Failed restoration from PDF backup

[eranst]

Hi
I am looking for help:

I have Mycelium wallet
I sent 1 mBTC and it has got into the wallet properly.
I backed it up to a PDF file with writing down properly the capital letters key

Now: i wanted to test a scenario of completely removal and re-installation on other device

I removed the application from my device
Then re-installed again

I open the new installed application (new address is automatically created) and then went to:
Menu -> Settings -> Expert Mode. i checked the Expert Mode with V.
Now, i got back to the main screen -> KEYS tab -> click on the upper Key+ icon and I scanned the Bitcoin address (left QR square) from the PDF backup. all worked OK. a new address (the original one, from the PDF) was created successfully. I have selected this address to be my main active address.

At this stage i could see my 1mBTC balance but couldn't use it for anything since my private keys has not been imported yet.

I went back again to the main menu -> Verify Backup and scanned the private key from the PDF (the right QR square), I typed in the decryption capital letters password correctly and got the message that my private key was imported successfully.

Now, the point is that although it seems like my private keys has been imported successfully, when I am going to BALANCE tab, there is no "send" button there. Moreover, click on the QR code is resulting in a message "Warning: your wallet does not have the private key for this address. You cannot spend coins received unless you have the private key elsewhere".

Please can help me with this? What am i doing wrong? what is missing here?

[johnzweng]

Hi!

No worries, your balance is not lost! :-) Here's how you do it:

The feature "verify backup" is just to test if your backup is actually working (verify that your printer did not mess up the QR code, your phones camera can scan the code, you did write down the code correctly, etc.) But "verify backup" does NOT import the backup (it's just testing the backup for correctness). It's intended to be used immediatetly after creating the PDF backup, just to be sure that the backup craeation was successful. So: make the backup -> print it -> write down the code -> verify backup.

Later on, when your phone get's lost/stolen/broken/deleted when you want to import your address(es) with your balance again, you need to scan the private key (the right QR code) NOT the left one, So you did everything correctly (going to KEYS tab -> click the Key+ icon -> but then you scan the RIGHT QR code, not the left one).

Maybe the istructions could be clearer in this point.

Just for understanding:
The left QR code code contains only the Bitcoin address. This address is public, so everybody is allowed to know it. In fact you have to give the address to other people if you want to be able to receive money. The part which needs to be protected (and gives you access to spend the balance - and enables the "send" button) is the private key (the QR code on the right side). In fact the private key also contains the bitcoin address (the wallet can calculate the corresponding bitcoin adress to a private key) so the left QR code on the PDF is simply informational and for your convenience (so that you know to which address the right QR code belongs to). But important is only the right QR code.

[eranst]

Thank you so much, Johnzweng for replying me.
Actually, i was trying the following options regarding the PDF file:

1. import just the address - resulting in what you've written. read only address. so far so good.
2. import just the private key, has resulted at the beginning in a message like this: Your key is not matching any of your addresses... and this is the weird thing here as this shouldn't happen.
3. import the address and later on the private key, has also resulting in read only address, like written in 1.
4. my last try was to try no. 2 again, i.e import just the private key. but this time it's worked!

after each backup of the said attempts, i deleted all and re-installed the application
I can't explain such inconsistent behavior
Maybe it is a connection issue or something like this (although i verified good connection, such things can occur for few minutes)... but my current confidence in the app is currently decreased.
Just to make it clear: i've not printed the PDF at any stage. i opened it on my laptop screen and scanned the QR by my phone directly from the screen. the quality was pretty good and the scanner has catch it in a second, so i think this is not the issue.
What can be the root cause?

I think I am about to do another try and see.

[janmoller]

The "Your key is not matching any of your addresses" is displayed when you
try to verify a backup of an address that is not in your wallet. In your
original description you write:

"I went back again to the main menu -> Verify Backup and scanned the
private key from the PDF (the right QR square), I typed in the decryption
capital letters password correctly and got the message that my private key
was imported successfully."

Instead of importing your private key you verified your backup.

On Mon, Mar 24, 2014 at 9:38 AM, eranst notifications@github.com wrote:

Thank you so much, Johnzweng for replying me.
Actually, i was trying the following options regarding the PDF file:

1. import just the address - resulting in what you've written. read
   only address. so far so good.
2. import just the private key, has resulted at the beginning in a
   message like this: Your key is not matching any of your addresses... and
   this is the weird thing here as this shouldn't happen.
3. import the address and later on the private key, has also resulting
   in read only address, like written in 1.
4. my last try was to try no. 2 again, i.e import just the private
   key. but this time it's worked!

after each backup of the said attempts, i deleted all and re-installed the
application
I can't explain such inconsistent behavior
Maybe it is a connection issue or something like this (although i verified
good connection, such things can occur for few minutes)... but my current
confidence in the app is currently decreased.
Just to make it clear: i've not printed the PDF at any stage. i opened it
on my laptop screen and scanned the QR by my phone directly from the
screen. the quality was pretty good and the scanner has catch it in a
second, so i think this is not the issue.
What can be the root cause?

Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHubhttps://github.com//issues/60#issuecomment-38421212
.

[eranst]

Thanks!
Many thanks.
I re-tried again and this time i imported the private key as you said, and it was successful!
I think i didn't understand well, at the beginning, the terminology and the concept. Now it seems much clearer:

"Verify backup" = checking printing issues that might happen when PDF is created.
"Import private key" = bring your old wallet with it's balance to your new Mycelium app (that automatically creates new-different address once installed). This can be done directly by scan the right QR code from the PDF file.

At the beginning, i understood the "Verify backup" term as if classical DRP, i.e the ability itself to bring your wallet again online, on any device. and this is not the case here...
Indeed, for my purpose, the right method is to import private key as you said. verify backup is just for printing\other technical issues, and should be done on the same wallet address on the same app with the same device.

Is this distinguish fine? am i right?

[johnzweng]

You're welcome, eranst!

I was just about writing another detailled expplanation, but you've been faster with your response. :-)

But yes, you got it completly right!

"Verify backup" just verifies if during the backup creation process everything went fine (and is done on the same device and wallet you created the backup).

And "import private key" really adds the private key (and of course its corresponding) address to your (newly installed) wallet.

If - for some reasons - you want to add an address without a private key (read-only) you also can scan just the left QR code (as you have done by mistake before). For example you may want do this for a paper wallet where you store your funds on, but for security reasons you don't want to have the corresponding private key on an electronic device.

[Giszmo]

PDF backups are a legacy feature. If anybody is still struggling with this, please contact us via info@mycelium.com