Start with the correct kind of file
Choose a Nowhop originals backup rather than a Daily Hop MP4, a city share image or another app’s route export. These files have different purposes. A movie is watchable output; it cannot supply the original planning records and independent camera moments needed for a journal restore.
If the backup is in iCloud Drive, allow the file to become available through Files first. Apple’s iCloud Drive guide describes that storage service. Seeing a filename is not proof that its complete contents have already downloaded to the device.
Read preparation before committing
The app inspects archive records and validates media, including supported short-video duration and stored file integrity. A malformed file, incompatible review sample or resource-limit problem should not be treated as permission to overwrite the existing journal.
Review the preparation information and preserve the source backup until you have inspected the result. Restore can need temporary device space as well as room for newly added media. A file stored safely in the cloud does not remove the phone’s working-space requirements.
Understand what additive means
Repeatedly restoring an identical moment should not create another copy of the same entry. Conflicting moments are retained as existing records rather than silently replaced. This protects history, but it also means restore is not a general editor for resolving every difference between two independently changed archives.
Downloaded map caches and rendered sharing movies are not recovery originals. Map data may need loading again. Older JSON backups do not suddenly acquire missing camera files. This development workflow is intended to preserve supported records; it does not promise migration from arbitrary competing formats or remote recovery from a Nowhop server.
Questions this guide answers
Does a valid integrity hash prove who created the archive?
No. The checksum can help detect changed or damaged contents; it is not an authorship signature, an encryption layer or a reason to trust an unfamiliar file. Restore still validates supported content before merging it.
Will restoring the same backup duplicate every photo?
Identical supported moments are recognized and skipped. The restore result distinguishes additions, duplicates and conflicts rather than assuming every file must create a new entry.
Will an older backup erase my newer local day?
The current restore is additive and preserves existing records. Keep a current backup as well; additive import is not the same as versioned automatic cloud synchronization.
Can support recover an archive I never made?
There is no Nowhop personal-record server containing that missing copy. Recovery depends on valid files and device-level backups actually available to you.
Sources & scope
Official pages reviewed for this guide on October 31, 2026. Features and availability can change; check the linked provider before choosing.
Nowhop behavior is based on our implementation specification. Public demos use samples. Read our editorial approach.
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