Transfer a photo vault to a new phone without losing your files

The short answer

Keep the old phone until the new one can open your actual files. Installing the same vault app, signing in to the same store account or remembering the unlock pattern does not prove that its contents transferred. A successful migration requires both the data and a working route to its encryption keys. If either is missing, stop before erasing anything.

This guide distinguishes a general migration method from Kofrix’s current implementation. It is based on the application code and linked documentation, not a claim that every combination of phones has been tested.

Identify what you are moving

Write down the old and new platforms, the vault app and whether you can still unlock it. Then identify its supported migration route: an app-specific backup, a documented device transfer, or an export followed by an import. A purchase restoration restores an entitlement; do not assume it restores files.

For Kofrix, the current iPhone implementation offers an encrypted backup in the app’s iCloud container. Android has no equivalent backup feature yet, and live synchronization between devices is not available. Moving from iPhone to Android therefore needs a different plan from restoring an iPhone backup. Read how vault keys and recovery work before relying on the same pattern on a new device.

Prepare the old phone before you touch the new one

1. Open the vault and check that the files you expect are actually present.
2. Locate the recovery phrase in its protected storage place. Do not paste it into a website or send it to support.
3. Check the app’s backup settings, account and available cloud space. A switch being on is not evidence that every file has arrived in the cloud.
4. Keep a separate, recoverable copy of irreplaceable material while you verify the migration.

If the app is already inaccessible, preserve its data. Uninstalling it to “start fresh” can remove the only remaining copy. Use the vendor’s documented recovery route instead.

What to check for a Kofrix iPhone backup

Backup is configured per vault. Open each relevant vault, review its settings and run the available backup action. The implementation copies encrypted data to the iCloud container, after which iOS manages cloud transfer. A local completion timestamp should not be treated as an independent end-to-end restore test.

On the replacement iPhone, the app’s recovery screen provides an iCloud restoration action. Access to the appropriate iCloud account, the corresponding recovery phrase and the uploaded data are all necessary. Follow the recovery flow to assign a pattern on the new device. Keep the old installation intact until the restored content opens.

Do not turn off backup or delete the old vault as a cleanup shortcut: the current Kofrix code also removes that vault’s cloud backup when those actions are used. Restoring a copy is not a reason to assume every destructive action is now harmless.

If you have to export and import

Use a protected destination you control and work in manageable batches. Exported files are outside the original vault’s protection. Avoid a shared cloud folder, an open email thread or an account you cannot recover. Import the files into the destination vault and verify them before removing temporary copies.

An export may not preserve album organization, notes, filenames or every media-specific feature in the same way. Test a small, representative group first: a large video, an image and any document or note format you use. A matching item count alone does not establish a complete migration.

Verify the new phone, then decide what to erase

Open photos at a readable size. Play videos, including a point near the end, and check their sound. Open documents and compare a few filenames and dates. Lock and reopen the new vault. Confirm that you can still locate the new device’s recovery information without depending on the old phone.

Only after these checks should you plan the old phone’s cleanup. Keep your independent archive until you are satisfied with the new setup. The originals checklist explains why gallery copies, vault copies and synchronized libraries need separate decisions.

If the old phone is already gone

Start with what still exists: a verified backup, another device, exported files or originals elsewhere. A recovery phrase cannot reconstruct deleted photographs. If there is no surviving data copy, downloading the app again cannot manufacture one. Protect the recovery phrase and account access you still have, and ask support about the documented restoration route without disclosing the phrase.