How to back up Vivaldi browser settings on Linux
Do you use the Vivaldi web browser as your daily driver on Linux? Are you trying to figure out how to back up your browser settings for safe-keeping? We can help! Follow along with this guide as we go over how to back up the Vivaldi web browser settings on Linux.
Backing up Vivaldi settings in a terminal
A quick way to back up Vivaldi browser settings is with the Linux command-line. It’s fast, efficient, and can be done with only a few commands. To start the backup process, open up a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T or Ctrl + Shift + T on the keyboard. Then, with the terminal open, use the CD command to move into the “.config” directory, where the Vivaldi browser settings are stored.
cd ~/.config
Inside of the “.config” directory, use the ls command combined with grep to locate the “vivaldi” folder. You must locate this directory to ensure that your profile data is indeed on the system and intact.
ls | grep vivaldi
Assuming you have the “vivaldi” directory intact on your Linux PC, you’ll see “vivaldi” in the command output. If you do not see “vivaldi” in the command output, sign into the browser and re-try the command.
After determining that the “vivaldi” folder is indeed in the “.config” directory, the backup can begin. Using the tar command, compress your Vivaldi browser settings.
tar -czvf My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz vivaldi
When the tar command completes, your Vivaldi browser settings will be saved inside of a TarGZ archive named “My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz.” Take the backup file and move it from “.config” to the home directory (~) with the mv command.
mv My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz ~/
From here, it is possible to take the unencrypted Vivaldi browser backup and save it to an external hard drive, USB flash drive, or cloud provider. However, keep in mind that since it is unencrypted, your passwords and data are not secure and unsafe.
Encrypting the backup
Looking to make your Vivaldi browser backup secure and safe? If so, you must encrypt it. Luckily, encrypting files on Linux is easy, thanks to the GPG command.
To start the encryption, ensure that you have the GPG app installed. Then, use the gpg -c command to lock up the “My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz” file.
cd ~/ gpg -c My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz
Once you’ve entered the commands above, you’ll be prompted to enter a password. Enter a secure, memorable password to lock up your Vivaldi browser settings, and press the Enter key to confirm it.
Assuming the encryption is successful, the Vivaldi browser backup will be saved as “My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz.gpg.” Take this file and put it on an external hard drive, USB device, or cloud storage provider. Be sure to remove the non-encrypted TarGZ file!
Restoring the backup
To restore the backup, follow the step-by-step instructions below.
Step 1: Place the GPG file in the home directory. Or, if the backup is not encrypted, place the TarGZ file in the home directory.
Step 2: Decrypt the GPG backup file in the terminal with the gpg command.
gpg My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz.gpg
Step 3: Now that the GPG file is decrypted, move the decrypted version of the backup into the “.config” directory.
mv My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz ~/.config
Step 4: Delete the “vivaldi” folder already there with the rm command.
rm -rf vivaldi
Step 5: Decompress the My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz file to restore your browser settings on the system.
tar xvf My-Vivaldi-Browser-Backup.tar.gz
Backing up Vivaldi settings with Deja Dup
Backing up browser settings in the terminal is useful, but tedious. If you’re looking to make a complete, encrypted backup on the Vivaldi browser settings without fussing around with the tar command, you can use Deja Dup.
To start the backup process, you must first install Deja Dup on your Linux PC. To do that, launch a terminal window and enter the commands below.
Ubuntu
sudo apt install deja-dup duplicity
Debian
sudo apt-get install deja-dup duplicity
Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S deja-dup
Fedora
sudo dnf install deja-dup
OpenSUSE
sudo zypper install deja-dup
Once the Deja Dup application is installed on your Linux PC, launch it. Then, with the app open, find “Storage Location,” and click on it. From there, set the storage location where you’d like to upload your backup.
After setting the location of the backup, find “Overview” and click it with the mouse. Then, inside “Overview,” locate “Back Up Now” and click it with the mouse to start the backup process.
Upon clicking “Back Up Now,” you will be asked if you’d like to add a password to your backup. Enter a memorable, secure password. Then, click the “Forward” button to continue on to the next step in the backup process.
After adding a password to the backup, Deja Dup will back up your entire home directory, including the Vivaldi browser files. It will save your backup in the storage location you set previously.
Hello,
your tutorial is very helpful, exactly what i need (situation is a livestick-session where i need to save Vivaldi.
Something on my handling seems not to work around gpg.
The saved tabs are after new start of vivaldi not to be seen, like after installation.
But i must evaluate first if it is a sure problem.
Many thx
Kurt