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Are there some Anchor files I need to safekeep?

I just started using Anchor. Great wallet! I’ve used Scatter until now. However, I almost lost access to my crypto because I thought all I needed was my private key, but in Scatter you also need the scatter.json file in appdata. Luckily the old PC in the closet had the json – being a hodler can be a nerve-racking experience. :hot_face:

Are there some Anchor files I need to safekeep? I see the backup option on the home page. What’s the purpose of this file?

Anchor only requires private keys, there’s no seed or specific file needed like I think you’re referring to with Scatter. So long as you have your private key for each of your account/permissions you’ll be good.

The backup option on the home screen creates a complete JSON snapshot of Anchor. This snapshot includes your private keys, settings, accounts, tracked tokens, etc. The sensitive data is encrypted in the JSON using the same techniques and password you use to unlock the wallet - so the backup encryption itself is only as strong as your wallet password.

The backup isn’t automatic though - so if you change keys or import new accounts, you’ll need to save a new backup to make sure it has copies of that data.

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importing json can recover my account, in addtion to anchor wallet, are there other wallet that can also be recover with anchor json?

Currently no, the Anchor backup file is only working with Anchor. It would be nice if we had a universal backup format for wallets - but no such standard exists today.

Keeping a copy of your private keys is the best way to ensure you secure a backup that’s compatible with multiple wallets, and then keeping the Anchor backup handy is the easiest way to ensure you have a Anchor specific backup.