Bitcoin Forum

Electrum create a .dat file but if I want to use my wallet elsewhere without that file, the seed is enough or btc are not restored?

Electrum does not have a .dat file. I used to think the same but later discovered that the file (wallet file) does not have an extension.

Now back to your question,

To restore your wallet you have two way:
1. Using the wallet file in the wallet folder (default path: C:\Users\YOUR_PC_userNAME\AppData\Roaming\Electrum\wallets)
2. Using the seed

So if someone gets your wallet file and it does not have a password then they can unlock the wallet and can steal your Bitcoin. In other words, if you have the wallet file they you can restore your coins.

Ok so is obvious that if I restore the wallet through seed the btc inside are restored too.
I didn't think it was automatic, that's why I asked. ;D
And yes, I see the file has no exstension!

The seed is basically a list of all the possible private keys in your wallet.

So, you are just importing all privatekeys in your new wallet software. I don't think "automatic" is the best definition, you are restoring  your same wallet (even if it is a different software).

you can always use your seed to recover the private keys

a very useful tool for this is https://iancoleman.io/bip39/

For security reasons use it offline.

hope you find this helpful.

/KX

Yes and no.

Yes, you should keep that SEED safe from prying eyes, it's basically your "account".
No, your BTC are always there even if you delete your wallet file so there's nothing to restore.
If you lost both the SEED and the wallet file, your bitcoins will still be there in the Blockchain but you wont be able to spend it.

The very basic knowledge that everyone should know is: Clients don't store bitcoins, it controls your bitcoins through the private keys it store.

this is misleading in a way, since there is no "list".
Seed is simply the "entropy" that is encoded to human readable format so that you can write it down. and this entropy is used in the relative cryptography functions to derive any key at any path for any coin that you want.

Do not, under any circumstances, type your seed in to a website.

If you have the need or desire to use the tools on this site, download a copy of the site, transfer it to an airgapped computer (a computer without internet access and without the capabilities to ever have internet access again - no network cables, no WiFi adapter, etc.) Typing your seed in to a website is just asking to have it, and therefore all your bitcoin, stolen.

Further to that, what you are describing OP gives me serious cause for concern. You say you want to "use your wallet elsewhere" without your Electrum wallet file. This means you don't have your own computer with you, and are instead restoring your wallet on a computer belonging to someone else in order to access your wallet. You absolutely should not do this. Can you be absolutely sure the computer you are using doesn't have a keylogger installed? Or a screen recorder? Or one of thousands of possible viruses or malware? Typing your seed in to someone else's computer is just as risky as typing it in to a website, and you run the risk of all your coins being stolen.

Your seed should remain offline and on paper at all times. It should only touch an electronic device in a dire emergency (when you have irretrievably lost your wallet file or password). If you want to securely carry your bitcoin with you, then buy a hardware wallet.