Could not load wallet file: the error message was null

[icanscript]

Hi,

I have a backup of an old wallet, Not sure how much is in there but when I try to "open wallet" it shows the error "Could not load wallet file: the error message was null". The file seems intact and shows lots of numbers when I open it in wordpad and it looks neatly grouped.

Anyone have any ideas? can I export the private key from this?

[1713519004]

1713519004

[1713519004]

1713519004

[1713519004]

1713519004

[jim618]

If it is a _very_ old wallet it could be in the format that was used in the very early days of bitcoinj/ MultiBit.

These wallets were in a format called 'serialised' that isn't supported by the latest code.

If you have a look in https://multibit.org/releases the older versions (That could open it) are still available.

If you do use an old version of MultiBit makes sure you make copies of your wallets and I would recommend moving any bitcoin in there out straight away. Those old versions you don't want to use more than the absolute minimum.

The old wallets tended to be larger (megabyte+) whereas the newer format tend to be smaller. I forget when the format changed exactly - 2013 I think.

[icanscript]

If it is a _very_ old wallet it could be in the format that was used in the very early days of bitcoinj/ MultiBit.

These wallets were in a format called 'serialised' that isn't supported by the latest code.

If you have a look in https://multibit.org/releases the older versions (That could open it) are still available.

If you do use an old version of MultiBit makes sure you make copies of your wallets and I would recommend moving any bitcoin in there out straight away. Those old versions you don't want to use more than the absolute minimum.

The old wallets tended to be larger (megabyte+) whereas the newer format tend to be smaller. I forget when the format changed exactly - 2013 I think.

Thank You, I will look into this

[HELLNAUT]

Hi All

Im having this same problem and trying to download other versions of multibit and the same error is being returned.
i reverted back to all versions below 5.18 with zero success.

ive made backup of my wallet already as well just incase.
is there anything else i can try doing?

appreciate the help.

[HI-TEC99]

Hi All

Im having this same problem and trying to download other versions of multibit and the same error is being returned.
i reverted back to all versions below 5.18 with zero success.

ive made backup of my wallet already as well just incase.
is there anything else i can try doing?

appreciate the help.

Can you remember if you put a password on your wallet? If you didn't try opening your wallet file in notepad and looking for "org.bitcoin.production" at the start of it. Newer wallets are in a format called protobuf, and newer wallets without a password definitely start with "org.bitcoin.production". I'm not sure what older format wallets start with.

If you have a newer format of wallet without a password the instructions in the quote below might work. Any hex editor should work as well as the one I linked to in the quote,

If you have an older format wallet (called serialised format) you can try adapting the instructions in the quote. I can't test them because I can't find a download for an old enough version of multibit. You search for "75 71 00 7e 00 11 00 00 00 41". If you find that series of bytes you probably have an older format wallet. In that case you can either try using the instructions at this link.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=43616.msg909038#msg909038

Alternatively you can search for each 20 in the file and copy the 32 bytes following every instance of 20. They might be private keys. If you remove any spaces and put them into the offline webpage described in the quote it will reject any false positives, and show any real private keys in a range of formats you can import into electrum.

Since version 0.4.0 multibit classic wallet files are in a format called Google protocol buffer format (protobuf). Open a file with a .wallet extension in a hex editor and look for the following sequence of bytes 08 01 12 20. The next 32 bytes after that should be your private key in hex format. After you get your private key in hex format you can convert it to a normal format using an offline copy of the bitaddress website.

I tested this on an unencrypted wallet (one with no password) in multibit version 0.5.1.6 and it worked for me.

This is the hex editor I used, although any other is probably sufficient.

http://www.wxhexeditor.org/home.php

This is the bitaddress website. I advise you not to directly paste private keys into it.

https://www.bitaddress.org/

Instead look for this link at the bottom of the page and use it to download a zipped copy you can run offline.

https://github.com/pointbiz/bitaddress.org/archive/v3.3.0.zip



This is my multibit wallet file opened in the hex editor with the bytes 08 01 12 20 that precede a private key highlighted.






This is the 32 bytes of a private key (in hex format) highlighted.







This is the 32 bytes of a private key (in hex format) copied directly from the hex editor into notepad.






This is the 32 bytes of a private key after removing the spaces in notepad.






This is the private key copied from notepad and pasted into an offline copy of the bitaddress wedsite. Click the view details button to get the private key converted to normal formats.





This is my multibit wallet's address 1F84fkbMng6dJpGZmtycRbUe72B7XSYbeT shown on the right hand side of bitaddress. Every raw private key can convert into two different bitcoin addresses, which is why there's two.






This is my multibit wallet's address 1F84fkbMng6dJpGZmtycRbUe72B7XSYbeT shown in multibit.




You can import your private key into the wallet of your choice to get control of yours coins back. Electrum's a good choice.

If you install electrum you can use these instructions to import your private keys from multibit into it.

http://docs.electrum.org/en/latest/faq.html#can-i-import-private-keys-from-other-bitcoin-clients

[HELLNAUT]

I remember the password i placed on the wallet.
strangly enough i downloaded hex editor and went through to find the private keys but had no success.

good chance because it was created with 5.18 multibit classic.
the encoding is different.

im also unable to find the hex value with the screen shot provided.

[HI-TEC99]

I remember the password i placed on the wallet.
strangly enough i downloaded hex editor and went through to find the private keys but had no success.

good chance because it was created with 5.18 multibit classic.
the encoding is different.

im also unable to find the hex value with the screen shot provided.

Those instructions won't work if there is a password on the wallet. If there's a password on it then its contents are encrypted (scrambled). If it's encrypted you can't read the private keys inside the wallet, or see the sequences of bytes that precede them.

[HCP]

I have some python scripts that will extract the keys from your wallet if you have the password: https://github.com/HardCorePawn/multibit_recovery

If you have a ".key" file, then use decrypt_multibit_classic_keys.py
If you have a ".wallet" file, then use decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py

[HELLNAUT]

Ok ive gone to the github and downloaded the files and created its own directory for it.

I got a syntax error being generated: from attempting to recover the wallets.

http://imgur.com/a/svuQM

this is what I've changed it to.

ran the below commands in the python command line.

python decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py multibit.wallet <--- your instructions

python decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py new beginning.wallet <----what I've done.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

python decrypt_multibit_classic_keys.py multibit-\new beginning-20170526193454.key
                                                                                        ^
                                                                           my wallet file name & key file both attempted

http://imgur.com/a/TJT3y

have i done the right thing here?

the file names that are on the screen shots were created by multibit and unchanged.
all though the only thing i changed was copying 1 file into the python directory.
which was the wallet file I'm trying to recover and then the wallet file with the random numbers as in the above
screen shot.

I believe this is the datestamp file new beginning-20170526193454.key


Id like to thank you again for the help
through this hell im facing.

[strider1973]

I have the same issue with Multibit 0.5.18.

I created a new address to receive BTC. And when I wanted to open the wallet, I got "could not load wallet file" and  "the error message was "null""

I've tried to install Phyton and to use the scripts mentioned above, but I just get the message: "Import error: No module named 'google'"

Any help is very welcome...

[HCP]

Ok ive gone to the github and downloaded the files and created its own directory for it.
I got a syntax error being generated: from attempting to recover the wallets.
http://imgur.com/a/svuQM
this is what I've changed it to.
ran the below commands in the python command line.
python decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py multibit.wallet <--- your instructions
python decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py new beginning.wallet <----what I've done.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
python decrypt_multibit_classic_keys.py multibit-\new beginning-20170526193454.key
                                                                                        ^
                                                                           my wallet file name & key file both attempted
http://imgur.com/a/TJT3y
have i done the right thing here?

Close... but you don't run it from the "Python" commandline... you just run it from the normal windows command line

And make sure you are in the right folder... so looking at your screen shot, you'll want to be in: F:\Programming Studies\multibit_recovery-master

Your command prompt should look like:

F:\Programming Studies\multibit_recover-master>

NOTE: Your wallet has a space in the name, which means you'll need to use "quotes" around the name (or just change the filename and remove the space, either way will work)... so your command should be:

Code:

python decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py "new beginning.wallet"

if you get:

'python' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

you'll need to use the full path to the Python executable:

Code:

C:\Python27\python.exe decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py "new beginning.wallet"

[HELLNAUT]

My python 2.7 was installed to my C drive while the script you wrote
is in my F drive.

What would the code look like then?
is there any chance you can give me the precise code on here and from the screen
shots i previously posted?

im super noob at this

http://imgur.com/a/ibRTw


below screen shot is my attempt at trying different variation of it.
http://imgur.com/a/rTMxf

in the windows Command line.

so to give you abit of an idea,

python 2.7 is installed to c:
and the scripts you wrote are saved to my F:programming studies/multibit_recovery-master
my wallet file and key file are in F:programming studies/multibit_recovery-master

from the screen shots ive provided i hope this helps.

thank you again kindly for your assistance through this nightmare.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ok this is interesting, there is a new error being generated by multibit 5.12 when i tried reopening my wallet file on there.
first it was the null error and now its a serialisation error.

screen shot is as below, this is not the null error anymore but something different.
I hope this doesnt mean my wallet is corrupted...
http://imgur.com/a/9Wlp7

[HCP]

You're getting there... but you need to "cd" (aka change directory) into the Programming Studies/multibit_recovery-master folder...

So... once you have done f: and you have the f:> prompt... type:

Code:

cd "Programming Studies"
cd "multibit_recovery-master

Note: adjust the spelling and stuff as required... it's 0730 hrs and I just finished a 12hr night shift... and I'm typing this from my phone...

Anyway, you should end up with the prompt that looks like:

F:\Programming Studies\multibit_recovery-master>

Then you can run the python scripts using the commands from before.
As for your new error... that is the exact same error that MultiBit HD users are starting to see. I believe it is related to the use of outdated bitcoinj libraries.

Still no fix for MultiBit HD as far as I'm aware... and MB Classic is no longer developed, so it's probably never going to be fixed.

[HELLNAUT]

http://imgur.com/a/bX0Le

This is the next error with what ive managed to gain so far?
not quiet sure what this means.

[HCP]

Looks like you haven't installed the required python libraries... https://github.com/HardCorePawn/multibit_recovery#windows

try this command:

Code:

C:\Python27\Scripts\pip install protobuf pylibscrypt bitcoin

I PM'd you my Skype address... feel free to to hit me up there, it might be faster than using Forum Posts/PMs

[HELLNAUT]

http://imgur.com/a/pYfkL

Does that look right?

[strider1973]

I have some python scripts that will extract the keys from your wallet if you have the password: https://github.com/HardCorePawn/multibit_recovery

If you have a ".key" file, then use decrypt_multibit_classic_keys.py
If you have a ".wallet" file, then use decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py

Thank you HCP.

It was a real pain, but thanks to your scripts I was able to recover a fraction of a BTC that was sent to my Mutlibit 0.5.18 installation. And I couldn't access the wallet file anymore due to the error message

Could not load the wallet file "C:\..." The error message was "null"


I had to use the full command line to Python (so c:\Pytohn27\python dectrypt_..." instead of just "python") to make it work. I got the decripted keys, wrote them off the screen (copy-pasting didn't seem to work in MS-DOS) and sweeped them into Electrum.

So thank you again for your help!

[HI-TEC99]

I have some python scripts that will extract the keys from your wallet if you have the password: https://github.com/HardCorePawn/multibit_recovery

If you have a ".key" file, then use decrypt_multibit_classic_keys.py
If you have a ".wallet" file, then use decrypt_multibit_classic_walletkeys.py

Thank you HCP.

It was a real pain, but thanks to your scripts I was able to recover a fraction of a BTC that was sent to my Mutlibit 0.5.18 installation. And I couldn't access the wallet file anymore due to the error message

Could not load the wallet file "C:\..." The error message was "null"


I had to use the full command line to Python (so c:\Pytohn27\python dectrypt_..." instead of just "python") to make it work. I got the decripted keys, wrote them off the screen (copy-pasting didn't seem to work in MS-DOS) and sweeped them into Electrum.

So thank you again for your help!

It's great you got your coins back.

If you want to copy-paste from the command line then click the small icon at the top left of the command window. A menu appears that you can use to select everything, then copy it. Alternatively you can select something, then press your enter key to copy it.

[HCP]

Thank you HCP.

It was a real pain, but thanks to your scripts I was able to recover a fraction of a BTC that was sent to my Mutlibit 0.5.18 installation. And I couldn't access the wallet file anymore due to the error message

Firstly, you're welcome...

secondly, So you weren't able to get all of the coins from your wallet?

I'm wondering if maybe my script is not finding all the UTXO's that it should... I am fairly sure it will only find "confirmed" coins... so if you had an inbound transaction that was unconfirmed, it won't have found any coins in that address and would not have put out the private key...

Let me know, and I can probably create a script that will just dump ALL the keys from the wallet... I should probably do that just to be safe I guess...

[strider1973]

Thank you HCP.

It was a real pain, but thanks to your scripts I was able to recover a fraction of a BTC that was sent to my Mutlibit 0.5.18 installation. And I couldn't access the wallet file anymore due to the error message

Firstly, you're welcome...

secondly, So you weren't able to get all of the coins from your wallet?

I'm wondering if maybe my script is not finding all the UTXO's that it should... I am fairly sure it will only find "confirmed" coins... so if you had an inbound transaction that was unconfirmed, it won't have found any coins in that address and would not have put out the private key...

Let me know, and I can probably create a script that will just dump ALL the keys from the wallet... I should probably do that just to be safe I guess...

No, the script worked well! The output of your script were about 8 keys, only the last key contained the address where the fraction of the BTC (0.07 BTC) were sent to about 2 weeks ago. So the whole "exercise" was just about recovering the whole 0.07 BTC ("a fraction of a BTC"), where I finally succeeded.

And next time I use the command line I know how to copy-paste text from it, thank you very much HI-TEC99!