Can I recover old bookmarks from died PC to new PC

mudshark

My old PC has died and I'm looking for a way to recover my old Vivaldi bookmarks file to my new PC. Sync was enabled on the old machine and I hope that means Vivaldi has my old bookmarks stored somewhere!
Thank, all.

Pathduck

@mudshark Have you enabled Sync on the new machine? If not, do that.

If you have access to the HD on the old machine it's also possible. But Sync is the best option.

mudshark

@Pathduck I did login and enable sync but my old bookmarks did not magically reappear!

Aaron

@mudshark
Go to the Vivaldi installation directory and find the Default/Bookmark file and copy it directly to the new computer.

Here is mine. for ref.

mudshark

@Aaron the old machine is dead or this would be that easy!

yojimbo274064400

@mudshark,

If the device's storage was not the cause of the failure then consider pulling it and connect it to the new device to recover the bookmarks.

Catweazle

@mudshark, it's strange if you have sync enabled, logged into your account and enter the txt file with the decrytion code (if you had saved it in a pendrive or extern storage). Same ocurred me some time ago when my old PC died, with the sync I recovered all my settings, passwords, bookmarks and all other marked in the sync list in few seconds in my new PC with Vivaldi. But for this the decryption code is needed. This was the first I've done, saving it in an pendrive, it's a text file with the code which you must select in the new PC to recover your Data, not enough with your account password.

mudshark

@yojimbo274064400 I tried that but file system got corrupted so the drive had to be reformatted. Thank you

mudshark

@Catweazle I thought logging into my sync settings would be enough I wasn't aware there was another step beyond that where I needed to save a file. Darn.

Catweazle

@mudsharkone thing is the password for your Vivaldi account, but suncing your data is encrypted end to end and need an decrytion key, which is generated automaticly when you enable sync and stored locally in a text file. Naturally is advisable to copy it also in a pendrive or other extern device, because you need this file to decrypt and recover your data.

In the sync settings you see the option do download this file with the decryption code, this is ALWAYS the first which you must do, loosing it is loosing your data. The Vivaldi team can`t access it to recover these, they are encrypted. The price of security.

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Pathduck

@mudshark said in Can I recover old bookmarks from died PC to new PC:

I thought logging into my sync settings would be enough I wasn't aware there was another step beyond that where I needed to save a file. Darn.

If you get the green OK then your device is connected to Sync:

A lot of users misunderstand the concept of the Encryption Password.
Often they just enter their Account Password twice. Which works - but is not recommended.
https://help.vivaldi.com/desktop/tools/sync/#Encryption_password

The Encryption Key is a backup method of decrypting the data from the server. If you have saved your Encryption Password it's not really needed but it's a good idea to back it up safely in any case. Your Encryption Password should always be saved though, and stored safely in a password vault.

I suspect you used your account password as encryption password, and when you do that it does not ask for the encryption password when connecting to Sync from a new device.

For the technical functioning of Sync this does not matter though. If it's connected it should get your Bookmarks and other data. If it doesn't then they simply don't exist on the sync server and there's no other way to get them back without a local backup.

I strongly recommend in the future to do regular exports of important data like Bookmarks and Passwords, and store these somewhere safe. I use an encrypted zip file for my exported passwords and then upload this file to a cloud hosting provider. I also import the passwords into a password manager program (KeePass) as a backup as well.

mudshark

Thanks for all the pointers, folks.
I was lucky enough to have found a rarely used PC that had properly synced everything. I can get everything from there. Also now I understand the need for that 2nd (recovery) password and it is also now setup.
Awesome! Thanks again to y'all

mudshark

How weird...

I was indeed able to export the bookmarks. GREAT!
BUT... (Next problem)
I do not see a way to export my HISTORY so it can be applied tp the new PC. Is that somehow synced somewhere as well?

I got the encryption key from the PC with the old data, but when I enter that key into sync settings on the new PC I get a message that it is not the right key!

Pathduck

@mudshark said in Can I recover old bookmarks from died PC to new PC:

I do not see a way to export my HISTORY so it can be applied tp the new PC. Is that somehow synced somewhere as well?

I'm one of those who care not for History and I don't understand why anyone would rely on their browser history for important stuff. Important stuff goes in bookmarks.

But, if it's that important to you, the History file from the old profile dir is the one you want.
There's no "Export/Import History" feature and I don't think any browser has that.

To find the path of your profile, look in the Help menu > About (Profile Path).

History is covered by Sync though. So once you set that up properly it should be synced between devices.

I got the encryption key from the PC with the old data, but when I enter that key into sync settings on the new PC I get a message that it is not the right key!

Yeah, don't do that. That key is not the right one now you've changed/reset your encryption password.
Do an export on the new machine if you need a backup of the Encryption Key.

I was indeed able to export the bookmarks. GREAT!

And just FYI - the file named Bookmarks contains your bookmarks (rather obviously) and should be possible to copy to the new profile as well.
However, importing from a HTML file is more likely to succeed and is the supported way of doing things.

mudshark

@Pathduck Not that I'd rely on history for anything of merit, I did occasionally find it useful though. And yes, transferring over bookmarks won't be a problem now.

Something I found odd; I guess things work differently than I thought :
I am surprised that the encryption key from the old machine with everything I need on it can't be used on a new machine to let it suck up all that delicious old synced data.
(So there's no reason to do an key export on the new machine, there's nothing there to sync!)

As always thanks for helping. It is much appreciated.

Pathduck

@mudshark said in Can I recover old bookmarks from died PC to new PC:

I am surprised that the encryption key from the old machine with everything I need on it can't be used on a new machine to let it suck up all that delicious old synced data.

Without being in front of your machine(s) there's no way for me to understand the details of what you've done.

Is the old machine actually connected to Sync, and does the Sync status show it syncing?
Have you signed into and set an encryption password on the new machine, and does its status show sync going on?
Are you using the same account on both machines?

Also, in case it's confusing - the Encryption Key does not contain your data. The key is generated from your Encryption Password, so obviously once you change that (and reset remote data) then the key from the old machine is no longer valid.

Catweazle

@mudshark, apart from what @Pathduck said, despite that the sync code is in a simple text file and you can read it, you can't write this code by hand, you must select this textfile from the sync key input. Somewhat strange, but I had the same issue in my last PC, entering direct this code with the message that it isn't valid. It only accept the file as such which you had downloaded.

mudshark

Is the old machine actually connected to Sync, and does the Sync status show it syncing?
YES

Have you signed into [Vivaldi sync on the old PC]
YES

and set an encryption password on the new machine,
NO, not a new key on the new PC.
From the old PC I am downloading and saving the TXT file from the sync page where it says: "Save Backup Encryption Key"

and does its status show sync going on on the OLD PC?
YES

Are you using the same account on both machines?
YES

On the newly built PC, on the sync page, I am logged in with the same account but it does not show sync up & down are on and
1. where it asks for the key text I'm told the encryption key text string from the old PC sync is wrong and
2. where it asks for a file to be loaded I navigate to the correct encryption key TXT file generated by the old PC and select it but it just goes back to the sync page and it is still not enabling sync. No error message

Aaron

@mudshark said in Can I recover old bookmarks from died PC to new PC:

From the old PC I am downloading and saving the TXT file from the sync page where it says: "Save Backup Encryption Key"

I never saved this encryption key. I always rely on memory and re-enter it manually every time. On multiple different devices, I have never got an error.

Aaron

@mudshark said in Can I recover old bookmarks from died PC to new PC:

On the newly built PC, on the sync page, I am logged in with the same account but it does not show sync up & down are on and

where it asks for the key text I'm told the encryption key text string from the old PC sync is wrong and

where it asks for a file to be loaded I navigate to the correct encryption key TXT file generated by the old PC and select it but it just goes back to the sync page and it is still not enabling sync. No error message

In order to verify your problem, I tried saving the backup key and restoring the login using the backup key file. The whole process was completely normal and there were no errors.

Could you try syncing on your phone to verify that your original encryption key is correct?