[avhon1]

> if an animation/datablock was not assign to an object, you would lose it when you restart Blender

That's what the little "F" button on datablocks is for. It adds a "fake user" to the datablock, which means that it won't be garbage-collected away if nothing is using it when you close Blender.

[wokwokwok]

...yes, but you have to remember to use it.

I’ve lost work this way as well; sure, it’s avoidable, but it’s most certainly a pain point.