VertiTab Snapshot Restore Feature Guide

Overview

VertiTab's snapshot restore feature allows you to precisely reconstruct your browsing environment across different computers. This comprehensive chrome tab recovery guide explains VertiTab's restore options and restore modes, as well as the specific operation logic for multiple windows and browser tab restore techniques.

Restore Options

When restoring snapshots, you can choose the following options to control restore behavior in your browser tab restore process:

Restore window position and size

• Function: Restores the window position, size, and state recorded in the snapshot
• Use case: When you want to precisely restore your work layout using chrome tab recovery methods
• Note: Some systems may restrict precise window position restoration

Restore tab groups

• Function: Restores the tab group structure and names from the snapshot
• Use case: When your workflow depends on specific tab organization
• Note: Requires browser support for tab grouping functionality

Tab lazy loading

• Function: Tabs don't immediately load content during restoration, only basic information
• Mechanism: Tabs automatically go dormant until you click on them to reactivate
• Use case: Saves memory and network resources when restoring many tabs in multi-window tab management scenarios

Restore Modes

VertiTab provides four restore modes, each with different logic for handling multiple windows:

1. Open in new window

Operation Logic:

• All snapshot windows: Create new windows
• Tab handling: Create all tabs in new windows

Use case: Want a completely isolated environment without affecting current work

2. Open in current window

Operation Logic:

• First snapshot window: Append tabs in current window, preserve existing tabs
• Other snapshot windows: Create new windows

Use case: Preserve current work while adding new content

3. Merge to current window

Operation Logic:

• First snapshot window: Append tabs in current window, check URLs across all open windows, skip duplicates
• Other snapshot windows: Create new windows

Use case: Cross-device synchronization to avoid opening duplicate pages

4. Replace current window tabs

Operation Logic:

• First snapshot window: Use smart matching logic to replace current window tabs
• Other snapshot windows: Create new windows

Use case: Precisely reconstruct snapshot environment

Core Concept: Smart Tab Matching Algorithm

What is Smart Tab Matching?

When you create a snapshot on computer A and then restore it on computer B, smart tab matching analysis is performed for precise browser environment reconstruction:

1. Check existing tabs: See which tabs are currently open on the computer
2. Compare URLs: Precisely match existing tab URLs with URLs in the snapshot
3. Decide fate: Based on matching results, decide whether to keep, create, or remove tabs

Smart Matching Principle

VertiTab uses exact URL matching as its core logic in tab state preservation techniques:

Snapshot tab URL = Current tab URL → Keep existing tab
Snapshot tab URL ≠ Current tab URL → Remove existing tab, create new one

Multi-Window Tab Restore Details

Window Processing Rules Summary for Multi-Window Tab Management

Browser Tab Restore Example Scenarios

Scenario 1: Single Window Smart Tab Matching (Replace current window tabs)

Original state (Computer A):

Window 1:
├── https://github.com/project/issues
├── https://stackoverflow.com/question/123
└── https://developer.mozilla.org/docs

Current state (Computer B):

Window 1:
├── https://github.com/project/issues    (already open)
├── https://news.ycombinator.com         (extra open)
└── https://youtube.com                  (extra open)

Select "Replace current window tabs" mode:

1. Analysis phase:

   • https://github.com/project/issues → Match ✅ Keep
   • https://news.ycombinator.com → No match ❌ Will be removed
   • https://youtube.com → No match ❌ Will be removed

2. Final result:

Window 1:
├── https://github.com/project/issues    (kept)
├── https://stackoverflow.com/question/123 (new)
└── https://developer.mozilla.org/docs     (new)

Scenario 2: Multi-Window Tab Merge Restore

Snapshot contains two windows:

Window A: Development Tools
├── https://github.com/project/issues
└── https://stackoverflow.com/question/123

Window B: Documentation Reference
├── https://developer.mozilla.org/docs
└── https://reactjs.org/docs

Current state (Computer B):

Window 1: Has https://github.com/project/issues and https://news.ycombinator.com
Window 2: Has https://developer.mozilla.org/docs

Select "Merge to current window" mode:

• First snapshot window (Development Tools):
  • Append to current window, check URLs across all windows
  • https://github.com/project/issues already exists → Skip
  • https://stackoverflow.com/question/123 doesn't exist → Create
• Second snapshot window (Documentation Reference):
  • Create new window, create all tabs

Final result:

Window 1 (original + merged content):
├── https://github.com/project/issues      (kept)
├── https://news.ycombinator.com           (kept)
└── https://stackoverflow.com/question/123 (new)

Window 3 (new):
├── https://developer.mozilla.org/docs     (new)
└── https://reactjs.org/docs               (new)

Advanced Features

Smart Merge Mode

"Merge to current window" mode intelligently handles multi-window scenarios in cross-device tab synchronization:

Use case: Avoid opening duplicate tabs during cross-device synchronization

Logic:

• Check URLs across all open windows (not just current window)
• If a URL already exists in any window, skip creating that tab
• Ensure no duplicate tabs in the entire browser environment
• Multiple snapshot windows are handled the same as "Open in current window"

Smart Sorting

After restoration completes, VertiTab will:

• Rearrange tabs according to original order in snapshot
• Restore tab group structure
• Set correct active tab
• Restore muted status

Smart Lazy Loading

For large numbers of tabs, VertiTab uses smart lazy loading in tab snapshot backup restore:

• Prioritize loading active tabs
• Non-active tabs load when needed
• Avoid system overload from simultaneous loading

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why aren't some tabs being restored in chrome tab recovery?

A: Check if URLs match exactly. VertiTab uses precise URL matching, including protocol, domain, path, and query parameters. If pages use redirects or dynamic URLs, they may not match.

Q: Tab order is wrong after browser tab restore?

A: The restoration process reorders tabs. If order is still wrong, check if other extensions or browser settings are affecting tab ordering.

Q: Why choose "Replace current window tabs" mode in tab snapshot backup restore?

A: This is the recommended default mode because it provides the best balance:

• Keep already open relevant tabs (save time)
• Remove unrelated tabs (keep clean)
• Add missing tabs (complete restoration)

Q: When is merge mode useful in cross-device tab synchronization?

A: Particularly useful for:

• Synchronization across multiple devices (check all windows to avoid duplicates)
• Situations where some relevant tabs are already open
• Scenarios where you want to avoid duplicate tabs
• Smart merging of multi-window snapshots

ID Mapping System for Tab State Preservation

VertiTab maintains a complete ID mapping system for advanced tab state preservation techniques:

• Original tab ID → New tab ID
• Used for restoring tab states, opener relationships, etc.
• Supports batch operations and error recovery

This smart tab matching algorithm allows VertiTab to provide smooth, precise browsing environment synchronization across different devices using chrome extension technology.