Wpxbox
Windows Phone & Xbox Video Tutorials, App & Game Reviews, News

SMS Backup now restores all SMS when you Delete SMS / Flash ROM or Switch Phone

Windows Phone Apps Windows Phone Apps

by  |  on January 31st, 2012  |  7 comments

Good news for all Windows Phone users who either keep flashing or switching roms or have accidentally deleted SMS or you are switching to brand new Windows Phone and want to restore back. SMS Backup tool which came out recently and used to backup all your SMS to Skydrive or on your phone can now also restore all your SMS provided your phone is at least Dev / Chevron  unlocked starting from version 0.4.

I have used it restore a deleted SMS , one of the Omnia 7 users confirmed it works when you switch rom. The only place it will not work is because of the latest KK2 Update by Samsung which blocks the hack but if you have unlocked before you will not have issues.

How to use Restore Feature :

SMS Backup App

  • If you have come here directly, Go grab the SMS Backup App from here and read the tutorial from here
  • Go to Settings of SMS Backup and switch to Backup . Select Backup Store.vol and it will take all backup of your SMS.

Backup SMS Contacts WP

Exporting the SMS:

  • Download the Windows Phone Power Tool from here
  • Connect your phone, turn on Zune.
  • Now launch the Windows Phone Power Tool and connect to your phone
  • Switch to File Browser and look for an App with GUID as seen in the image below, Expand it
  • Navigate to BackupVols
  • Select store.vol and use the Get Button to export on your computer.
SMs Backup Export Store vol

PS : Next step if you have switch rom make sure to install SMS backup again.

Importing SMS :

  • Run the Windows Phone Power Tool and navigate to the same App & Navigate to BackupVols
  • This time use the Put File Option which will prompt you to select a file. Point it to the system.vol file you backup earlier.

Restoring SMS :

  • Launch the App and go to Backup Restore Section.
  • Hit the restore button and if your files are placed correctly, it will restore and then ask you to restart your phone.
  • Once you do that, you should see all your SMS in place.

Video Demo

Watch on YouTube

Related posts:
  1. Video : Backup & Export SMS from Windows Phone ( Homebrew / Unlocked Phones )
  2. Microsoft might have a Windows Phone Backup Tool Already in Place for it’s Next Version
  3. Backup Restore 3rd Party / Sideload Apps Data / Games ( Homebrew Tool )
  4. How to Restore and Backup Windows Phone ( Homebrew )
  5. WP Manager tools lets you Copy SMS, Upload Files and Manage Apps on your Windows Phone
 
Ashish Mohta

Posted on 31st January 2012 by Ashish , Who Loves to Do Video reviews of Windows Phone Apps, Games, Xbox Games, Xbox Tutorials. Connect with me via Email ashish@wpxbox.com , Google+ | Xbox | Twitter | Facebook

Add a comment

Comments (7)

  1. Brandon Tuesday - 31 / 01 / 2012 Reply
    There's a Live Connect SDK now. You should take this app and give it Skydrive Upload ability. Would make it infinitely more useful!
    • Ashish Tuesday - 31 / 01 / 2012 Reply
      Hey Brandon, It already has skydrive integration and allows you to backup all SMS as TXT or XML file. This post is only to show restore to phone.
      • Zain Saturday - 05 / 05 / 2012 Reply
        If it has SkyDrive integration then do you really need to do this to restore the sms? Shouldn't it be able to directly pull the backup file from SkyDrive rather than having to go through the Windows Phone Power Tool?
        • Ashish Saturday - 05 / 05 / 2012 Reply
          Actually No, regenerating store.vol from xml or txt file is complicated.
  2. Richard James Tuesday - 24 / 04 / 2012 Reply
    Just wish this would work on lumia 800!
  3. Rashmi Thursday - 26 / 04 / 2012 Reply
    Hi Ashish, When I try to connect my lumia 800 to the Windows Phone Power Tool, I get the following message: "Developer unlock has expired. Lock and re-unlock your phone using the SDK Registration Tool". Any ideas how to get past this? This is holding me up from installing the SMS Backup application on my phone! Thanks in advance!
    • Ashish Thursday - 26 / 04 / 2012 Reply
      Its asking for the official unlocking which costs like 99$ per year and still has restriction. Unfortunately lumia doesnt have proper unlocking as of now.

Add a comment

How to Follow Us



Whats Hot ?