Import games

Open Game library → Import…, or Manage library → Import games… inside Saved Games, to choose among four tabs. In a separate Saved Games window, this focuses the main app and opens its Import window; keep the main window open. If no main app is available, the Saved Games window opens the app’s import page. Drag the title or outer background to move the window; drag an edge or corner to resize it. The tab row wraps on narrow windows, and panel contents scroll vertically when needed. The gold-bordered window has a heavy paper-grain outer background and recessed content sections. Close it with × or Escape.

Paste a game or collection

Paste PGN for one game or a collection, or paste an Ironwood Analysis JSON export. Use the gray Browse… button to choose a .pgn, .json, or .zip file. Browsed game collections open the game-selection screen directly, just like drag-and-drop. Single games and JSON fill the paste area; choose Continue for those. Clear empties the text. Analysis JSON restores saved analysis when you continue. You can also drag a PGN, JSON or ZIP file onto the app to enter the normal game or collection import flow.

Import a ZIP collection

Choose a ZIP with Browse…, or drop the ZIP onto the app. Ironwood reads the archive locally and combines every .pgn file, including files inside folders. Collections open game selection directly without rendering the entire PGN in the paste area. A ZIP containing only one game fills the paste area when browsed; choose Continue for that game. Other files are ignored; ZIP archives of Analysis JSON exports are not supported. Select the games you want to save in the review window. Existing duplicate detection still applies.

Both the ZIP file and the combined uncompressed PGN content can be up to 64 MiB, with at most 1,000 archive entries, including folders and unrelated files. Files are checked for corruption before the PGN text enters the import flow. Standard stored and deflated ZIP files are supported. Unzip password-protected, ZIP64, multi-part or unsupported archives first, then choose their PGN files. If the browser cannot decompress the ZIP, unzip it first as well.

Import a .7z archive

Choose a .7z file with Browse…, or drop it onto the app. Ironwood extracts it locally in a background worker, with progress and a Cancel button. Archives containing PGNs enter the usual game review and duplicate checks. An archive containing one complete Scid 5 database opens the range-selection window; Scid 4 databases use the usual conversion and review flow. Scid archives must include the three matching index, name and game files.

Large Scid 5 archives use temporary browser storage rather than loading the database into memory. Enough browser storage must be available for the extracted files. Archives and expanded content are limited to 64 GiB and 1,000 entries; combined PGNs and Scid 4 databases remain limited to 64 MiB. Temporary files are removed after review or when the Scid window closes. Password-protected archives, unsupported compression methods, mixed PGN/Scid archives, or archives containing several Scid databases must be extracted manually first. Original files remain unchanged.

Import a Scid database (.si4)

Choose Browse… and select all three matching files together: for example, mygames.si4, mygames.sn4, and mygames.sg4. After conversion, collections open the usual game selection and duplicate detection; for a single game, choose Continue. You can also drop the three files together onto the app. Unzip a Scid database first; ZIP import reads PGN files only.

Scid import runs locally and is read-only: the original files are never changed. For .si4, the three files together, and the resulting PGN text, must each fit within 64 MiB. A progress indicator and Cancel reading are available during conversion through Browse. Games marked deleted in Scid are skipped. Invalid files or an undecodable game stop .si4 conversion before anything is saved. Only .si4 version 400 is supported; export .si3 databases to PGN first.

The conversion includes standard game details, ratings, ECO codes, moves, variations, move comments, supported move symbols, and custom starting positions. It does not preserve custom PGN tags, pre-game comments, or Scid-specific flags and database settings. Only one supported move symbol per move is retained. Keep the original database if those details matter.

Import a large Scid 5 database (.si5)

In the browser app, choose Browse… and select the matching .si5, .sn5, and .sg5 files together, or drop all three files onto the app. Extract .7z and ZIP archives first. A separate Scid import window opens with the database’s game count. Scid 5 index and game files are read in small chunks, so multi-gigabyte databases do not need to fit in memory. The name file is loaded once and can be up to 128 MiB. Scid 4, PGN and ZIP limits are unchanged.

Drag the title or outer background to move the gold-bordered window; drag any edge or corner to resize it. The game list scrolls inside the window. Clearing Through game restores the database’s last game when you leave the field or use an action; clearing From game restores game 1.

Use From game, Through game and Player name contains to choose a range or filter. Preview first 100, Next 100 and Previous 100 browse matching games without decoding the entire database. Check games and choose Review selected games to send multiple games directly to the usual selection screen. For a single game, choose Continue in the import screen.

Choose Import to Browser to save the range directly; the default range covers the entire database. Games are decoded and saved in batches of at most 32 using the same PGN preparation, duplicate fingerprints and minimum-length rule as ordinary imports. Duplicate checks use a disk index. Progress lists saved, duplicate, short, deleted and failed games. Undecodable games are counted as failed and the first error is shown. Invalid index data or a storage failure stops the operation; previously saved batches remain intact.

Stop finishes the current batch. To resume, select the same three files again and choose Resume last import. The resume point is saved on this device; retrying an earlier range also safely skips duplicates. Browser storage quota still applies, and saved games may occupy more space than the compressed Scid database. Imports stop if a storage batch cannot be committed. Keep the original files and start with a smaller range when checking a new database. If prompted during a storage update, close other Ironwood tabs and retry.

Resize the window vertically for a larger paste area. The middle sunken section expands with it; Clear and Continue remain directly below on the outer background.

For a collection, select games to keep and click Import selected. Drag the review window’s title to move it or its edges to resize it. Use the player filter and Select matching to select matching games. A progress bar shows the number processed and percentage for a large import. The result lists games saved, already saved and failed; if importing stops early, it also shows games not attempted. Games already in your library are skipped. Find saved imports under Game library → Saved games → Imported Games.

Lichess

Enter a player’s username to fetch up to the chosen number of matching completed games (20 by default), or paste a completed-game link to fetch one game. Click the gold Fetch games button and watch the status below the input. No login or API token is needed. Lichess import instructions.

For a study, paste its Lichess study or chapter link to open the chapter workspace. Saved chapters are grouped under Studies in the Browser library, with one entry per study. Lichess study instructions.

Chess.com

Enter a Chess.com username and click Fetch games for up to the chosen number of completed standard chess or Chess960 games (20 by default). No login or API token is needed. Recently finished games may take time to appear in the cached archives. Chess.com import instructions.

Both panels offer Games (20, 50, 100, or 200), Time control, and optional From and Through dates in YYYY-MM-DD format. Dates use UTC and include the entire Through date; leave either blank for an open range. The newest matching games are fetched first, up to your chosen count. Reset filters restores 20 games, all time controls, and no date limits. Filters apply to usernames, not individual Lichess game links. Chess.com uses game completion dates. Lichess uses its game-date filters. Selecting a specific Lichess speed restricts results to that performance category.

Both online sources require an internet connection. Fetched collections go directly to game selection, where you choose which games to import. A single game proceeds directly to review or the destination’s selection screen, and a Lichess study opens in Study mode. The Paste tab and Continue step are used for manual text entry, not for successful online fetches.

Scoresheet

For direct access, choose Tools → Enter a scoresheet…. This opens the same workspace as the Scoresheet tab’s Enter scoresheet button.

The three-step guide explains how to add a reference photo, enter and check moves, and import the finished game. Click Enter scoresheet to open the workspace with a board preview and live move validation. You enter moves manually; the photo is a reference. Photos and unfinished drafts stay on your device, and a photo is optional. Scoresheet entry instructions.

Analyze after importing

Importing does not automatically start full-game analysis. Open an imported game and start it from Analysis when ready. Analysis JSON restores existing results without another engine run.