The PingAccess installation directory structure designates the data directory as the location for storing persistent application data. This includes the embedded H2 database files (pa.h2.db) and, by default, the configuration archives (.zip files) that are generated when using the backup and restore utilities. This separation ensures that runtime configuration (conf), executable scripts (bin), and persistent data (data) are kept in distinct, manageable locations.

A. tools: This directory contains command-line utilities and scripts, such as export-admin-config.sh, which are used to create the archives, but it does not store the archive files themselves.

B. conf: This directory holds the active configuration files that PingAccess uses at runtime, such as run.properties and bootstrap.properties, not historical configuration backups or archives.

D. bin: This directory contains the primary executable scripts for starting and stopping the PingAccess server, such as run.sh and run.bat.

1. Ping Identity PingAccess Documentation: Server file reference. This document outlines the top-level directories in a PingAccess installation. It explicitly states: "data - Contains the H2 database files and configuration archives." (Accessed under the "Administration" section of the relevant PingAccess version documentation).

2. Ping Identity PingAccess Documentation: Backing up and restoring a configuration. This guide describes the process of using the export-admin-config tool. While the tool is in the tools directory, the output archive is, by convention and default behavior, placed in the data directory to separate it from the tooling itself.