Signal crashes during the initial setup process, making it effectively impossible to restore a backup

[yohell]

• I have searched open and closed issues for duplicates
• I am submitting a bug report for existing functionality that does not work as intended
• I have read https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/wiki/Submitting-useful-bug-reports
• This isn't a feature request or a discussion topic

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Bug description

Describe here the issue that you are experiencing.

Signal crashes at various stages in the initial setup process, making it effectively impossible to restore a backup.

This bug report describes the reproducible steps up to the first strangeness, which looks like maybe the wrong dialogue popup is shown on one of the initial setup screens, following restoration of a backup. Depending on what you choose in the dialogue, you can either get signal to crash immediately (steps to reproduce below) or after verification of your phone number (which you can only do a number of times per day, limiting the number of debugging attempts per day).

Steps to reproduce

• get your phone factory reset
• unsuccessfully try to install signal and recover your backup a number of times, over several days.
• uninstall, reinstall and open signal
• choose Transfer account, Next
• Allow permissions to access contacts, notifications, and manage phone calls.
• choose Restore from backup, Choose backup, and pick the backup file you want to restore, choose Restore backup.
• Input backup code, 30 numbers, choose Restore.
• In Restore complete, choose Choose folder, create new folder called Signal-backup in the internal storage root folder, and choose USE THIS FOLDER.
• Allow permissions to access current and future content of this folder.

Actual result:

This next screen has the title "Phone number", covered by a dialogue popup titled "Restore complete" where you can choose between "Not now" and "Choose folder".

Choosing Choose folder here crashes signal.

On restart, Signal restarts the entire process fresh, from the initial screen, like upon a fresh install.

Expected result:

The restore process continues and successfully completes, so I can use signal as normal, and see messages that were restored from the backup.

Screenshots

Device info

Device: Samsung Galaxy S22 SM-5901B/DS
Android version: 14
Signal version: 7.0.2

Link to debug log

https://debuglogs.org/android/7.0.2/f480be7f77f807a3c269c641555a0641bd1f50d7da42c618ef0eddca610ec9cd

[yohell]

Repeating the above steps after app restart takes you to the Verify phone number screen, without the time consuming step of reading in messages from the backup. Phone number verification completes successfully. After inputting the correct PIN and choosing Continue, signal crashes. (If you input an incorrect pin, signal informs you that you input an incorrect pin.)

On restarting the app, signal again restarts the initial setup process from scratch.

[yohell]

Restarting the setup a third time inputting the correct PIN takes you back to the verify phone number step.

Every verification eats one of your allowed attempts per day.

Repeating this causes signal to again ask for your PIN. Inputting the correct pin crashes signal.

[yohell]

Signal now has a notification going (seemingly forever?) that says "Checking for messages".

[yohell]

I've retried with the current beta, same behavior.

Frankly, this inability to recover from disaster is quite a serious problem.

[cody-signal]

Hi there, sorry you're encountering this frustrating issue. From a clean install, can you try to restore the backup again and share that log? It seems like you've tried a fair number of things already so it's hard to know exactly which iteration the debuglog you provide is associated with.

[yohell]

At what point do you suggest I produce the debuglog?

I made the ones below now after a fresh install of the beta.

Just before the crash (after restoration of backup and verification of phone number, but before entering correct PIN):

https://debuglogs.org/android/7.0.2/64879cfc8b1d434ef4323ec0de86aac6473f82a5b4d37872ce2f7da8d63e9caf

Accidentally submitted debuglog twice, second one here:

https://debuglogs.org/android/7.0.2/a38c60519f6d8ab28155e049a4d29c24db93f1e42bb2e30774fac0380e4b452e

After producing that debuglog, I entered the correct PIN, which caused Signal to crash. I then started Signal again, at which point Signal restarts the "fresh install" process from scratch. At that screen, without taking any extra steps, I then produced this debuglog:

https://debuglogs.org/android/7.0.2/212d83088a014085fd16a78d8ba695bc5d27de2b8cab779e5f19e4a16137286b

[cody-signal]

Thanks for the updated logs and detailed info on when each occurred in the flow. Looks like you have some odd data in your message history that is failing to restore correctly causing the crash. I'll let the team know and we'll try to get a fix together.

[yohell]

Any suggestions on how I might recover my message history in the meantime?