Skip to main content

WhatsApp Solution: Sorry we were unable to restore any of your message history backup

*This method only works if you are trying to transfer WhatsApp from one phone to another, and have not deleted WhatsApp data or formatted the old phone. If you already uninstalled WhatsApp and deleted data or logged into a different number, it won't work.

If you get the “Sorry we were unable to restore any of your message history backup” when trying to restore your WhatsApp messages, trying to restore again from the same backup will probably fail.

The issue seems to be caused by an issue with your backup file such as if you repeatedly tried to backup with internet connecting and disconnecting. 

The below solution works only if your are transfering WhatsApp between 2 phones, and you have both phones with you, and have not deleted or still have your WhatsApp data on your old phone. 

If you had already logged out or transferred WhatsApp to a new phone, it will work as long as your old WhatsApp data is in your old phone but you will lose all chats received on the new phone. If you have just encountered the “Sorry we were unable to restore any of your message history backup” error, then you are just in time and start from Step 1 below. 

If you are transfering WhatsApp from one phone to another, then it may be simple to fix the issue with the below steps:

  1. Do not complete installation on the new phone once you get the error. Delete the app on the new phone without completing the set up or logging in. This is important to avoid receiving and losing new chats.
  2. Go back to your old phone, which hopefully you haven't formatted or deleted WhatsApp from. Reactivate the WhatsApp account you are trying to transfer on this phone by logging and do not restore chats from backup when it asks. Any chats received on the new phone from Step 1 will be lost. 
  3. You can now see your old messages. Go to “Settings”, “Chat” and check how large your WhatsApp backup is. 
  4. You will need to create a new Backup. Ensure you have enough charge or connect your phone to the charger. It will take about an hour for each GB you need to backup from previous step with 20 Mbps and above internet speeds. So ensure you have enough time.
  5. You now need to delete your existing backup. Once again ensure you have all your WhatsApp messages on the old phone, enough charge, enough time and enough internet.
  6. Open your Google Drive (This step is easier done by downloading the Google Drive app to your phone. The "Backups" option may not be available on your browser) account that your WhatsApp phone is logged into, tap the 3 horizontal bars then select “Backups”. You can see your WhatsApp backup here. Tap the 3 vertical dots and select “Delete Backup”. Your entire WhatsApp backup will be deleted and your chats will be lost if you don't complete the next step.
  7. Go to WhatsApp again on your old phone, open “Settings”, “Chats” then “Chat backup” and start backing up. Your chats will be lost if this step is not successfully completed.
  8. Once backup is complete, you can now reinstall and activate WhatsApp on your new phone. It should be possible to restore your chats from your new backup if step 7 was properly done and backup successfully completed.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Beers in Kenya: A sober opinion

Note: This is a dated post and has since been mostly passed by events. SAB Miller beers including Castle and Peroni are no longer widely available in Kenya after their exist. Sirville Brewery was bought out by Brew Bistro before being permanently shut in a tax dispute. Kenya is a land of milk, honey, beaches and taxes. I have penned, or is typed, a newer post here .  Peroni - One of the best beers in Kenya. Did a taste of canned and bottled Italian, and bottled Tanzanian I like the tangy flavour and body in Tanzanian Peroni. The can is close. Heineken drinkers will like the Italian one.  I have had a short beer swigging stint in my life. It has however been long enough for me to share my opinion of Kenyan beer. Interestingly, over the course of sharing such opinions with other drunkards connoisseurs,  I have found that we all have different views as to what beer is the best, which one makes you too drunk, or which one gives one free, extra hangover for every ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kenyan Beers and Craft Beer Reviews for 2025

It's 2025, and you asked for yet another Kenyan beer review. Let's cut straight to the chase - we keep the many stories for once we are drunk. Right? This year we categorize the beers according to breweries.  Bila Shaka / Bateleur  Flagship is Bila Shaka which is a rich flavoured but bitter IPA with 6% volume.  They focus more on quality and experimenting.  Home to many pleasantly (sweet per 2 people. I agree) favoured beers like Dire Straits, and for the ladies who love it a lot on the sweeter side, there's Honey Badger. These come in at about 5% or so. Jua Kali isn't as sweet as the above and is a mixed rice and barley beer, for some reason popular in the hot coast. Capitan is their bar beer and is a light-ish, pleasant beer at 4% volume and a good time passer when you're there for a long and good night and have things to do the next day. My favourite local brewer and highly recommended, especially Dire Straits. It's a medium beer, don...
Post a Comment
Read more

A to Z of Girl Pick-up Lines

Girl,  You are like a breath of fresh air , like an outstanding piece of Art in an art gallery  There are many things you and me can be, but it puts a smile of satisfaction on my face and a smile of envy on my buddies faces that you both beautiful and bootyfull  E ither your creator must have taken the greatest care creating you or your cheated your way around heaven, 'coz you clearly the prettiest girl on earth  D on't ask why my breathing quickens every time I see you; setting my eyes on you makes me feel like I am drowning in your beauty, I have to catch my breath   Exciting, Exotic, Elegant, Electrifying ; so many definitions in english , but when it comes to the human race, girl, you are the one and only definition of all the above  W hen I say you are fly , it may be due to the sensation of flying off the ground that I get when I am around you. Some girls are beautiful, a few are decent, even fewer got class; I didn't know I could find all this qua...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Stone Age

Examples of stone age tools used in current dcision making As I was walking along a certain street in Kahawa Wendani, i had to tread slowly on stones that had been laid on the road by a contractor who was paving the road on behalf of a certain supermarket. On a parallel street, another supermarket had paved the road all the way to its parking. This got me thinking that road construction has now turned from been a government affair to a private enterprise affair. I thought the reasons that private enterprises were now taking to pave roads is because of failure of state organs to do their jobs.This is because the concerned state organs are stuck in a stone age. Wikipedia defines "stone age" is 'The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which humans widely used stone for toolmaking'. For this article, we shall define the stone age as a current time frame during which humans widely use stones for decision making or exist in an environment similar to one expe...
Post a Comment
Read more