Short answer (updated 30 Sep 2026)
Restore with your seed phrase inside Bob LearnHNS. Do not copy or merge the original Bob application-data folder into Bob LearnHNS.
- Download current Bob LearnHNS (shadstoneofficial, 2.3.x). Original Bob 2.1.0 (2024) and 0.6.x (2021) are the same original Bob line, not a third wallet.
- Fully quit original Bob first (they fight over the same local ports).
- Open LearnHNS → Import a wallet → Import Your Seed Phrase.
- Enter the 12- or 24-word seed only inside the official app. Wait for restore / scan.
No data-folder copy. No website login. Never paste a seed in Telegram or any chat.
Which Bob is which (not a third wallet)
- Original Bob — the Kyokan / bob-wallet line. Early builds were 0.6.x around 2021. The last frozen official build is 2.1.0 (2024). Same app family, newer version. Still the old SPV helper.
- Bob LearnHNS — the maintained fork (shadstoneofficial), currently 2.3.x. Separate app name, separate data folder. This is the upgrade target.
If you are on original Bob 2.1.0, you are not on a third wallet. You are on the last original Bob. Install LearnHNS beside it, quit 2.1.0, then import your seed.
Bob LearnHNS 2.3.12 and earlier may show an “Already use original Bob?” box with a macOS copy command on first run. That box is stale. Ignore it and use Import a wallet. It is being removed from the next release.
Recommended: restore with seed
Handshake names and HNS live on the blockchain. The seed is enough for Bob LearnHNS to rebuild the wallet after a scan. You do not need the old receive address first.
- Get the installer from bobwallet.org/download/bob-learnhns.
- Quit original Bob completely (not just the window — check the menu bar / tray).
- Open Bob LearnHNS.
- On first run choose Import a wallet, then Import Your Seed Phrase. If you already see a login screen, use Restore with your seed phrase.
- Set a new app password (this only encrypts the local LearnHNS copy; it is not the old Kyokan password unless you reuse it).
- Type the seed, then restore. Do not paste from a chat or cloud note. If asked when you first used the wallet, pick a year at or before 2021 rather than guessing a block height.
- Let it finish syncing. Names, HNS, and old bids can keep appearing as the background scan runs.
- Confirm Settings → Network & Connection → SPV Helper API is
https://spv.learnhns.com/hsd.
Keep the original Bob app and its data folder as a backup even after LearnHNS works. Do not delete them to “clean up.”
A new LearnHNS install will SPV-sync from 0%. That bar is lightweight header sync plus the helper — not a full node downloading the whole chain. First run still takes a bit. It is still far faster than full node. After you import the seed there is a second wait: wallet restore/scan. Names and old bids can keep appearing while that runs. Leave the app open until it says synchronized. Do not switch to full node to “make it faster.”
Why we do not support copying the old data folder
Folder copy was a same-computer shortcut, not a real upgrade. LearnHNS uses a different app folder than original Kyokan Bob. Copying the old one also copied stale SPV/node state (wrong helper, old chain files, old settings). People then hit empty name details, port fights, or a LearnHNS profile that looked moved but was still half-broken. Terminal and PowerShell steps also failed a lot across macOS, Windows, and Linux.
The seed is the wallet. HNS and names live on the chain. Import in LearnHNS works on a new computer, after an OS reinstall, and when the old folder is gone. Keep the old Bob app and folder as a backup until the restored wallet is verified, but do not copy, rename, merge, or delete those folders as part of the upgrade.
Is typing the seed riskier than copying the folder?
Re-entering a seed has a real risk: keyloggers, clipboard managers, screenshots, and looking over your shoulder. Copying an already-encrypted Bob data folder does not put the words on screen. That part of the argument is fair.
Bob LearnHNS supports recovery through its in-app import flow, not by copying application-data folders. Enter the seed only inside official Bob LearnHNS: type the words rather than pasting from a cloud note or chat, do not take screenshots, and never send the seed to support or Telegram. A compromised computer can still steal a seed, so verify the installer and the computer before restoring.
What about xpriv or a master key file?
An xpriv is the same secret class as the seed (the HD master). Pasting or saving an xpriv is not safer than typing the seed. LearnHNS can import a seed, an xpriv, or an encrypted master-key JSON. Original Bob 2.1.0 does not give a normal Settings export for those files. Settings → Reveal seed phrase shows the mnemonic on screen after your password. Settings → View Account Key is an xpub (read-only), not an xpriv. The encrypted master-key JSON download exists only in the rare “seed phrase mismatch” backup, not as a standard 2.1.0 export. Settings → Backup WalletDB copies wallet database files; that is not the LearnHNS “import master key file” format.
What seed restore does and does not bring over
From the chain, after scan: HNS, owned names, bids, and transaction history for that seed.
Not on the chain, so not restored by seed: local settings, watch lists, and Shakedex listing files or proofs. Active sellers should preserve downloaded Marketplace backups and keep the old Bob installation and data untouched until every listing has been verified in Bob LearnHNS. Do not use application-folder copying as a substitute for a Marketplace backup. Review the Shakedex safety and backup guide before changing installations.
After you are in LearnHNS
Use Bob LearnHNS as the daily wallet. Original Kyokan Bob 2.1.0 / 0.6.x cannot point at the current SPV helper, so name details stay empty there. Do not run both apps at once.
See the SPV helper settings guide if LearnHNS will not start, and the FAQ for seed restore without an old address.
