Electrum Address keeps repeating

[Gabrielexas]

Hi

On the previous electrum versions every time I created a new request to receive BTC, Electrum would always give a new unique address to the new request and also the request label I would create for my reference would show on history once funds received for that request.

Now, the wallet repeats past addresses on new requests and in order to get a new unique one I need to open like 4 of 5 requests until a new address is given and also once payment is received on history it does not show the label I created for that transfer.

I have not changed any settings so I don't know why it is behaving this way which makes it so hard to track payment sin BTC from other users as it mingles with already used addressed and the label create for the address does not show on history so it makes it hard to find who send the funds.

Anyone experiencing this and is there a fix or a setting I need to change as I look into all and nothing helps.

Thanks

[jackg]

Are you sure you're fully synced at the bottom left of the screen and is there any other problems you've had with the wallet or your computer (for example if space is too full). Are you on Linux or Windows? If you try running electrum as administrator/super user, does anything change with how it works? I think it's possible it's just not writing what you've done to its data files.

[nc50lc]

Anyone experiencing this and is there a fix or a setting I need to change as I look into all and nothing helps.

I can't reproduce this in v4.3.2, I'm always getting a new or unused address in every request.

Now, the wallet repeats past addresses on new requests and in order to get a new unique one I need to open like 4 of 5 requests until a new address is given and also once payment is received on history it does not show the label I created for that transfer.

Was the gap between those requests more than 10 minutes and your invoice's expiration is set to 10 minutes?
If so, it will reuse the addresses of those old expired invoice as long as the address didn't received BTC yet.

For the label, if the invoice was expired or the amount wasn't fulfilled, the label wont be saved to the history since it didn't matched the invoice.

The workaround is to use the Addresses tab instead ("View->Show Addresses" to enable).
You can put a label to the unused addresses instead and it will show up in the history tab once it receive funds.
Or set expiration to "Never".

[hosseinimr93]

The only thing that comes to mind is that you restored your wallet using your seed phrase and electrum generated your unused addresses again.
When you restore your wallet using your seed phrase, you create a new wallet file and electrum doesn't know which addresses have been generated before, unless they have received fund.

[Gabrielexas]

That is the thing, I have all addresses set to "Never Expire" and I have not recovered the wallet. Also I use windows 11 and I have plenty of space.

It just started to do this by itself without me changing anything at all. I Always had for addresses to never expiry and it always produced a new unique address every time I place a new request and the label always stays on history.

Now it just does this and I even noticed a week ago while it was still providing new unique addresses that once I log out and log in again after a day or so if there was a new request that I created but which have not been paid yet, that address would not show on the request tab anymore, which is another thing it never did.... previously any request I would create, it  would always provide an unique BTC address, and would never disappear the list until it received BTC.

Now it is just nuts, sometimes those requests disappear even if not used, repeating BTC addresses on new requests, and if a request received a BTC payment shows on history without the label created. Just insane... I tried to revert to version 4.3.1 but software message told me that wallet cannot open previous wallet file due to being too old version... maybe a major update was on 4.3.2... I can still manage things it is just it became a nightmare with the addresses, and tracking and I only can think of waiting for next update.

I'm on windows 11 by the way but I think the OS is not the issue.

[Gabrielexas]

Anyone experiencing this and is there a fix or a setting I need to change as I look into all and nothing helps.

I can't reproduce this in v4.3.2, I'm always getting a new or unused address in every request.

Now, the wallet repeats past addresses on new requests and in order to get a new unique one I need to open like 4 of 5 requests until a new address is given and also once payment is received on history it does not show the label I created for that transfer.

Was the gap between those requests more than 10 minutes and your invoice's expiration is set to 10 minutes?
If so, it will reuse the addresses of those old expired invoice as long as the address didn't received BTC yet.

For the label, if the invoice was expired or the amount wasn't fulfilled, the label wont be saved to the history since it didn't matched the invoice.

The workaround is to use the Addresses tab instead ("View->Show Addresses" to enable).
You can put a label to the unused addresses instead and it will show up in the history tab once it receive funds.
Or set expiration to "Never".

It would always give me a new address before not even unused as it would keep any unused address connected uniquely to the label created. The gap is even over a day or two it does not matter, it will always give me a repeated address and it does this in order. For example if I have address A, B, C and D... if I create a new request, it will give me address A again... if I create a new one, then gives me B and so one until D. IN this example only on the fifth request it would finally give me a new address in this case E. And it repeats this loop every time I create a new address and as the address list mounts as you can image the loop just gets bigger until I'm served a new unique address. It's just insane. If there a way to post a video I can post one for you guys to see how it behaves.  

Everything was working normal until the 11th November exactly. After that date all start to behave like this.

[nc50lc]

-snip-

It's just insane. If there a way to post a video I can post one for you guys to see how it behaves.  

Everything was working normal until the 11th November exactly. After that date all start to behave like this.

You can use any video hosting website, YouTube will do (set the video as "unlisted"), then paste the link to your reply.

What's happening isn't normal to a standard wallet and AFAIK, isn't a known issue.
I can only suggest to backup your wallet and seed phrase, then reinstall Electrum. (it wont delete your wallets though, but create a backup just in case)
Before installation, make sure to verify it (instructions) before proceeding to make sure that it's not corrupted or a fake version.

[Gabrielexas]

Ok guys I uploaded a video here   https://streamable.com/zanvhn

Let me know your thoughts and you welcome to report it as a bug if you to use my video...permission given.

[Gabrielexas]

-snip-

It's just insane. If there a way to post a video I can post one for you guys to see how it behaves.  

Everything was working normal until the 11th November exactly. After that date all start to behave like this.

You can use any video hosting website, YouTube will do (set the video as "unlisted"), then paste the link to your reply.

What's happening isn't normal to a standard wallet and AFAIK, isn't a known issue.
I can only suggest to backup your wallet and seed phrase, then reinstall Electrum. (it wont delete your wallets though, but create a backup just in case)
Before installation, make sure to verify it (instructions) before proceeding to make sure that it's not corrupted or a fake version.

I uploaded a video here of the issue... let me know your thoughts on it.   https://streamable.com/zanvhn

[NeuroticFish]

On the previous electrum versions every time I created a new request to receive BTC, Electrum would always give a new unique address to the new request and also the request label I would create for my reference would show on history once funds received for that request.

It may worth mentioning that Electrum 4.3.2 has a change in its behavior, and may be exactly your "problem". The thing is that, from the others' point of view, this is a fix.

# Release 4.3.2 - (September 26, 2022)
 * When creating new requests, reuse addresses of expired requests
   (fixes #7927).

So if you want to take advantage of the older version's behavior, you'll need the older version, sorry. Or maybe BTCpay is what you actually need...


PS. If you have set all those to never expire, it may be a new bug though...

[Gabrielexas]

OK... so maybe if I change to never expire to expire after 10 minutes maybe then it will generate a new address? I will give it a try.

[bitmover]

I was looking at old posts related to this subject, and I found this answer from bob123

And to finally answer your question, you can generate X addresses by entering this command into the electrum console:

Code:

for i in range (X): print (wallet.create_new_address(False))

Have you tried this?

I just tried in my wallet and it works

For example:

Code:

>>> for i in range (5): print (wallet.create_new_address(False))
bc1qk5grech0kpf20z4d30sffqk7praqs2rjdqxpta
bc1q6ewatg8ej9tmzpldxn6v6uqq78wz3vznuffkwz
bc1qk0rjxjqfwwlcq2wpq7juw0eelujfejjsuwmp8f
bc1qpw2ywwszfp8qacu2urrptzvr4l5n8ksy2mkrsc
bc1qtpheu3tp0ve2pakx32pttrslnks7f5jmatd45z
>>> 

Then you can simple generate all addresses you want and give them to whoever you want.
 I don't like that "request" feature and you don't need it.

[hosseinimr93]

It may worth mentioning that Electrum 4.3.2 has a change in its behavior, and may be exactly your "problem". The thing is that, from the others' point of view, this is a fix.
   (fixes #7927).

With that update, electrum should regenerate an address that has been generated before in another request, if the previous request has been expired and the address has never received any fund.
Since OP has set the expiry time to never, electrum shouldn't generate the same address again. I don't think what's happening in OP's wallet is the correct behavior.

[Gabrielexas]

It may worth mentioning that Electrum 4.3.2 has a change in its behavior, and may be exactly your "problem". The thing is that, from the others' point of view, this is a fix.
   (fixes #7927).

With that update, electrum should regenerate an address that has been generated before in another request, if the previous request has been expired and the address has never received any fund.
Since OP has set the expiry time to never, electrum shouldn't generate the same address again. I don't think what's happening in OP's wallet is the correct behaviour.

Yes but if no one else is experience this (apparently only me) and I have already uninstall the wallet and reinstall it and the behaviour still the same, what should be causing the problem then?

[Abdussamad]

you should post a bug report on github:

https://github.com/spesmilo/electrum/issues

[nc50lc]

-snip-

I uploaded a video here of the issue... let me know your thoughts on it.   https://streamable.com/zanvhn

I tested a same wallet type and still can't reproduce the issue.

Have you reinstalled Electrum as suggested?
If so and the issue persists, follow Abdussamad's suggestion to post a new issue.

Also, providing the logs to the new "issue" will help a lot in solving it; to enable logging, tick the setting "Tools->Preferences->Misc->Write logs to file".
Restart Electrum and reproduce the issue; disable logging before closing Electrum.
The logs can be found in "logs" folder inside Electrum's datadir (location).

[NeuroticFish]

Yes but if no one else is experience this (apparently only me) and I have already uninstall the wallet and reinstall it and the behaviour still the same, what should be causing the problem then?

My advice was to install an older version, like 4.3.1. It's probably this one, however, this is the 4.3.1 releases folder.
Maybe the change in the feature you've been using came with a bug and the expiry date may not taken correctly into account.
Did 4.3.2 fix any important bug that was affecting you? I guess not, so for now you'll be OK with 4.3.1.
It would be nice to report the issue, as already said. Plus you'll probably have to keep an eye and check whether one of the next versions fixes your problem.

[Gabrielexas]

Yes but if no one else is experience this (apparently only me) and I have already uninstall the wallet and reinstall it and the behaviour still the same, what should be causing the problem then?

My advice was to install an older version, like 4.3.1. It's probably this one, however, this is the 4.3.1 releases folder.
Maybe the change in the feature you've been using came with a bug and the expiry date may not taken correctly into account.
Did 4.3.2 fix any important bug that was affecting you? I guess not, so for now you'll be OK with 4.3.1.
It would be nice to report the issue, as already said. Plus you'll probably have to keep an eye and check whether one of the next versions fixes your problem.

I tried to install 4.3.1 before but it could open the wallet it said version was too old. Maybe I download the wrong one. Which of all those links is the one for the windows version?

[Gabrielexas]

Yes but if no one else is experience this (apparently only me) and I have already uninstall the wallet and reinstall it and the behaviour still the same, what should be causing the problem then?

My advice was to install an older version, like 4.3.1. It's probably this one, however, this is the 4.3.1 releases folder.
Maybe the change in the feature you've been using came with a bug and the expiry date may not taken correctly into account.
Did 4.3.2 fix any important bug that was affecting you? I guess not, so for now you'll be OK with 4.3.1.
It would be nice to report the issue, as already said. Plus you'll probably have to keep an eye and check whether one of the next versions fixes your problem.

When I unstiall 4.3.2 and try to revert to 4.3.1 when opning I get this error.

"Cannot load wallet(2) :
WalletFileException('This version of Electrum is too old to open this wallet.\n(highest supported storage version: 49, version of this file: 50)')

[nc50lc]

"Cannot load wallet(2) :
WalletFileException('This version of Electrum is too old to open this wallet.\n(highest supported storage version: 49, version of this file: 50)')

You can only downgrade from incompatible versions by restoring your seed phrase using "new wallet" menu.
If you have a backup of your wallet created before 4.3.2, it will also work.