Move to a new phone with an export link

An export link gets your thoughts onto another device when AirDrop or iCloud Drive is not handy. Maybe you are moving to a new phone. Maybe you want the file on a computer first. On an iPhone or iPad, Thought Reps can import the link directly, with no file to save. If you can AirDrop the file, a regular backup is simpler.

Create a link

1. Open Settings, then go to the "Backup" section.
2. Tap "Share export as link". Thought Reps builds your backup, encrypts it and uploads it.
3. When it is ready, the link shows with its expiry time. Tap "Copy link" or "Share link".

Import it in the app

1. Install Thought Reps on the new phone and send yourself the link.
2. In Thought Reps, open Settings, then under "Backup" tap "Import…" and choose "From a Link…". The "Import from Link" sheet opens.
3. Paste the link into "Paste your export link". Or tap "Paste" to use what you copied. Then tap "Continue".
4. Thought Reps shows the size and when the link expires. Tap "Import". "Downloading…" shows the progress.
5. You then see the usual summary, like "12 thoughts · 3 images — 5 new, 2 newer, 5 already up to date". Tap "Import" on the summary to finish.

On an iPhone or iPad with Thought Reps installed, you can also just tap the link. It opens the app straight to "Import from Link". You still tap "Import" yourself. Nothing is imported until you do.

If the link does not work

• "This link was already used." The link works once. Make a new one on the old phone.
• "This link has expired." Links last 24 hours. Make a new one.
• "This link was turned off." It was revoked or replaced. Use the newest link.
• "We couldn't find this link." Check that you copied all of it, including the part after the #.
• "This doesn't look like a Thought Reps export link." Paste the whole link, which starts with https://transfer.thoughtreps.com/x/.

Use a computer or another browser

1. Open the link in a browser. The page is called "Your Thought Reps export".
2. Tap "Download". Your browser unlocks the file and saves it as a .thoughtreps file.
3. Send the file to your phone with AirDrop or Files, open it with Thought Reps and import it. See Back up and restore your thoughts for the steps.

How the link behaves

• It works once. The first download or import uses it up. Just opening the page does not.
• It expires after 24 hours if nobody uses it.
• You have one open link at a time. A new one replaces the old one, and you are asked to confirm.
• The exported file can be up to 100 MB. For something bigger, use "Export…" and send the file.
• There is a daily limit on how many links you can make.

Revoke a link

The open link stays in Settings, with its expiry time, until it is used or it expires. Tap "Revoke link" to stop it right away.

Keeping it private

Your file is encrypted on your device before it is uploaded. The key is only in the link after the #, and browsers do not send that part to us. We cannot read what you upload. That also means anyone with the whole link can download the file once, so only send it to yourself. A copied link also leaves your clipboard when it expires.