Bitcoin Forum

I saw this in the find a bug thread:


And to my surprise I see the paper backup is really short! For my paper backup (version: 1.35) I have 18*4 "root key" letters and 18*4  chain letters. Am I correct in seeing it no longer prints the last half?

Do I need to keep the latter half? Can anyone give me an update what gives?

Note: I never updated past version 0.87 due to a bug which existed (exists) for which I've been in contact with etotheipi via PM a while ago. I don't recall exactly the bug but the (temporary) solution was downgrading and not upgrading. I'm not sure what version I have on my offline machine but it's the one in the bundle that was made available for low spec offline machines on the armory website (together with the Linux system which was linked).

The latest implementation of the paper backup (Version 1.35c) does not use the chain code.  Now it's just less typing to recover your wallet. After you make your back up give it a go.

Version 1.35 paper backups will still work, you just have to specify which version to use in the recovery dialog.

But do I need to save the entire thing? Or can I throw the latter part away?

You have a Version 1.35 paper backup.  You should keep that intact.

If you want to take advantage of the shorter backup, create a new Version 1.35c backup.

Make sure you test your backups. If you have any trouble with it, you want that to happen before you really need it.

I cannot even create a 1.35c backup because then I would need to upgrade the offline computer. I don't even know whether it would handle a newer version.

The backup I have now has been tested before I committed any money.

Whether you upgrade or not, your Version 1.35 paper backup should be kept intact, and will work on either your current version or a later one if you decide to upgrade.

I recommend trying 0.90-beta when it is officially available. Your offline computer shouldn't require any more power to run 0.90-beta, and it might fix the problem that you had with 0.88-beta.

Ok I'll try that. Thanks for the help and advice! :)

Just to clarify... you can't arbitrarily make any kind of backup for any wallet.   Wallets created before this new version require all four lines.  If you make new backups of an old wallet, single-sheet or fragmented, it will all be four lines, because the chaincode is randomly generated along with the root key.  (1.35 and 1.35a)

If you create a new wallet with the new version of Armory, it will now derive the chaincode from the root key.  Thus it doesn't need to be backed up, and will automatically use 1.35c. 

The backup window will show you as much information as you need to be backed up.  Please do not discard the chaincode on any old backups!  They are still required to restore old wallets!  It's only if the wallet was created after 0.88.1 will you be able to make a 1.35c backup.

Thanks for this information. I thought I would be able to create a 1.35c backup of my existing wallet but now I understand this is impossible :)