My Experience: Migrating WhatsApp from iPhone 8 to /e/OS with the whole chat history

Help Guides
1

Devices: iPhone 8 → Fairphone 6 with /e/OS 3.7.3 (already configured with apps installed)

Tool: WazzapMigrator (~€10)

Why I couldn’t use the official method

The official WhatsApp transfer method (QR code + cable) does not work on /e/OS. The “Android Switch” app it uses is proprietary Google software that isn’t included in AOSP. Even if installed manually, it requires system-level permissions that can’t be granted on a custom ROM. The error “Can’t use Android Switch app after configuring this device” appears even after a fresh install.

Factory resetting the Fairphone wasn’t an option because I had already set up all my apps and data. The /e/OS community confirms that a factory reset is not required for WazzapMigrator to work.

How I performed the migration

Phase 1: Extraction on Windows

  1. Made an unencrypted iTunes backup of the iPhone.

  2. Downloaded the WazzapMigrator Extractor (free) for Windows.

  3. Ran the extractor on the iTunes backup and obtained:

    • ChatStorage.sqlite (the message database)

    • Media folder (photos, videos, audio, ~8 GB)

  4. Compressed the Media folder into Media.zip for easier transfer.

Phase 2: Purchase and installation on the Fairphone

  1. Purchased WazzapMigrator via web browser.

  2. On the Fairphone, used Aurora Store to download the app

  3. Copied ChatStorage.sqlite and Media.zip to the Fairphone’s Download folder.

Phase 3: Conversion on the Fairphone

  1. Opened WazzapMigrator and selected the files.

  2. The conversion of messages took approximately one hour.

  3. Upon completion, the app automatically generated:

    • msgstore.db.crypt15 in Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Databases/

    • The extracted Media folder in Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media/

Phase 4: Restoration in WhatsApp

  1. Install WhatsApp from Aurora Store (with my Google account, not in anonymous mode)

  2. Verified my phone number (the same one used on the iPhone).

  3. Read the visual guide post-migration from WazzapMigrator. Critical: Activated Airplane Mode just as WhatsApp was searching for cloud backups, forcing it to read the local backup.

  4. WhatsApp detected msgstore.db.crypt15 and restored the history. ALL my messages appeared correctly.

The post-migration issue

The history is visible and fully accessible for reading. However, when attempting to send a message from an old chat, the following appears:

“This phone number is connected to a new WhatsApp account. Send a message to the new account.”

Sending a message creates a new, empty chat for the same contact, duplicating the conversation. Additionally, two broadcast lists I don’t recall creating have appeared automatically since June 15.

Diagnosis (based on WhatsApp data report):

I requested my WhatsApp data report and confirmed that my number (+33644206851) is linked to two different account identities on their servers:

Session ID/name Original Device Registration Date Status
xxxxxxxx==/A iPhone 8 (original account) August 2021 Contains the complete historyALL messages, but message sending is blocked.
xxxxxxxxxx==/B Fairphone FP6 (new identity) June 15, 2026 Is the active identity (recognized by the server), but has no history. fully useful

The server considers the Fairphone identity (xxxxxxxxxx==/B) as the “official” one, which blocks message sending from the original iPhone identity (xxxxxxxxxx==/A). This is why the history is visible and fully accesible but can’t chat from there to: the server doesn’t recognize the original account as the legitimate device for sending messages from that history.

Current status and daily use

  • I can access all my chat history without issues.

  • To write to my contacts, I use the “new” chats that are created when I send a message. The old history remains as a readable archive.

  • The inconvenience does not prevent me from using WhatsApp normally. It’s just slightly cumbersome to have duplicated chats when I browse.

  • WazzapMigrator Support: Ticket open; they are aware of the issue and investigating, with no estimated fix date yet.

  • WhatsApp Support: Generic responses; unable to help so far.

  • Expected solution: Remove the active identity without history from WhatsApp’s servers, so the account with the history becomes the only valid one.

Notes for other users

  • WazzapMigrator works: the history is restored correctly.

  • If you see the “new account” message, it’s not a block: you can use the new chats to write and keep the old history as a reference.

  • Request your WhatsApp data report if you want to confirm the identity conflict.

  • The final solution lies with WazzapMigrator or WhatsApp technical support. In the meantime, WhatsApp remains fully usable.

2

Fixed the duplicated chats issue (WazzapMigrator 10.4.1)

Update to my previous post: the duplicated chats issue is now resolved.

After opening a ticket with WazzapMigrator support, they confirmed the problem and released the 10.4.1 version.

The fix

WazzapMigrator 10.4.1 addresses the root cause of the duplicated chats and the “new account” error.

What changed in 10.4.1:

  • Fixes the identity conflict that left my number linked to two different accounts on WhatsApp’s servers.

  • Requires a fresh migration from scratch (no way to patch an existing installation).

How I applied the fix

  1. Downloaded WazzapMigrator 10.4.1 (APK provided by their support).

  2. Used the same ChatStorage.sqlite and Media.zip files from the first migration.

  3. Uninstalled WhatsApp and cleared its data.

  4. Ran the migration again with the new version (~1 hour).

  5. Reinstalled WhatsApp from Aurora Store (with Google account, not anonymous).

  6. Restored the history using the same Airplane Mode trick to force local backup reading.

  7. Verified that I can now send messages from any old chat without duplication.

Result

  • Full history: :white_check_mark: Restored.

  • Duplicated chats: :white_check_mark: Eliminated.

  • Sending messages: :white_check_mark: Working.

  • Recent messages (from the last 7 days until I solved the problem): :cross_mark: Lost (accepted as trade-off for the fix).

The error “This phone number is connected to a new WhatsApp account” no longer appears.

Consider that:

  • The official WhatsApp transfer method does not work on /e/OS.

  • WazzapMigrator works, but you need the latest version (10.4.1 or newer) to avoid the duplicated chats issue.

  • The fix requires a fresh migration. You can’t patch an existing installation.

  • Use Aurora Store with your Google account, not in anonymous mode.

  • If you see the “new account” message, it means you need the updated version.

Thanks to the WazzapMigrator team for identifying the issue and releasing the fix.