# Create your bibliography with Zotero

[Zotero] is a free, open-source bibliographic management program. It allows you to save bibliographic references and publications in PDF format, organize them and generate an automatic bibliography in word processing software.

There's also a useful browser extension that lets you add a reference and its associated document with a single click.

The software is easy to use, but here are two tips on how to create a bibliography, store and synchronize a lot of data on a server, and back-up your library.

## Tip n°1: Synchronization with a server

We can store our bibliography online on a specific server, to increase the size of our storage space. For example, the University of Lorraine, where our research is carried out, has an online WebDAV server.

- Click on the Edit menu in Zotero, then on `Preferences > Synchronization`.
- You need to have an account, so enter your login details.
- Once synchronized, choose the `WebDAV` option instead of Zotero.
- Then put in the URL address (https): `zotero-webdav.univ-lorraine.fr`.
- Then the university identifier for the user name and password.

![Zotero tutorial](/photos/zotero_tutorial.png "Zotero tutorial")

## Tip n°2: Back-up your library

It's a good idea to back up your library in the case of connection problems or data loss.

- In Zotero's Edit menu, go to `Preferences > Advanced > Files and folders`.
- Click on `Open data directory` to locate the data, then close Zotero.
- You can now copy all your files and folders to a USB key, server or other storage device.
- Then, to restore your library from these files on another computer, for example, Zotero offers a simple [import procedure].

[Zotero]: https://www.zotero.org/
[import procedure]: https://www.zotero.org/support/zotero_data