File format of backup file ? (Kompakt)

Mudita Products
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What’s the file format of the Mudita Centre backup files ? Plain text, in JSON, XML, … ? Binary, in an open format ?

I’m a big fan of the open nature of the whole Mudita project. In that way I’d like to know the data in my backups are easily accessible (for import/export towards other systems if the need ever arises).

Thanks in advance !

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From a quick look in the Mudita Center source code, I looks like it’s encrypted JSON ?

The fact that Mudita Center is Free Software is awesome, and I guess it makes my question less relevant.

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@bont I’m not sure what the FULL file is, but I’m going to ask our team & come back with a response.

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Thanks @urszula . To make my question easier, I’d just like to know if I can open the backup file on any computer without Mudita Connect, and find the following things :

  • text messages
  • contacts (names and phone numbers)
  • notes taken
  • any other saved files or documents, etc…

That’s it! I have some old Nokia backup files (.nbu format), but sadly I can’t just open them and find the text messages I exchanged with my friends back in the day :slight_smile:

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Hey Bont,

From what I can see on my computer, the backup is indeed in a proprietary format. The file is an “.mcbackup” extension, and its contents look like JSON data, but the values themselves are hashed (or encrypted?). I doubt you could retrieve any data without the Mudita Center software.

It’s a pity, as I would also like to export my contacts, notes, etc. in clear text or a standard format (like .vCard, for example). For contacts, you can always use a sideloaded app, but for the stock Notes app, I haven’t found where the data is stored.

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Our team has expanded on this:

Mudita Centre Backup File Format
Format: JSON
The backup files are stored in JSON format with the .mcbackup file extension.
Key Details:

  1. File Structure: The backup file follows a JSON schema with two main sections:
  2. Header: Contains metadata about the device and backup
  3. Data: Contains the actual backup data (contacts, messages, etc.)
  4. Header Contents:
  5. vendorId - Device vendor identifier
  6. productId - Device product identifier
  7. serialNumber - Device serial number (optional)

appVersion - Version of Mudita Center that created the backup
If password-protected: password (SHA3 hash in Base64) and crypto (encryption method)
Encryption Support:
Backups can be optionally encrypted with a password
When encrypted, individual data fields use AES encryption
The password itself is hashed using SHA3 and stored in Base64 format
The data section contains encrypted strings when password protection is enabled
Data Storage:
The data section is a key-value record where each key represents a feature (contacts, messages, alarms, etc.)
Each value is either plain text or AES-encrypted text depending on whether a password was set
File Naming Convention:
Format: {timestamp}_{serialNumber}.mcbackup (or just {timestamp}.mcbackup if no serial number)

  1. Stored in device-specific directories: {vendorId}-{productId}/

Summary:
The backup format is open, human-readable JSON with optional AES encryption. It’s not binary, making it relatively transparent and compatible with standard tools, though encrypted backups require the correct password to decrypt the data.

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Thanks @eddie.dean and @urszula for your feedback !

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