Bitcoin QT not synching

[achow101]

Any ideas yet guys?  I've just given up trying to download the blockchain now.  It just keeps on sticking, so no point.  Any alternatives to being able to transfer to a different wallet?

Export the private keys and import them into another wallet like Electrum. Install Electrum and then open the Debug Window of Bitcoin Core. Go to the console tab and type

Code:

dumprivkey <address>

where <address> is the Bitcoin address that you want the private key for. The string that is output from that command is the private key. It should start with 5, K, or L If your wallet is encrypted, then you will need to type

Code:

walletpassphrase <passphrase> 120

where <passphrase> is the passphrase to unlock your wallet. This will unlock your wallet for two minutes so you can get the private keys. Once you have the private keys, start up Electrum and in the wizard that should pop up, choose "Restore wallet" (or something like that) and follow the instructions to create a wallet with existing private keys.

[1715597501]

1715597501

[1715597501]

1715597501

[1715597501]

1715597501

[1715597501]

1715597501

[1715597501]

1715597501

[Gabriel1918]

Many thanks.  Will try that and get back to you. 

[Gabriel1918]

Ok, have tried dumprivkey <receiving address of bitcoin I bought> and the response comes back "Method not found (code -32601)".  Have tried leaving a space after the word dumprivkey, then no space etc.  Tried two different addresses that I've used.

[ranochigo]

Ok, have tried dumprivkey <receiving address of bitcoin I bought> and the response comes back "Method not found (code -32601)".  Have tried leaving a space after the word dumprivkey, then no space etc.  Tried two different addresses that I've used.

It should be

Code:

dumpprivkey [address here]

[Gabriel1918]

thank you.  Does it matter what brackets I use or spaces etc?

[shorena]

Maybe the brackets cause confusion?

An example

Code:

walletpassphrase thisISmySECRETpassword 120
dumprivkey 1Ej5QwsFFpvttYi6ozqgrccnYAH9Wiat6K

be careful to not show the private key to anyone. Once its imported into electrum you should transfer it to an electrum wallet that is covered by a seed.

[Gabriel1918]

Thank you guys!  I've got the first private key and am going to try to put it into Electrum.  Will keep you posted.

[shorena]

Thank you guys!  I've got the first private key and am going to try to put it into Electrum.  Will keep you posted.

Step by step:

#1 File -> New/Restore
#2 Enter a name, confirm with "OK"
#3 select "Restore a wallet or import keys" and "Standard wallet", confirm with "Next"
#4 Enter the private key(s) in the box, confirm with "Next"
#5 Set password, confirm with "OK"
#6 Let it snyc. Its done when the red dot bottom right turns green. This should only take a few minutes.

You can create a new wallet that is covered by the seed while keeping the above temporary wallet open. Steps #1 and #2 are the same,
for #3 select "Create new wallet" and and "Standard wallet", confirm with "Next"
#4 write down the seed, confirm with "Next"
#5 confirm the seed
#6 set password
#7 let it generate addresses
#8 Go to "Receive" and us the address shown to send all your coins from the other wallet to it.

[Gabriel1918]

Brilliant.  It's worked.  My balance is showing up in Electrum now.  Just for any newbies who want to know what worked:

1. dumpprivkey [followed by a space then the receiving address you sent your bitcoins to, without any brackets]
2. walletpassphrase [followed by a space then your passphrase, space, then the time you want to be able to access the privat key]
3. then repeat step 1
4. wallet private key for the specific address will appear

Will try the new wallet with seed as you suggested Shorena.  I'm really grateful to you, ranochigo and knightdk!  I had three weeks of stressing for nothing! 

[Gabriel1918]

Shorena/ anyone, is there a way to transfer coins to another electrum wallet without paying a transaction fee?  Could it be done with the private keys for example?

[ranochigo]

Shorena/ anyone, is there a way to transfer coins to another electrum wallet without paying a transaction fee?  Could it be done with the private keys for example?

Yes. Have you sweeped it already? If yes, then go to tool, preference and check set transaction fees manually. Go to send and you can select your own fees. I suggest you not to try to do so. It would reject your transaction if does not have enough priority, any of the output is below 0.01BTC or if the size is above 1kb. Pay some fees or you could end up like this: https://blockchain.info/tx/7917f91cedf270a53b6450e6d8165d97175f957005773a4428c42f84ad7d8083.

[Gabriel1918]

Thanks Ranochigo.  What is sweeping?  I saw that function listed on one of the menus. 

I need to read up on how this all works obviously.

[Gabriel1918]

Ok, just read about sweeping.  No, I put them in the wallet via the private keys.  I was looking for a way to transfer them to a seeded wallet without paying a transaction fee.

[ranochigo]

Ok, just read about sweeping.  No, I put them in the wallet via the private keys.  I was looking for a way to transfer them to a seeded wallet without paying a transaction fee.

The lesser the transaction fees you pay, the harder it is for miners to have incentive to confirm it for you. A fee of 0.0001BTC isn't too much right? However, you can send one if it has sat in your wallet for a long time and it has a high value.* Would you revealing the address so we can check out the inputs?

Edit:* And you don't mind waiting for sometime eg. a few days.
Edit edit: Transactions are prioritized according to priority and/or fee. Hence, the higher the priority, the easier it is for miner to confirm your transaction. If the network load is high, the probability decreases.

[shorena]

Ok, just read about sweeping.  No, I put them in the wallet via the private keys.  I was looking for a way to transfer them to a seeded wallet without paying a transaction fee.

You can only transfer them to a seeded wallet via the network. It is possible to pay no transaction fee when creating a transaction for the network, but its usually not a good idea. As ranchigo said, you need "priority" to get a transaction without fee confirmed. Bitcoins gain priority over time. Your 0.01 will roughly have the needed priority after 100 days. To avoid that the transaction is "in limbo" its better to pay a fee as electrum suggests. There is a setting called "dynamic fee" you should enable it. It estimates the lowest fee without a risk to get your transaction stuck.

If your fee is too low there is a chance that the transaction takes a long time (days) to confirm. E.g. the 10,000 transactions currently waiting for a confirmation.

[Gabriel1918]

Thanks.  I've done that.  Is the seeded wallet only necessary if you want the security of a seed phrase to recover your money in the event of a corrupted wallet?  Or does a seeded wallet have other advantages?

[ranochigo]

Thanks.  I've done that.  Is the seeded wallet only necessary if you want the security of a seed phrase to recover your money in the event of a corrupted wallet?  Or does a seeded wallet have other advantages?

If you check your wallet to send the coins to a change address, the wallet will send the change to a new address everytime. Clients like Bitcoin Core pregenerate 100 addresses and after the 100 address runs out, you will start using the other 100. However, older backup will never have the new 100 addresses if you only backup them at the start. You need to back them up regularly HD wallets have a seed which allows the client to generate predictable addresses and hence you only need a one time backup.

[Gabriel1918]

Thanks.  I've sent the contents of the temp wallet to a new seeded wallet.  But the transaction hasn't shown up in the new wallet yet (or the old).  I've saved a copy of the transaction.  When I open it there's a 'broadcast' button.  I haven't pressed that.  How do I make sure the transaction has completed properly?

[shorena]

Thanks.  I've sent the contents of the temp wallet to a new seeded wallet.  But the transaction hasn't shown up in the new wallet yet (or the old).  I've saved a copy of the transaction.  When I open it there's a 'broadcast' button.  I haven't pressed that.  How do I make sure the transaction has completed properly?

There should be a transaction ID, that looks somewhat like this 224d7baa8f57b5b7f275b671e7d412089b90bf4f061456729aff9ec373dac448

If you go to https://www.blocktrail.com/BTC/ and enter your transaction ID into the search box it should show your transaction (with your addresses). If it does not, the transaction still needs to be broadcasted.

If the electrum wallet does not show it, try closing and reopening it. Sometimes this only works once the transaction is confirmed.

[peonminer]

1.Close wallet.
2.Delete your 'blocks' and 'chainstate' folder in your 'C:/User/appdata/roaming/bitcoin/'  folder.
3.Open wallet.
4.Profit.

***NOTE*** DO NOT DELETE WALLET.DAT FOLDER. In fact, this is an excellent time to back up that file as it contains all of your addresses and c0ainZ.