Backup and restore.

Why backups exist#

Kata is local-first, so we never hold a readable copy of your data and cannot hand one back. A backup is the bridge: it carries everything to a new device, or brings it back if you clear the app. Everything on this page lives in Settings, Data.

The backup file#

Back up now writes one versioned file (a kata-backup envelope, schema 1) with your settings, all your logs, the coach's memory and decisions, and your photos. The progress moves through clear stages: collect your data, gather photos, write the file, verify it, done. The verify step re-reads what it wrote, so a backup that says done is a backup that is actually good. On iPhone the file goes to your iCloud Drive, or to the app's own folder that the device backup carries; on Android it sits in the app's files that your Google device backup carries; on the web it downloads as a file.

Automatic frequency#

Choose daily, weekly, monthly or manual only. In the apps an automatic backup runs when you open Kata, with a small pill showing its progress; on the web the file is a download, so automatic backups run in the app on your phone.

The sealed account snapshot#

Separately, Kata keeps one restore snapshot of your account so a lost or replaced phone never means a lost history. Before it leaves your device it is encrypted there with AES-256-GCM under a random key that is generated on your device and kept in its secure storage. On iPhone the snapshot goes to your own private iCloud, never to us: the iCloud backup panel lets you switch automatic iCloud backup on, back up to iCloud now, and restore from iCloud. On Android and the web, where there is no private per-user cloud to lean on, we store it as one sealed row per account: refreshed at most every six hours, overwritten each time, deleted with your account, never containing your photos, and ciphertext we have no technical means to read. If your device cannot encrypt, nothing is uploaded at all.

Your recovery key#

The key that opens the snapshot is yours alone: Kata never receives it, in any form. Kata looks after it for you where the platform allows, in the iPhone keychain so it travels with your Apple ID, or with your Google account on Android; in a browser it stays in that browser only. Under Moving to a new device you can show the key, 52 letters and numbers, copy it or show it as a QR code that another device scans camera to screen, never through a server. Keep a copy somewhere safe: if this device and the key are both gone, the snapshot can never be opened again, by you or by us. That is what "we cannot read it" costs.

Export my data, import, restore#

• Export my data: one complete file of everything, your chat and photos included, saved through the share sheet on your phone or downloaded on the web. It is a plain readable copy, so keep it somewhere safe; the cloud snapshot is the one that is encrypted. It works across iPhone, Android and web, so it is also how you move between them.
• Import: load an exported file (or an older backup) on any device to bring that data in. Kata shows you what is in the file first, and warns you if it looks older than what is already on the device.
• Restore from backup: pick one of the backup files on this device and pick up exactly where you were. On a fresh sign-in Kata also offers your snapshot on its own: Welcome back, we found your Kata data.

Restoring or importing replaces what is currently in Kata on this device with the backup, and the app reloads right after. Kata always shows you the summary and asks you to confirm first. Moving to a new phone? See Changing your device.