LeoCore
Download free

LeoCore Backup · Download

Get LeoCore Backup

Windows 10 1607+, Windows 11, and Windows Server 2012 R2 through 2025 — including Server Core. 64-bit. One download for every edition: it runs as the free Solo edition until you enter a licence key.

Installer · recommended
4.14.013 November 2026
Free — no card. The application and the backup service, set up in one step.
  • Registers and starts the backup service for you
  • No prerequisites — the .NET runtime is included
  • Works on desktop, Server and Server Core
  • Upgrades in place — a key unlocks the paid tiers
Download for Windows
Compact ZIP
4.14.013 November 2026
The same application without the bundled runtime, for machines that already have .NET 8 and for scripted deployment.
  • Extract, then run Install.cmd as administrator
  • Same service, same features, same licence
  • Needs the free .NET 8 Desktop Runtime (x64)
Download the ZIP

Both downloads are the same application. Without a licence key it runs as the free Solo edition; entering a key unlocks Server or Datacenter in place. Need an older build?

LeoCore Rescue — free

One executable that turns an archive and a password into a database dump. No installer, no service, no catalogue, no .NET runtime to put on first. If you are holding a folder of LeoCore archives and the machine that made them is gone, this is the tool.

Download LeoCore Rescue 4.14.0

x64 · free, no licence · SHA-256 C70E4AAD4B8BA74A211514D348C18B44736C0107637D19B93BFC22B4411DBD63

CommandWhat it does
openExtract the database dump out of an archive.
listShow what is inside without extracting, and without a password.
verifyRead every byte and check it, before you rely on it in a restore.
scanWork out what is restorable in a folder of archives, per database, in the order the files go back — with no catalogue at all.
passwordRecover the archive password. Works only on the machine that made the backups, which is the point: the password is bound to it.
repairFix archives written by LeoCore 4.7.1 and earlier so 7-Zip and WinRAR will open them.
 
leocore-rescue scan "\\nas\backups"
leocore-rescue open "Sales_20260901_020000_full.zip"
You may not need to download it at all. LeoCore can put a copy of Rescue in your own storage, beside the archives, along with the recovery kit that explains which files go back in what order. Switch it on under Settings → What LeoCore writes beside your archives, and look for _leocore\leocore-rescue.exe on the destination.
It does not need a licence, and it never will. Rescue reads archives. If you are holding a folder of them — as a contractor, or an administrator who inherited a server, or a customer whose licence lapsed years ago — it opens them. Restore is never gated by our billing, and a tool for the worst day of somebody’s year is the last place to start.

Installing it

  1. Run the setup file you downloaded and approve the administrator prompt.
  2. Accept the destination folder and click Install.
  3. The LeoCoreAgent service is registered and started, and the console opens.

That is all of it. There is no separate step to switch backups on: the service runs as NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM on delayed automatic start, restarts itself if it crashes, and keeps your jobs, schedules and credentials in %ProgramData%\LeoCore — separate from the program files, so an update cannot lose them.

On Server Core there is no desktop, so install the service on its own with /VERYSILENT /TYPE=service and manage it from a console elsewhere.

Full installation documentation → — service accounts and gMSA, unattended switches, Server Core, upgrading, uninstalling and troubleshooting.

Activating a paid licence

There is only one build. Nothing is downloaded again when you buy — your key changes what the application you already have will do.

  1. Open LeoCore.App.exe.
  2. Go to Settings → Licence and click Enter a licence key.
  3. Paste the LEOC-… key from your purchase email and click Activate.
  4. The edition shown updates immediately, and the features for your tier unlock.

Dashes, spaces and letter case do not matter — the key is normalised for you.

No internet on that machine? Use Settings → Licence → Offline activation, or the offline activation form from any other device. Activation produces a signed licence file that the application verifies by itself, so a protected server never has to reach us again.

Moving to new hardware? Release the seat in Settings → Licence on the old machine, then activate the new one. You can do this yourself, as often as you need.

You can open your backups without LeoCore. Every archive is a standard Zip64 file. Archives are AES-256 encrypted by default, so you need 7-Zip and the password — Settings → Show the archive password writes it out for you, with the instructions on the same sheet. Save it somewhere other than the server: it is the only thing that opens those archives if the machine is lost. Turn encryption off and archives are plain Zip64 that Windows File Explorer opens on its own. How to open an archive →
Restoring is never licence-gated. Every archive you hold stays fully restorable in every edition — including after a licence lapses, is refunded or is revoked. Your data is never held hostage by our billing.

Verifying what you downloaded

Check the file before you run it. In PowerShell, in the folder you saved it to:

Get-FileHash .\LeoCoreBackup-Setup-4.14.0.exe -Algorithm SHA256

It must match the published checksum:

F8AEBF132502C055A650E528652433AB30C5000FABC787981477B67B511B91A8

For the compact ZIP, LeoCoreBackup-x64-compact-4.14.0.0.zip, the checksum is:

22802A377125E3292F1B3ABF4B0247E5C790BE4E6A5C5E8F6E435F366EAAD008

Each file also has a .sha256 file beside it, at the same address with .sha256 added.

Windows will warn you, and it is right to. This build is not signed with a purchased code-signing certificate, so SmartScreen shows “Windows protected your PC”. Verify the checksum above before choosing More info → Run anyway. We would rather you check the hash than trust a button.

System requirements

RequirementDetail
Operating systemWindows 10 1607+, Windows 11, Windows Server 2012 R2 / 2016 / 2019 / 2022 / 2025, Server Core. Not Windows 8.1 or earlier.
Architecturex64. Runs on ARM64 Windows 11 under emulation; no native ARM64 or 32-bit build.
RuntimeNone for the installer or the Store build — .NET 8 is included. The compact ZIP needs the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime.
Disk250 MB, plus staging space for the largest single backup
PrivilegesAdministrator for the service install; none afterwards