[4.1.0.24 Xperia 10 II] WhatsApp cannot import backup

Bug Reports
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#1

REPRODUCIBILITY (% or how often): 100%
BUILD ID = OS VERSION (Settings > About product): 4.1.0.24
HARDWARE (XA2, Xperia 10…): Xperia 10 II
UI LANGUAGE: English (UK)
REGRESSION: (compared to previous public release: Yes, No, ?): ?

DESCRIPTION:

I have done a backup of WhatsApp on the same device with Android 11, yet when trying to restore it on SFOS it fails to do so. When it recognises the backup, its date says year 1970, which is obviously not the case. It is a valid backup, as it works if I try to import it in a separate Android device.

PRECONDITIONS:

STEPS TO REPRODUCE:

  1. Install WhatsApp APK from official website
  2. Copy databases and backup files to android_storage in folder ‘WhatsApp’
  3. Set up WhatsApp and try to restore the backup

EXPECTED RESULT:

It should import all of my conversations and WhatsApp settings.

ACTUAL RESULT:

Says ‘error: failed to import’ and continues the set up.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

I don’t know how to get extra information such as logs :frowning:

#2

Check if this (chapter 4) is of any help to you:
https://jolla.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/203442828#4

1 Like
#3

Thanks for pointing to that useful article. Basically it describes what I did to transfer my chat history from my old SFOS device to my new one (Xperia 10 ii vs. Xperia 10 plus, both running SFOS 4.1).

Unfortunately it didn’t work so far. In my case, Whatsapp does not even offer to import a local backup. All it does is to ask for permissions to access a Google account to look for a backup.

#4

hi @ziellos,

ON TJC there are some old guides from people who managed to transfer the whatsapp profile:
https://together.jolla.com/question/206983/whatsapp-data-sync-help-please-can-you-do-it/?answer=220090#post-id-220090

and

https://together.jolla.com/question/173065/how-can-i-migrate-android-app-data-and-settings-to-sailfish-x/

No ideas if it will work for you cause of different android version / sailfish / etc. As I remember it was very important to follow the steps exactly otherwise it wasn’t working.

Let us know if it helps and still works any of these guides

1 Like
#5

Whatever I tried, Whatsapp did not offer to restore a local backup. In the end I managed to transfer the active Whatsapp profile as described in the first TJC issue linked by @nas, including chat history, media, and registration.
However, I suspect this approach would cause problems when Android and/or Whatsapp versions differ, so a working local backup/restore would be preferable.

1 Like
#6

This worked! Thank you so much!