Database Users

alternative way to backup contacts?

Hi
Just got this thing the other day (O2 XDA Mini S) and am pulling my hair out with ActiveSync. A google and a look round these forums convinces me I'm not alone.
I'm now at the point where notes will sync, but Contacts and Calendar will not. This appears to be most likely because I'm not using an Exchange Server.
I give in. Can anyone advise whether this some alternative to ActiveSync that I can use to back up my contacts list? I'd hate to have to do it all over again.
I have a memory card, so adding software from that is no problem if necessary.
Thanks

You can try the backup tool Sunnysoft
in advanced mode is an option Backup PIM databases

lansalot said:
I'm now at the point where notes will sync, but Contacts and Calendar will not. This appears to be most likely because I'm not using an Exchange Server.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you just trying to sync with your pc over the usb link? You don't need Exchange Server for that - it sync's with Outlook directly. Have you set up what information you want to sync in ActiveSync's Tools->options?
Another possibility for not syncing is any firewall you are running - although, if it was that, you wouldn't even get Notes to sync.
John

yup
Thanks for that John, yep I've done all I can see that I need to do. Missing Exchange was about the only thing left I could think of. I think I might uninstall Outlook and reinstall it to see if that helps. Though I *hate* having to install that POS just so I can backup some settings !
Perhaps there's somewhere within the phone that will export the various settings somewhere. Or perhaps I should dig out VS2005 and attempt to write one myself. Backing up to storage card would be the best option I think, and from a look around the .net mobile CF, it would appear to be pretty well supported.
And I had to disable Zonealarm despite having all the appropriate configurations set up to allow it. I even put 169.254.x.x in the trusted zone, to no avail.
ActiveSync is a shocking piece of software - and I know from owning other phones that there's things like MobiExplorer and MobiManager that tends to work much better than the usual manufacturer-supplied stuff.
Chak, thanks for the lead with SunnySoft.

Copy the pim.vol file from the root directory of the device. This contains all your pim info (contacts, call history, tasks, calendar). You can't really make anything out of it if you try to view it, but when you hard reset, you can just overwrite the new one and soft reset to restore everything. I copy mine to my storage card every time i add something new that has to do with pim stuff.

guttrhead said:
Copy the pim.vol file from the root directory of the device. This contains all your pim info (contacts, call history, tasks, calendar). You can't really make anything out of it if you try to view it, but when you hard reset, you can just overwrite the new one and soft reset to restore everything. I copy mine to my storage card every time i add something new that has to do with pim stuff.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in my case, pim.vol file is protected, so copying & replacing it after hard reset does not work. i have other workaround for backuping contacts (as my activesync with outlook simply does not work) - each contact via irda to computer. it saves contact as .vcf file that you can send to wizard back again after hard reset.

Try using total commander to get to the file.

I yust transfered the file via email inside my home WLan to the PC.....

Hey, is this a common problem for HTC devices or Windows mobile in general?
I just started searching because my calendar won't sync. (3 palm devices and 3 pda's later, I have 1,400+ contacts.)
Are there any workarounds that anyone knows?
I tried setting up the sync settings whilst the device was disconnected, but the calendar entry just disappears when I re-connect.
-Worried of Sheffield.

thanks
Thanks eva_d, I had already hit on the idea of bluetoothing all my contacts over (thankfully, there's not that many) from my nokia 6600. Luckily, the XDA didn't require my SIM to be in it during the transfer. It even took over the mini pictures I had for some of the contacts, quite smart.
But it would be some chore with more than the couple dozen I had.
I'm reading up on the windowsmobile classes in dotnet, I reckon the answer would lie in there somewhere. Writing an app in VS to back things up to some funky open format would be the ideal, even if it does just drop a directory full of VCF files for example.
Once I'm sure VS2005 is installed and working correctly (http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=41155), I'll throw some serious effort at it.

Re: thanks
lansalot said:
Thanks eva_d, I had already hit on the idea of bluetoothing all my contacts over (thankfully, there's not that many) from my nokia 6600. Luckily, the XDA didn't require my SIM to be in it during the transfer. It even took over the mini pictures I had for some of the contacts, quite smart.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
copying contacts to other handset is bit risky, because various producers are using various interpretation of .vcf file format. for instance, when i copy contact from siemens s65 to wizard, email field is always ripped off the contact and polish national characters are also absent. copying contacts to computer via irda is quite safe, however personal ringtones assigned to contact and voice dials are sacrified. all other data within a contact are still present, including contact picture.

A bit more info on the missing calendar link:-
I have one laptop using activesync V.4.1 this was where i first discovered the problem.
Just tried laptop #2 running a/sync v.3.7.1 which has an older copy of my appointments in outlook. Calendar doesn't sync to this either, so it must be something inside the MDA.
Tried to search microsoft support to find a solution, but no entries found. This seems to indicate that it is a HTC issue. I had a MDA Pro briefly sync-ed up which worked Ok. The problems are with my MDA compact running WM2003.

pim.vol not only saves the contact but also the assigned ringtone and pic. only way to do it is copy to storage card.
then after hard reset it won't let you overwrite the new one but if you rename it to pim.vol.old it lets you do that. then you can overwrite it.

laich71 said:
pim.vol not only saves the contact but also the assigned ringtone and pic. only way to do it is copy to storage card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
contact pictures are NOT saved in pim.vol. when i restore contacts via irda from .vcf files on my laptop, pictures are already there.

I know this thread has moved on a bit, but I've just got my calendar to sync. again and I'm soooo relieved!
Take a look at this forum to find out how:-
news://msnews.microsoft.com/microsoft.public.pocketpc.activesync
Look at 'Cannot get calendar to sycnhronise' and the second reply.

Backing up the Contacts with Mail2Web Live Mail Service
I basically use the mail2web live mail service, and use its exchange server as the server source in Activesync. I only choose synching Contacts with this server (but you can choose others).
This way, all my contacts are always up to date in mail2web servers, and even if I need to hard reset, I can reget all of my contacts back very quickly.
Highly recommended...
Fast

please use the search PLEASE! ....search for PPCBckpContacts.exe
damn it!

A couple of pains...

Hello all
Right, so I've had my Wizard for a couple of months so far and it's struck me as a wonderful piece of miniaturisation. But I've found the OS lets it down - WM2005 tries to do too much and thus fails as the basic features, stability and user-friendliness. Anyway, bashing Microsoft isn't why I'm here today
I've managed to sort out most of the pressing concerns with the device, especially the sluggishness (fixed with a firmware upgrade from O2, my carrier). But there are a few things that bother me still:
1) When adding a new ToDo task or contact, the first field loses focus after a random amount of time, halfway through typing. This is incredibly annoying as I have to, after typing in thef first few letters, refocus the cursor at the end of the text to continue typing. This only effects the default (first) field selection, ie, the contact or task name.
2) When plugged into my PC, it appears as a network device. Fair enough, I can see the logic behind a phone being classed as a network device. What's annoying as that whenevr I plug it in, a network connection is set up which become the primary - overruling my LAN connection to the internet. Now I never use my phone as a modem, but I still have to unplug or disable it if I want to access the web or do other PC-based networking activites.
3) Hotmail. I can't believe this was built into the email client. How can it be removed? And can the 'Outlook' email be made to download email directly? It's completely pointless to have to maintain two email profiles for the same account - one for email received via Outlook and the other for directly downloaded messages. I need to reply to SMSs for them to be marked as 'read'. Anyone know if this is usual behaviour? Better yet, are there any decent alternatives to the messaging suite? I really loved the threaded SMS views of the Treo and its email client, but haven't found any PocketPC equivalents.
4) I'm really hating Outlook on my desktop - the only reason I installed it was to allow (half) my emails to by sync'ed. I've been yearning to get back to Thunderbird but have been held back by my phone. However, recently, I heard of something called FinchSync, which claims to allow Thunderbird-WM2005 email/contact sync'ing. Anyone used it?
5) Skype. I like Skype and would love to see it on my phone. I knew when I brought it that it probably wouldn't be able to run it and my tests (even if OC'ed to 252MHz) show that it doesn't really work (gets tantilizingly close). Yet I hear people claiming it works perfectly on their devices - I was wondering if there's a clever trick to this.
Phew - that's a load!
Thanks

F*SH said:
Hello all
Right, so I've had my Wizard for a couple of months so far and it's struck me as a wonderful piece of miniaturisation. But I've found the OS lets it down - WM2005 tries to do too much and thus fails as the basic features, stability and user-friendliness. Anyway, bashing Microsoft isn't why I'm here today
I've managed to sort out most of the pressing concerns with the device, especially the sluggishness (fixed with a firmware upgrade from O2, my carrier). But there are a few things that bother me still:
1) When adding a new ToDo task or contact, the first field loses focus after a random amount of time, halfway through typing. This is incredibly annoying as I have to, after typing in thef first few letters, refocus the cursor at the end of the text to continue typing. This only effects the default (first) field selection, ie, the contact or task name.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hm never had that problem
2) When plugged into my PC, it appears as a network device. Fair enough, I can see the logic behind a phone being classed as a network device. What's annoying as that whenevr I plug it in, a network connection is set up which become the primary - overruling my LAN connection to the internet. Now I never use my phone as a modem, but I still have to unplug or disable it if I want to access the web or do other PC-based networking activites.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it has to be related to your PC networking settings[routing i think]. right now my wiz is connected and I use net ;]
3) Hotmail. I can't believe this was built into the email client. How can it be removed? And can the 'Outlook' email be made to download email directly? It's completely pointless to have to maintain two email profiles for the same account - one for email received via Outlook and the other for directly downloaded messages. I need to reply to SMSs for them to be marked as 'read'. Anyone know if this is usual behaviour? Better yet, are there any decent alternatives to the messaging suite? I really loved the threaded SMS views of the Treo and its email client, but haven't found any PocketPC equivalents.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this is related to way of managing mails. Outlook is build in acount fo handling sync'ed mail's and standard pop3 is for handlig popped mails. Actually I am not syncing my e'mails (my inobx on pc is larger thn my sd card ) but imo there is another way of managaging (ie. on my pop3 account emails are deleted from device when read and older than settins)
4) I'm really hating Outlook on my desktop - the only reason I installed it was to allow (half) my emails to by sync'ed. I've been yearning to get back to Thunderbird but have been held back by my phone. However, recently, I heard of something called FinchSync, which claims to allow Thunderbird-WM2005 email/contact sync'ing. Anyone used it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
nope
5) Skype. I like Skype and would love to see it on my phone. I knew when I brought it that it probably wouldn't be able to run it and my tests (even if OC'ed to 252MHz) show that it doesn't really work (gets tantilizingly close). Yet I hear people claiming it works perfectly on their devices - I was wondering if there's a clever trick to this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
on my OC [240] wiz skype is working flawleseverything I've done is oc my wiz. skype was included on rom I am using.
Phew - that's a load!
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
iv that was a help, np. [/quote]

Hi savac
Thanks for the reply - I'm thinking you're right about the networking issues being on the desktop.
You got your Skype on a ROM - I downloaded mine from the Skype website. I opted for the 'low power' version, I assume that's the one everyone else uses?

How to bluetooth contacts?

Is it possible to bluetooth contacts from a Wizard to another phone?
T'other half has a Nok6670 which has Bluetooth but no Infrared, I need to copy a load of contacts from my Wizard.

...with pocket informant you can select all contacts and 'beam' them (as vcards). Automatically the transmit devices IR and BT will appear and you can transfer them to the other one who can receive them with 'receive beam'...
Without PI you can sent contacts by BT, as vcards directly out of the contactslist, but only one at a time; it would take you ages if you've got a big list...

Krinkiespijer said:
Without PI you can sent contacts by BT, as vcards directly out of the contactslist, but only one at a time; it would take you ages if you've got a big list...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm going to d/l PI anyway as it looks pretty interesting aside from this functionality. But I'm confused about what you've written above...if I try and send a vCard it just creates an MMS ??

PI doesn't appear to be able to BT contacts either.
I'm GUESSING its a feature of the ROM? I'm due to upgrade sometime next week anyhow.
Might persevere with PI though, looks good, except some poor design on the icons, its not always obvious what pressing something is going to do.

...without PI when i tap&hold a contact and choose 'send as vcard' it copies it to \temp]vcard.vcf . Then i have to rename them into the desired contactname (otherwise it will just overwrite the old vcard.vcf) before i can BT them one by one...
I guess i don't get a mms posibility because i didn't installed t-mobile stuff after hard reset.
BTW I use PocketInformant2007

FunkyMagic said:
Is it possible to bluetooth contacts from a Wizard to another phone?
T'other half has a Nok6670 which has Bluetooth but no Infrared, I need to copy a load of contacts from my Wizard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can do it, just follow these steps:
one time work
use your favorite regedit, go to
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Obex
change DWORD value of "Isabled" from 0 to 1, save changes
reset or full off
you need to make target device is discoverable
then go to contacts, highlight several items (5 at a time), tap and hold->beam contacts
once you found nokia 6670->tap to send
you can also transfer the contacts through nokia pcsuite from outlook (if the contacts are the same) through USB cable or bt from host

New HD2 , 5 typically good questions

Hello,
i've bought 1 HD2 and i've 5 questions to ask. Some should have already asked & answered, i'll read the entire HD2 topics in some days .
1 - I can't connect to my home WIFI. HD2 finds my network, and my router accepts HD2 Mac address. And i've already entered the password (i could have mistaken the password). Now there's a "wheel" always "turning" (searching? for the wifi network). What can i do to solve this?
2 - What can i do to make a complete backup of HD2?
3 - It's very easy to HD2 activate phone connection for internet, how to control this?
4 - What program should i use to really close programs?
5 - This is the most annoying one. Synchronizing with Outlook 2007 (with Windows 7) isn't correctly functioning ...
I've made a "inbox\folder X" with e-mails before 2009, and the others e-mails are in the "inbox" or in folders ("inbox\folder(s) A... B ...") inside it.
The idea was too synch everything without e-mails received or sent before 2009.
Results: 1st time it didn't synch all messages in "inbox" and "Sent", 2nt time it did't synch "inbox\folder(s) A... B...", neither "sent" and its subfolders too.
What can i do to solve the problem? Or should i use any 3rd party software?
Regards

1. Recheck the p/w...?!
2. PIM
3. Know there are apps out there, cant recall any names.
4. Taskmanager - its already installed.
5. 3rd party only. Activesync cannot sync subfolders. Try Pocketmirror.

lrmmf said:
Hello,
i've bought 1 HD2 and i've 5 questions to ask. Some should have already asked & answered, i'll read the entire HD2 topics in some days .
1 - I can't connect to my home WIFI. HD2 finds my network, and my router accepts HD2 Mac address. And i've already entered the password (i could have mistaken the password). Now there's a "wheel" always "turning" (searching? for the wifi network). What can i do to solve this?
2 - What can i do to make a complete backup of HD2?
3 - It's very easy to HD2 activate phone connection for internet, how to control this?
4 - What program should i use to really close programs?
5 - This is the most annoying one. Synchronizing with Outlook 2007 (with Windows 7) isn't correctly functioning ...
I've made a "inbox\folder X" with e-mails before 2009, and the others e-mails are in the "inbox" or in folders ("inbox\folder(s) A... B ...") inside it.
The idea was too synch everything without e-mails received or sent before 2009.
Results: 1st time it didn't synch all messages in "inbox" and "Sent", 2nt time it did't synch "inbox\folder(s) A... B...", neither "sent" and its subfolders too.
What can i do to solve the problem? Or should i use any 3rd party software?
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1- Make sure you are typing the password correctly and that the access point is not filtering Mac Address. Make sure also that DHCP is enabled.
2- Download and install Sprite Backup on your mobile. You can find it on the Internet.
3- Make sure you disable the Auto update each application uses like weather, stocks etc.
4- Download the default Task Manager that will replace the HTC one. You will be able to close the applications by taping on the X at the top right corner.
5- Sorry I am not running Windows here so not much help.

Hi there. I'm equally new to this but found for question 4 to try this -
Navigate to Start/Settings then at the bottom select Menu/All Settings. Next click on System and scroll down til you see the icon Task Manager, now click & hold then let go ~ a window will pop up saying 'Move to Top'. Click on this and a copy of the Task Manager will be sent as the first item in the list when you next press Start.
This was copied from elsewhere so thanks to them and it works ok for me
Cheers........Mad Jock

Schooleydoo:
1 - i don't know what p/w stands for
2 - what is this software (/what site sells it)?
5 - Are you sure ActiveSync (*) doesn't syncronize subfolders? This is an error or a characteristic? Someone told me that this only happens because of compatibility problems with Windows 7 64 bits (which im using). Im going to try pocket mirror (*). Someone here speaked about PDASync, i tryed one version found on the internet... appeared C++ errors (something about "virtual functions"), and cleaned my caledar my luck is that i've done one backup imediatly before...
Xeon:
1 - i can verify DHCP in router, right?
2 - i'll try it, what is the difference between using a software like this an My Phone?
3 - Starting to use WM 6.5, don't know if i find all the places/tabs to disable (at least 3 i've disabled yesterday)
4 - From where do i download the default task manager and how do i install it?
Madjock:
4 - I've found precisely the same instruction and i'm using it. But if we can do it like on Windows it's better.
2 new questions (or not...):
- My phone is unlock. What is the difference between using 1.48 ROMs that HTC made available , running hardspl ou goldcard
- i'm constantly seeing a space error, my outlook e-mails made HD2 almost full...
-- could this be the origin of the active sync error that doesn't copy my inbox subfolders ?
---can i configure in outlook or in a 3rd party sw like pocket mirror (*) to use my 8gb card as a place to e-mails, to avoid using the HD2 internal memory?
TIA,
Richard

1 - check that you've entered your router password properly. Mine connects fine.
2 - PIMBackup backs your contacts up into a single file - it's a bit like MyPhone but not and online service, restores faster and backs up call logs too. Doesn't do other files. You can try SASHIMI too but that requries a bit of fiddling around to setup nicely. Once setup however it's quite good.
3 - the program's called NoData. or WMLongLife, as an alternative.
4 - default task manager is already under \Windows. Just look for exe something starting with "task"... I would suggest installing ShowCase 1.01b for closing apps instead. It's more finger friendly (wouldn't use the task switcher that comes with ShowCase though - it's nice but buggy imo). I actually use AEBPlus to assign longpress to the Windows key to bring up the default task manager - quite good.
5 - Check that you aren't running out of space in your Internal Storage on the HD2. HTC didn't leave much free space so if u have some massive emails I'd imagine it'll get full... however you should get a warning message when that happens. Which basically means you should either avoid syncing all your emails over to the HD2 or look for a way to sync emails onto your Storage Card. And Windows 7 uses "Windows Device Center" or something like that instead of ActiveSync...
6 - Hardspl isn't avaliable yet, but will allow you to flash any rom you like inc. custom roms. Goldcards allow you to flash Official htc roms of any language. If your phone is unlocked you should be able to flash 1.48 Rom of the same language as your current rom version without goldcard. Worth flashing since the 1.48 rom appears to give more free space than the 1.43 rom.
EDIT: Quick google of XDA shows a stack of links telling you how to redirect email storage to SD Card:
Registry edit method: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1421033&postcount=3
Apps method: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=2317615&postcount=9

I had a similar problem with my HD2 when I first tried to connect it to my router but a soft reset fixed it (strangely). If you're sure your password is correct and your router isn't set to restrict access by MAC address then you could give this a try.

1. Sincerely, mine works fine. I'm using a router without password, but with MAC restrictions.
2. SpriteBackup / SPB Backup (don't remember if it's called as this) / PIMBackup
3. Modaco NoData will do the job!
4. You can download the default TaskManager to close the program while tapping X. Or you can use the HTC TaskManager (or eNatives Showcase) to close them after you've opened and backgrounded.
5. I never used the e-mail synchronization so I can't reply, but I'm sure that if you try to backup your data using PIMBackup, it'll backup all.

solution of xchange sync
lrmmf said:
Hello,
i've bought 1 HD2 and i've 5 questions to ask. Some should have already asked & answered, i'll read the entire HD2 topics in some days .
1 - I can't connect to my home WIFI. HD2 finds my network, and my router accepts HD2 Mac address. And i've already entered the password (i could have mistaken the password). Now there's a "wheel" always "turning" (searching? for the wifi network). What can i do to solve this?
2 - What can i do to make a complete backup of HD2?
3 - It's very easy to HD2 activate phone connection for internet, how to control this?
4 - What program should i use to really close programs?
5 - This is the most annoying one. Synchronizing with Outlook 2007 (with Windows 7) isn't correctly functioning ...
I've made a "inbox\folder X" with e-mails before 2009, and the others e-mails are in the "inbox" or in folders ("inbox\folder(s) A... B ...") inside it.
The idea was too synch everything without e-mails received or sent before 2009.
Results: 1st time it didn't synch all messages in "inbox" and "Sent", 2nt time it did't synch "inbox\folder(s) A... B...", neither "sent" and its subfolders too.
What can i do to solve the problem? Or should i use any 3rd party software?
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ad 5: YES, it syncs subfolders. go to Mobile Devices Centr on your PC, choose Mobile device settings - change settings of content sync - email - (wait for importing) - choose folders to sync.
Works for me with HD2, Win 7 Prof 32 bit. (basic settings is sync only Inbox, no subfolders)

Double entries for all my contacts :(

I searched the Leo forum and couldn't find any answers
I'm having a not so cool problem with my contacts and people folders..
Everybody has a double entry I had the same problem before and after installing a new ROM, so the installation might not be the problem afterall. I sync my Leo with Windows Mobile Device Center and with Microsoft My Phone. What can I do ? How can I return to just one entry for everybody ?
10x all in advance
PS : I think I'm doing something, cause with my Fujitsu Siemens N520 - Windows Mobile 5 ( I dont know for sure ) I clearly remember having once the same problem

What view?
Are you viewing both sim & contacts? Need to set to view 1 or the other, not both. I view contact, it shows more info..

I had the same problem after installing new rom and syncing with my pc.
There are manual ways of fixing this, but I think the easiest way is to use Microsoft My Phone. It has an option to check for duplicate contacts and delete them.
But be careful not to be left with empty contact list on your phone. Like I did once... Hopefully I had synced my contacts on my office computer.

Try this...Go to - Phone/All People/Menu/View/ select Contacts or SIM

I use direct push from my exchange server and i had this when sycing to my pc using activesync for the first time. The problem is caused by the phone telling the pc that the contacts are more upto date that the pc's. To get around this change the activesync options to "pc overwirtes the device" (it's not exactly written like that but i guess your smart enough to figure it out) and delete all the duplicate contacts from the phone and pc. You won't get it again. If you are seeing the contacts from your sim card should notice the icon for them is differnet. If this is the case then follow the instructions given above to disable sim contact viewing.

There is free software to cope with this prob on freewarepocketpc and also in SKTools or PocketMechanic.
Del doubles on phone (check bef proceed), clear contacts complelety on PC and Myphone and then resync. Worked well for me.

use the attached, works a treat on the HD2.it can be used to remove duplicate calender entires too. Thanks to the developer, cant remember where I got the cab from.

I use dupededupe.
Work very well and is very easy.
Only 72KB

Thanks all for the responses
Sorry for posting so late, I was away for a couple of days
Eventually, I used My Phone - I entered the site, checked for duplicates - and deleted all the duplicates, and afterall, I synced my phone. Fortunately, it worked fine
10x again, Ive just downloaded the little software and I'll keep them if the problem reoccurs .
10x again!
Good luck all!