The more we use our device the more data we create. As a finite resource, or at least one which costs money to store, we often have to delete information on our cellphone, tablet or similar device so we can continue to use it. When a device runs out of storage, it will no longer function properly and can harm its longevity. Deleting conversation histories on WhatsApp is a good way to clear up space. It can also be helpful to simplify our lives as keeping all of our chats isn’t necessary. However, sometimes we lose some important information or may have a sentimental reason why we want to recover our chats.
At oneHOWTO, we explain how to deleted WhatsApp chats. We show you how to do this whether you have backed-up your chats or not.
How to recover deleted WhatsApp chats with backup
If you think you may have deleted a WhatsApp chat by mistake, it is understandable you will think they may be lost forever. Although it may seem impossible, if you backup your device regularly, it may be very simple to solve. Either using Android or iPhone devices, the backup will be registered with the application. It is advisable to make a backup copy at least once a week to record your conversations and other data. It will also make it much easier when you want to recover chats.
The moment you are aware that you have deleted a conversation and want to recover it, you just have to follow these simple steps to know how to recover a WhatsApp chat:
- You must enter your mobile settings and go to the section with the full list of installed applications.
- Once you locate the WhatsApp application, you must select it and choose the option to uninstall.
- Once uninstalled, you just have to go back to the application store, either Play Store or App Store, and reinstall WhatsApp on your mobile.
- Once installed again, when entering the app, we will see the option to recover the data from the existing account. Upon accepting, all the conversations that you have had saved in the periodic backups will be restored.
How to recover deleted WhatsApp chats without backup
Recovering chats is not so easy if you have not been making regular backups or you have lost a recent chat which means you didn’t have time to save it. Fortunately, there may be some help even without a backup. The WhatsApp application automatically makes local copies of the stored data. We may need to search a little more to recover them, but it should be possible by following these steps:
- The first thing you should do is go to the file folder inside your mobile device, either iPhone or Android. You may need to connect to another device such as a laptop to do so.
- Once inside, you should find the folder with the name ‘WhatsApp’ where all the application data that your phone has saved will be stored.
- Enter and locate the section that says ‘Databases’.
- Below you will see a list of all the local copies that WhatsApp has made on your mobile every week, ordered and classified by year, month and day. The only exception is the last backup, which will not yet have the date.
- You must remember the date of the chat you want to recover to be able to select one of these folders. This may take a little trial and error if you only know the vague time frame.
- When you locate it, you should write it down and look at the name of the last file. You may see ‘msgstore.db.crypt12’, but it will depend on each mobile. Whatever it is, make a note of this name for the next step.
- The next step is a trick which requires you to make an exchange in the two files. What we must do is add a fictitious date to the name of the last saved file. In this case, ‘msgstore.db.crypt12’ would be ‘msgstore-2020-03-02.1.db.crypt12’.
- After renaming the last saved file, we must select the file that contains the conversation that we want to recover and change the name. In this example case, to ‘msgstore.db.crypt12’. In this way, we will recover the old conversation and, we will have a copy of the last file that did not yet have a date.
- Once done, all we have to do is uninstall the application and, when reinstalling it, choose the ‘Restore’ option.
Retrieving WhatsApp conversations from months ago can be more time consuming, but it is effective for cases where manual backups have not been performed. It can be used for both Android and iPhone systems, although, for Apple products, there are also free applications on the Internet that facilitate this process if the system poses a problem when recovering.
Even so, to avoid it happening in the future, remember or schedule weekly backups. This way, you can best ensure your data is safe and you can recover it to use as often as you need.
If you want to get more out of your WhatsApp application or you have other problems recovering files, take a look at our articles on how to recover deleted photos form WhatsApp and how to put colored letters on WhatsApp.
Source: technology.onehowto