Bitcoin: btcrecover does not support the latest Bitcoin Core wallet format
In recent days, users of the popular Bitcoin cryptocurrency have encountered a problem when requesting to use the btcrecover' tool against their encrypted Bitcoin Core (BTC) wallet files. In particular, users of the latest version of Bitcoin Core, 27.0, are faced with an annoying error message when trying to restore their wallet from a corrupted file.
Problem:
Thebtcrecovercommand is designed to analyze and potentially restore a damaged or encrypted Bitcoin wallet. However, in this case, Bitcoin Core 27.0 appears to have made changes to its wallet format that make thebtcrecovertool incompatible.
Error message:
When attempting to usebtcrecoveron a corrupted wallet file stored in.wallet.datformat encrypted with a short password, users receive an error message indicating "unrecognized wallet format". This error occurs even if the source file of the Bitcoin Core 27.0 wallet is still intact and contains only invalid or incomplete data.
Problem:
The problem is that Bitcoin Core 27.0 changed the way wallet files are stored and structured. In particular, the new version includes a new format for storing encrypted wallet files, which is incompatible with the oldbtcrecovertool.
Solutions:
To resolve this issue, users can try the following solutions:
- Try an earlier version of Bitcoin Core: Users may need to downgrade their system to an earlier version of Bitcoin Core (eg 25.x) that does not use the new wallet format.
- Use the secondbtcrecover
command:If the user cannot recover their wallet using the defaultbtcrecovercommand, they can try using a special recovery tool specially designed for older versions of Bitcoin Core (egbc-rcc).
- Restore from a backup file: In some cases, users can restore their wallet from a previous backup file containing the original Bitcoin Core 27.0 wallet data.
Conclusion:
The problem withbtcrecover` not supporting the latest Bitcoin Core wallet format is a bug in the new version of Bitcoin Core. Users experiencing this error should explore alternative solutions, such as using an older version of Bitcoin Core or a special recovery tool specifically designed for their specific situation.
Additional Resources:
- Bitcoin Core repository on GitHub: [
- Bitcoin Core documentation: [
Note: This article is intended to provide general information and may not be complete or up-to-date. For the most accurate and up-to-date information, users should consult the official Bitcoin Core documentation and contact the Bitcoin community for help.
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