Error when opening 2.x client from 1.x - wallet file cannot be found

[vae_victus]

OSX v10.11.16

Just upgraded to latest version of Electrum 2.8.2 from a 1.x version after lack of use for a couple of years.

1.x version opened before the upgrade, showed my BTC balance.

2.x version threw an error upon opening. Log file shows "IOError: Cannot read wallet file '/Users/Scott/.electrum/wallets/default_wallet'"

Clicking on 1.x version (I kept both) throws a non-descriptive "Electrum Error" message. I assume that the path to the wallet was changed in the prefs upon trying to run 2.x for the first time. But what do I know?

I'm sure this has come up, but I tried to search and did not find anything immediately. Help appreciated.


VV

[vae_victus]

Or is there another forum that has more troubleshooting on it?

Have I asked a stupid question in an insulting way?

[HI-TEC99]

Electrum 1.x wallets use a different wallet format to Electrum 2.x wallets. When upgrading the new Electrum 2.x software should convert the 1.x wallet file into a 2.x format wallet file. However, after the upgrade is complete the old 1.x software can no longer read the new 2.x format wallet file.

It's best to make a backup of your seed phrase and wallet file before upgrading. Did you backup either of them? You can use backups to restore access to your coins.

These links to the docs explain the wallet formats and upgrade process.

http://docs.electrum.org/en/latest/seedphrase.html

Starting with version 2.0, Electrum uses the following Seed Version System....

http://docs.electrum.org/en/latest/faq.html

Some Electrum upgrades will modify the format of your wallet files.

For this reason, it is not recommended to downgrade Electrum to an older version, once you have opened your wallet file with the new version. The older version will not always be able to read the new wallet file.

The following issues should be considered when upgrading Electrum 1.x wallets to Electrum 2.x:

Electrum 2.x will need to regenerate all of your addresses during the upgrade process. Please allow it time to complete, and expect it to take a little longer than usual for Electrum to be ready.

The contents of your wallet file will be replaced with an Electrum 2 wallet. This means Electrum 1.x will no longer be able to use your wallet once the upgrade is complete.

The ‘Addresses’ tab will not show any addresses the first time you launch Electrum 2. This is expected behaviour. Restart Electrum 2 after the upgrade is complete and your addresses will be available.

Offline copies of Electrum will not show the addresses at all because it cannot synchronize with the network. You can force an offline generation of a few addresses by typing the following into the Console: wallet.synchronize(). When it’s complete, restart Electrum and your addresses will once again be available.

If you didn't make backups then your error and some solutions to it are in this thread.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=153718.0

The dev says the error means your wallet file is corrupted, and if you haven't got the seed to try opening your wallet file in a text editor to see if the seed's written inside it.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=153718.0

[kolloh]

There is the following in the release notes for version 2.8.3 which isn't released as far as I know:

# Release 2.8.3
  * Blockchain checkpoints can be added and configured from the GUI.
* Fix crash on reading older wallet formats.

Wonder if the crash it refers to is the same error you are experiencing or an entire crash of Electrum rather than just an error of reading the wallet file.

[vae_victus]

I do have my seed and will follow the instructions on regenerating the wallet. Thank you for the detailed information.