Signal Private Messenger took over the internet by storm when Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted to use the app for secure communication. After the recent controversy regarding Whatsapp privacy policies, people have been shifting towards Signal and trying to make the most of it. In regards to, this article focuses on how to back up Signal chats and restore them when needed.
Back up Signal Chats
Signal doesn’t save your chats on the cloud; everything is stored locally. It even goes a step further by not backing up your chats without your permission and the backup features are disabled by default. Let’s look into who you can backup your chats on Signal.
Step 1: Open Signal Private Messenger on your Android.
Step 2: Tap on the Profile icon located in the upper-right corner.
Step 3: Select Chats and Media.
Step 4: When inside, look for Chat Backups. Tap on it and turn the feature on.
Step 5: You will be shown a passphrase. Take a note of it or screenshot it as this is essential if when you need to restore the backed-up chats.
Step 6: Tap on Enable Backups.
Step 7: You will not find a new entry under Chat Backups named Create Backup.
Step 8: Tap on it to create a new backup.
Restore Signal Chats
For some reason, if you’ve uninstalled Signal from your Android or you’re migrating to a new phone, you can use the backed-up chat and restore it. Here’s how.
Step 1: Install Signal Private Messenger on your Android.
Step 2: Allow necessary permissions when prompted.
Step 3: The app will auto-detect the backup in your Internal storage. Make sure you have copied the backup file to the new phone if you’re migrating.
Step 4: Signal will ask for the passphrase before restoring the backup. Enter the passphrase.
Step 5: Tap on Restore.
Step 6: After some time, the chats will be restored and will show up on the Signal app.
Note: If you’re migrating to a new phone, you need to safely copy the backup file on your PC or the new smartphone. The Signal backup file is located inside the Singla folder in your Internal storage. You can copy the entire folder to somewhere safe and accessible.
Note: If you are getting confused about where the app folder is, there is an easy way to locate it. All you have to do is open the app, go to Chats and Media and tap on Chat Backups. You will find the location of the backup under the Backup Folder. You can then go to that folder using a file manager and copy it to a safe place. You can copy only the backup file, but for Signal to auto-detect the backup and for convenience, it is recommended that you copy the entire folder.
