Back Up AI Chats: What to Save Before You Move
Download a sample AI chat backup and checklist, compare ZIP and JSON recovery results, and check what Cakumi preserves beyond message text.
A useful AI chat backup lets you find your messages after leaving the original page. You should also know whether it includes attachments and how you would read or import it later.
Screenshots preserve a few moments. Summaries help a conversation continue. Full exports preserve a larger record. You may want all three, but downloading a ZIP alone does not establish that everything you need is recoverable.
Decide what belongs in the backup
Long-running conversations often involve more than messages:
| Category | What to save | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Transcript | Both speakers, sequence, dates, and chat title | Whether early and recent messages are present |
| Attachments | Actual images, documents, and other files | Whether you have files or only links |
| Character settings | Name, description, instructions, fictional setting | Whether a separate readable copy exists |
| Edited memories | Preferences, boundaries, and agreements you confirmed | Which entries remain current |
| Backup notes | Source, export date, and known gaps | Whether you can identify the archive later |
A generated relationship summary does not preserve all the original wording. A transcript export does not necessarily include character instructions or long-term memories.
Keep important settings in a readable text document as well. Even without a compatible importer, you can review and edit that document. Distinguish original settings from explanations you added afterward.
Test a small backup first
Choose a short, non-sensitive conversation containing a test attachment. Then:
- Check that recent messages and the attachment display correctly in the app.
- Use its export function and retain the unmodified download.
- Make a separate copy for inspection.
- Check messages near the beginning, middle, and end.
- Open the attachment and compare it with the conversation.
- If an importer is available, check a limited reimport before expanding.
Use a simple record:
Source platform:
Chat title:
Export date:
Original filename:
Messages checked: beginning / middle / end
Attachments checked:
Known missing content:
Reimport attempted:
Destination and observed result:
If you have not tried restoring the archive, write “not yet checked.” A successful download and a verified restoration are different outcomes. Keep the source conversation during this process.
Download an ordinary chat in Cakumi
In Cakumi's ordinary chat history, open the relevant chat's action menu and choose Download. This starts a ZIP export for that Chat. On a phone, the resulting file is handed to the system's save or share interface; on the web, it uses the browser's download flow.
The archive contains chat.json and archived attachments. If a required attachment is unavailable locally, the app attempts to retrieve it. An attachment read or download failure causes the export to fail. Check the connection and attachment availability before retrying; temporary files from an unsuccessful attempt are not a completed backup.
The export unit is one ordinary Chat. It is not an entire Being backup. Do not assume that it includes all character instructions, long-term memories, daily-mode history, or account assets. Keep separate readable copies of the settings and agreements that matter to you.
When several chats belong to one Being, export the conversations you need individually and note how they relate. Adding a date to your archive's filename can help, but keep its internal structure intact so attachment references remain usable.
What changes when you keep only the JSON?
We checked recovery with a public, synthetic chat: two text messages and a third message containing only a 说明.txt attachment. On October 21, 2026, we ran Cakumi's real export logic and its server preview-and-confirmation tests against the same fixture. The tests substitute database and device I/O. They do not use a real account or establish that a production phone's save flow was tested.
Compare the complete Cakumi backup ZIP, JSON-only manifest, and original demonstration attachment. The example dialogue is in Chinese; its file behavior is the same in either interface language.
| Check | Complete ZIP | JSON alone |
|---|---|---|
| Recoverable messages in preview | 3 | 2 text messages, with 1 missing attachment reported |
| Saved after confirmation | 1 chat, 3 messages | 1 chat, 2 messages, after explicitly accepting the missing file |
| Attachment | The 37-byte 说明.txt matched the original | No attachment bytes; the attachment-only message could not be restored |
| Submit without accepting the missing file | No missing-file confirmation needed | Import rejected; no extra Being created |
Opening a JSON file is therefore not enough to establish a complete backup. An attachment-only message may leave no text behind. Choose the full ZIP when the file matters instead of dismissing the warning.
This sample contains just two archive entries:
chat.json
attachments/103/att-1-说明.txt
The JSON describes messages, roles, times, and attachment locations. The file inside attachments is the attachment itself. The numeric IDs are demonstration identifiers and do not need manual editing. Even the complete ZIP represents one ordinary chat, not the entire Being's personality or long-term memory.
Keep a reusable recovery record
Download the backup and recovery checklist. Record which messages and attachments you checked, keep “not verified” for a restoration you have not tried, and name any missing files. This is more useful than relying on an archive's filename to remember whether it worked.
Check a reimport without replacing your original
Open Cakumi's memory import area and choose Import chat history, then select the saved ZIP. Use the complete archive when attachments matter. Selecting chat.json by itself does not include the attachment files stored alongside it.
Review the preview, choose the destination Being and conversations, and confirm. Importing appends new chats; it does not overwrite the original in place. Repeating an import may create another copy, so check the existing result before submitting again.
If the preview reports missing attachments, choose a more complete archive or explicitly accept importing only recoverable content. The latter does not restore the missing files. Pay particular attention to messages that originally contained an image without text.
After import, compare message order, contents, and attachments. Then use a short conversation to see what the model can actually carry forward. Opening a transcript, recalling a detail, and reproducing a familiar tone are separate capabilities.
For continuing the discussion, the new-chat handoff template helps you supply a clear starting point.
Store copies where you control access
Keep a working copy and an original copy in separate locations. Two files in the same folder on the same device provide little protection against losing that device or deleting the folder.
Review the sharing permissions of wherever you store private conversations. Avoid sending an entire personal archive to someone simply to diagnose an import problem. Start with the error message, file type, and size; if needed, create a small sample without private content.
Choose a backup schedule based on how much material you would be willing to reconstruct. Useful occasions include finishing an important discussion, preparing to move devices or platforms, and making substantial character changes. A few dated versions are easier to inspect than one file that is continually overwritten.
Before leaving a platform
Confirm four things:
- The original archive still exists and opens.
- You know which settings and memories are outside it.
- The destination accepts the actual structure, size, and attachment format.
- You can return to the original record if migration fails.
Export formats differ across products. Follow the ChatGPT import guide for that source. For Gemini, first distinguish web conversations, AI Studio files, and Takeout activity archives using the Gemini backup and import guide.