you a fast, per-folder timeline and selective file restore for the folders you hand to AI tools. Keep using Time Machine, iCloud, or your regular backup for everything else.
How does it decide when to take a snapshot?
You pick one of two modes per folder. “Only when Claude asks” lets Claude ping CoworkRestore before and after each task, so you get clean save points bracketing every change - this one needs a small extension we install into Claude Desktop for you. “Watch the folder for any change” quietly watches the folder and saves whenever edits settle, with no extension required. In either mode, you can also hit “Snapshot now” yourself anytime you want to mark a save point.
How long does setup take?
About five minutes the first time - download, drag to Applications, and let it install its small Claude Desktop extension. After that, adding a new project folder takes under a minute: pick the folder, choose a mode, done.
Does Claude need to know about CoworkRestore?
Not required, but recommended. CoworkRestore runs fine on its own. But if you let it install its small extension into Claude Desktop, Claude can ping it before and after each task - giving you the cleanest possible save points bracketing every change. Either way, you never have to mention CoworkRestore in your prompts; it stays out of the way and handles save points in the background.
Is it free?
Yes - free, forever, for one tracked project. When you first install CoworkRestore you get a 7-day window with unlimited projects so you can see how it fits your work; after that, the app keeps protecting your one project at no cost. If you want to track more than one project at a time, a one-time licence unlocks unlimited.
Where do snapshots live?
On your Mac, in a folder of your choice. Nothing leaves your machine. You can store them inside the project, or outside it - and outside is the safer default, because a folder delete can't take the snapshots with it.
How much disk space will snapshots use?

Less than you’d expect. CoworkRestore only stores what actually changed between save points, not full copies of the folder each time. Text-heavy work compresses beautifully; already-compressed binaries (Office documents, PDFs, images) grow faster because there’s less room for the underlying engine to squeeze them.

Rough guide - 100 MB of source material, after 500 save points:

Markdown, code, plain text~180 MB
Office docs (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx)~400 MB
PDFs, JPEG/PNG images~600 MB

Most folders never hit 500 save points - that’s about a month of heavy Claude use, or a year of lighter, manual editing. Snapshots can live on an external drive if you’d rather not spend the space on your main disk.

What if the project folder gets deleted?
If snapshots are stored outside the project, they're untouched - whether Claude removed the folder, you deleted it by accident, or something else did. Open CoworkRestore, point it at where the folder used to be, and restore.
What if a single file gets deleted or overwritten by mistake?
It's still in your save points. Open CoworkRestore, scroll back to a save point from before the change, and restore just that one file - the rest of your folder stays exactly as it is now. Same story whether Claude removed it, another app overwrote it, or you deleted it yourself. Once a file has been in a save point, it's recoverable.
Is CoworkRestore a backup for my project folder?
No - and it isn't meant to replace one. CoworkRestore is a safety net for the folder you've handed to AI: it captures save points between changes so you can undo, compare, and reverse anything Claude does. Keep using Time Machine, iCloud, or your regular backup for everything else on your Mac.
What's actually running under the hood?
CoworkRestore is backed by Git - the most trusted version control system in the world. Your history is as durable as the tooling professional developers stake their work on every day.
What happens to my snapshots if CoworkRestore is ever discontinued?

You keep them, and you can still open them. Under the hood, your save points are stored as a standard Git repository on your own Mac - the same format professional developers have relied on for two decades. Even without the app, any Git tool can browse or restore from that history. Concretely, this is what’s already sitting on your disk:

$ git --git-dir=".snapshots/repo" log
a3f8c21  Claude task: update pricing in exec-summary.md
bd7f412  Claude task: reorganize research/ folder
c91d5e0  Before Claude task: polish the roadmap
$ git --git-dir=".snapshots/repo" show bd7f412:exec-summary.md
# Q3 Launch - Executive Summary
...

You can run that yourself after install. If CoworkRestore is ever gone, this is still all it takes to get your history back - your work isn’t tied to us being around forever.

I already use Git - do I need this?
Probably not. Git saves what you remember to save; CoworkRestore captures snapshots automatically between Claude's tasks - handy when you're moving fast and forget. If you'd rather drive it yourself, stick with what you have.
Does it work with Claude Code?
You can point it at any folder, so it works alongside Claude Code. That said, Claude Code users often already have version control and checkpoints they're comfortable with - CoworkRestore is aimed at people who don't.
Does it back up to the cloud?
No. CoworkRestore is local-only for now. Snapshots stay on your Mac, in a folder you choose.
Will it slow my Mac down?
No. CoworkRestore only does work between Claude Cowork tasks, when your Mac is already idle. It uses a tiny amount of disk and almost no CPU.
Does it work on Windows?
Not yet. CoworkRestore is macOS only in v1.
Can it recover files that were deleted before I installed it?
No. CoworkRestore can only protect what it's been watching. Install it, point it at the folders that matter, and it covers you from that moment forward.

You handed your folder to an AI. Now you can take any change back.

Download for Mac
First project free. Pay €19 once for unlimited projects. Signed & notarised

Guides for when the AI changes the wrong files.

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