<p>1 Yes if you use that wallet only to keep coins but you don't use it to pay.</p>

<p>2 Same as answer nº 1</p>

<p>3 No.</p>

<p>Trying to keep transactions difficult to trace, whenever you transfer bitcoins a second transaction is placed. That transaction moves a small amount to a new address created in your wallet. I don't remember how many "wallets" within your wallet are kept (I think 20 but not sure). After that, new wallets are created as old ones are emptied. So if you have a wallet with quite a few transactions and you check your balance in blockchain.info you will see that a few coins are lost. Well they are not really lost they are in those wallets. </p>

<p>If you use your wallet a lot, you better do backups often, or you will end with missing coins. </p>

<p>I hope i've been able to make myself clear, but if you have any question just ask.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-17T01:43:20.067Z
Yes, thank you.  Hasn't blockchain.info been hacked before?
Tom Stickel
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-17T07:26:11.117Z
Blockchain.info is a web page, it only displays the information gathered from the Bitcoin's blockchain, and no, that blockchain can't be hacked (except the 51% attack)
YoMismo
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-19T10:04:27.357Z
51% is really impossible.  The people in a pool wanting to destroy their bitcoin and others is such not likely to happen.
Tom Stickel
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-20T07:44:18.737Z
Impossible whenever the hash power is distributed, but when the time comes that all the coins have been mined and having as a reward only the transactions fees, how many miners will continue? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
YoMismo
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-20T22:13:12.683Z
I'm betting that is will never happen,  too many people watching this, involved.   I have been listening to this God of Bitcoin.  Andreas rules them all.   http://letstalkbitcoin.com/author/andreas/#.Ut2fVBDn-Co
Tom Stickel
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-16T20:37:52.540Z
2014-01-16T20:37:52.540Z
YoMismo
<ol>
<li>Yes.</li>
<li>Yes.</li>
<li>No. Note that that the software's encryption encrypts only the private keys, not transaction and address book information, so to protect your privacy you may want to add encrypting the file itself.</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-16T19:29:53.930Z
Ok, so say I have multiple addresses, I should shutdown the wallet and encrypt and backup the wallet.dat , then If I had a hard drive failure, would I be able to recover all my crypto coins ?    If I add another address after i did a backup,  I would still have all the coins that i can restore onto another machine based on the wallet.dat file right?  I just would not have the transaction information or would that include a coin transfer incoming as well that i would lose ?
Tom Stickel
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-16T19:31:47.000Z
I hope that is clear above.  So all addresses are in the wallet.dat correct?  If I create a new address it won't be in the backup i gather, but would i lose coins sent to that address in the case of a needed restoration of the wallet.dat file ?    thx
Tom Stickel
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-16T22:07:48.730Z
@TomStickel: The wallet file has a keypool with 100 addresses (the default in bitcoin-qt, can vary by alt or configuration). So if you have a backup of wallet.dat it will contain your next 100 addresses. But if you've generated more than 100 addresses since the backup you can lose your coins. So if you use your wallet frequently, you should also update your backup frequently.
Meni Rosenfeld
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-16T16:35:07.687Z
2014-01-16T16:35:07.687Z
Meni Rosenfeld
<p>I know that there are many duplicates of this but I'm hoping that the way in which I word this explains and helps not just me, but others as well.</p>

<p>In any of the coin wallet  bitcoin and the alt coins, when I run a backup I see a wallet.dat file being created.</p>

<ol>
<li>Does this wallet contain all the necessary information like private keys etc... in order to say encrypt this file and store it on a google drive , dropbox etc..  ?</li>
<li>If my hard drive takes a dive etc.. , CAN I simply take that wallet.dat file , and on another computer decrypt it and restore my information based on my coin currency?</li>
<li>If I do the encryption within the wallet, is the wallet.dat called something else?</li>
</ol>

<p>I understand the exchanges , buying, trading , selling, mining...  I'm just not versed in the backup with my information... private keys etc...    thanks in advance.</p>

<bitcoin-core><backup><encryption><wallet.dat>
Backing up my bitcoin wallet - is wallet.dat all I care about?
Tom Stickel
# Backing up my bitcoin wallet - is wallet.dat all I care about?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-01-16)

I know that there are many duplicates of this but I'm hoping that the way in which I word this explains and helps not just me, but others as well.

In any of the coin wallet bitcoin and the alt coins, when I run a backup I see a wallet.dat file being created.

1. Does this wallet contain all the necessary information like private keys etc... in order to say encrypt this file and store it on a google drive , dropbox etc.. ?
2. If my hard drive takes a dive etc.. , CAN I simply take that wallet.dat file , and on another computer decrypt it and restore my information based on my coin currency?
3. If I do the encryption within the wallet, is the wallet.dat called something else?

I understand the exchanges , buying, trading , selling, mining... I'm just not versed in the backup with my information... private keys etc... thanks in advance.

**Tags:** bitcoin-core, backup, encryption, wallet.dat


---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2014-01-16. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

1. Yes.
2. Yes.
3. No. Note that that the software's encryption encrypts only the private keys, not transaction and address book information, so to protect your privacy you may want to add encrypting the file itself.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Ok, so say I have multiple addresses, I should shutdown the wallet and encrypt and backup the wallet.dat , then If I had a hard drive failure, would I be able to recover all my crypto coins ?    If I add another address after i did a backup,  I would still have all the coins that i can restore onto another machine based on the wallet.dat file right?  I just would not have the transaction information or would that include a coin transfer incoming as well that i would lose ?  
> **username_0**: I hope that is clear above.  So all addresses are in the wallet.dat correct?  If I create a new address it won't be in the backup i gather, but would i lose coins sent to that address in the case of a needed restoration of the wallet.dat file ?    thx  
> **username_2**: @username_0: The wallet file has a keypool with 100 addresses (the default in bitcoin-qt, can vary by alt or configuration). So if you have a backup of wallet.dat it will contain your next 100 addresses. But if you've generated more than 100 addresses since the backup you can lose your coins. So if you use your wallet frequently, you should also update your backup frequently.  

---

### Answer by username_1 on 2014-01-16. Score: 3

1 Yes if you use that wallet only to keep coins but you don't use it to pay.

2 Same as answer nº 1

3 No.

Trying to keep transactions difficult to trace, whenever you transfer bitcoins a second transaction is placed. That transaction moves a small amount to a new address created in your wallet. I don't remember how many "wallets" within your wallet are kept (I think 20 but not sure). After that, new wallets are created as old ones are emptied. So if you have a wallet with quite a few transactions and you check your balance in blockchain.info you will see that a few coins are lost. Well they are not really lost they are in those wallets.

If you use your wallet a lot, you better do backups often, or you will end with missing coins.

I hope i've been able to make myself clear, but if you have any question just ask.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Yes, thank you.  Hasn't blockchain.info been hacked before?  
> **username_1**: Blockchain.info is a web page, it only displays the information gathered from the Bitcoin's blockchain, and no, that blockchain can't be hacked (except the 51% attack)  
> **username_0**: 51% is really impossible.  The people in a pool wanting to destroy their bitcoin and others is such not likely to happen.  
> **username_1**: Impossible whenever the hash power is distributed, but when the time comes that all the coins have been mined and having as a reward only the transactions fees, how many miners will continue? I guess we'll just have to wait and see.  
> **username_0**: I'm betting that is will never happen,  too many people watching this, involved.   I have been listening to this God of Bitcoin.  Andreas rules them all.   http://letstalkbitcoin.com/author/andreas/#.Ut2fVBDn-Co  

---

