Android contact back-up
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Thread: Android contact back-up

  1. #1
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    Android contact back-up

    What ho one and all,

    I want to back up the contacts data on my Android phone but uncertain the best way to do it. I do have Google Snyc set and it does appear that all contacts are backed up to my gmail account, but when I log-in to Gmail, I don't see anything that is obviously my phone.

    Transferring photos from the phone to the computer is a simple copy and paste; is it possible to do the same with contacts, and if so how?

    I have been through every folder on the phone and do not see anything relating to contacts.

    Thanks and toodle pip

  2. #2
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    If the phone isn't an old antique flip phone like the last one you asked about - Android uses an app called Smart Switch which allows you to backup everything.

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  4. #4
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    Already been there and all I can see are a bunch of Contacts that were created when i was sending / receiving from G-Mail rather than OE.

    All the Contacts on the phone are not there, even though I thought I had backed up to my G-Mail account.

    Found an option to back-up to a vcf file but when I checked with the phone connected to the computer, there was only one entry.

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  6. #6
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    Thank for the lin I have already found many similar links.

    There is however a fundamental Android problem; My own phone is a Galaxy J5 with Android 7.1.1. Under Settings, there is no Accounts listing and I don't know where to find it.

  7. #7
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    Do you see an option called USERS and Accounts? If so - that's it.
    If you're happy and you know it......it's your meds.

  8. #8
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    Thanks for the replies but I don't believe I am any further forward.

    Everything implies that my phone (contacts) are backed up to my gmail account but when I go to Gmail on the web, I don't see anything relating to the phone contacts, just email contacts.

    So I have tried backing up to an internal vcf file. Plug the phone into the computer and yes, there is a vcf file but when I open it, there is only one contact shown, not the 173 that the phone back-up screen says it will copy. And what I don't understand, it is always the same contact and not even the first. It is not a contact that I would have highlighted.

    As all this information is held within the phone, is it possible to access the contact database and if so, how? I have clicked on every phone folder, the vast majority are empty and there is nothing relating to contacts.

  9. #9
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    It depends if you saved your contacts to the SIM or your Google Account. If they are on your SIM, you'd need to import the contacts into the Google Account.

    https://www.helpforsmartphone.com/pu...sung-Galaxy-J5

  10. #10
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    Thank for the link. I have not tried it yet but will do so.

    However, a new issue has arisen with my wife's new Moto regarding the contacts.

    As her old phone (Nokia 6030) has no facility for syncing contact backups to anywhere, I manually copied each one for her. On the new phone, opened Contacts, New, entered the data and Save. She donw not have a lot so not too arduous.

    A few days later when checking, there is no contacts, they have all gone. Did it a gain, and a few days later, all gone. Have no idea where or if i did anything wrong, (but doubt it.)

    He old phone does have contacts saved to both phone and SIM, so inserted the new SIM with a frame, and copied from the old. Inserted into the new and the only contacts showing are the provider defaults (Customer Service, Bolt ons, Vioce amil on/off, etc) no personal contacts showing. Again, I don't know what else to do?

    Grateful for nay suggestions.

  11. #11
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    Where are you looking for the new contacts that you entered? Are you looking in the same Contact App or are you looking in the Phone Dial App?

    There are MANY Contact Apps available and a person can install many... But generally only one is marked as the one to be used.

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  13. #13
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    Thanks for the replies. Now you have confused me!

    I reinstalled all her contacts yesterday and at the moment, they do appear to be staying. but I have not rebooted the phone.

    However, the list under Phone is slightly different to the list under Contacts. The only Contact app is the one that came by default.

    I think part of the problem is that this is Android 10 Go and whatever instruction I find on how to do something, the same options do not exist on the phone.

    Under Contacts/Settings, there is no Display option and hence no Select All option. The only Select All seems to imply a global delete, which is also confusing as there is a bin icon (delete) but also a X which could imply delete but probably doesn't.

    If for whatever reasons, the contacts are deleted, the next time she uses the phone, the sync backs up the empty contact list.
    All options are set to back up (sync) to her gmail account, but where is this actually stored on Google. I cannot find it.

    But I can say the same for my Samsung. Export to a vcf file, informs me that 172 contacts will be saved. But when I open the vdf, there is only one contact and it is always the same, not even one that I actively selected.

  14. #14
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    One potential cause for the disappearing Contacts issue that was mentioned in the links I posted, would be that when the phone is rebooted or updated, the Contacts are synced from the Google "Cloud" backup, but there are no Contacts saved to the Google "Cloud", so they are deleted. If that is the case, it might be possible to fix the issue by either making sure that the Contacts are backed up to Google, or to disable the Sync function.

    As for your .vcf file issue, are you sure that there is really only one Contact in that file? What is the file size? Can you transfer the file to a Windows PC? If yes, try viewing the file contents on the PC:

    https://www.thewindowsclub.com/how-t...-windows-10-pc

  15. #15
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    We should focus on one phone at a time, because they have very different OSes.

    For the Android phone, if your contacts are stored on the SIM, go to step 10 of the link I posted earlier. Then you can import your SIM contacts to your Google account.
    https://www.helpforsmartphone.com/pu...sung-Galaxy-J5

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