How To View a Call Log File from an Android Phone?

[PacificTecher4]

I restored my call log with Samsung Smart Switch, restarted the phone. But there is nothing added to the call log! Im using the same default phone app as my old phone. And the app says 2,500 call logs were restored/added.

So my next idea is to open the call log file from the backup on my computer and restore with an app manually, its a EXML file, wont open in browsers or excel or notepadd ++, its a bunch of random characters.

1) How do I access the contents of the call log EXML file from Samsung Smart Switch?
2) Or, any idea why my call logs wont restore on my phone?

 

[svim]

Odd that Smart Switch didn't successfully restore your phone call log into your new phone, especially since you can see that EXML file within your Smart Switch backup.
But moving on, do you still have possession of your old phone? The following depends on you being able to make a backup of just the phone log on your old phone to transfer into your new phone. Install the SMS Backup & Restore app on both phones, make a backup for just the phone call log on your old phone and then use the app on your new phone to import it. Yeah, the app's name refers only to SMS text messaging but it does include a feature that involves phone call logs too.
Anyway, that Smart Switch file, the EXML file is the Encrypted XML file type that Samsung created for its backup utility. The encryption prevents you from being able to successfully view its content with something like a text editor by design. The text appearing to be just random characters is intentional, which is actually a nice privacy aspect as some of the data in your backups is secured. Using the SMS Backup & Restore app will allow you to make a plain (not encrypted) XML file. Note if you opt to view it first in a text editor will still consist of a lot of jumbled characters, a mix of recognizable phone numbers and names with necessary formatting commands.

What Is An XML File (And How Do I Open One)?

A file with the .xml file extension is an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file. These are really just plain text files that use custom tags to describe the structure and other features of the document.

www.howtogeek.com

If however you don't have your old phone, just some random suggestions for your current, new phone (...that I'm assuming you've already tried?)
-- Be sure to just restart your phone just in case that imported EXML file needs to essentially get loaded into memory and/or the Phone app itself.
-- Try Force stopping the Phone app itself, and delete the app's cache and see if your call log is showing up properly.

 

[PacificTecher4]

Odd that Smart Switch didn't successfully restore your phone call log into your new phone, especially since you can see that EXML file within your Smart Switch backup.
But moving on, do you still have possession of your old phone? The following depends on you being able to make a backup of just the phone log on your old phone to transfer into your new phone. Install the SMS Backup & Restore app on both phones, make a backup for just the phone call log on your old phone and then use the app on your new phone to import it. Yeah, the app's name refers only to SMS text messaging but it does include a feature that involves phone call logs too.
Anyway, that Smart Switch file, the EXML file is the Encrypted XML file type that Samsung created for its backup utility. The encryption prevents you from being able to successfully view its content with something like a text editor by design. The text appearing to be just random characters is intentional, which is actually a nice privacy aspect as some of the data in your backups is secured. Using the SMS Backup & Restore app will allow you to make a plain (not encrypted) XML file. Note if you opt to view it first in a text editor will still consist of a lot of jumbled characters, a mix of recognizable phone numbers and names with necessary formatting commands.

What Is An XML File (And How Do I Open One)?

A file with the .xml file extension is an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file. These are really just plain text files that use custom tags to describe the structure and other features of the document.

www.howtogeek.com

If however you don't have your old phone, just some random suggestions for your current, new phone (...that I'm assuming you've already tried?)
-- Be sure to just restart your phone just in case that imported EXML file needs to essentially get loaded into memory and/or the Phone app itself.
-- Try Force stopping the Phone app itself, and delete the app's cache and see if your call log is showing up properly.

Thanks so much for the thorough answer! Unfortunately I do not have the old phone anymore. It was traded in and I have two backups on Smart Switch of it, I thought I was good to go. So its encrypted, that rules that out of viewing it.

I did try restarting the phone, and clearing the phone cache, force stop, several times. Its been a couple hours too, so I think it would have updated by now. I dont get it.

On the smart Switch app on the phone itself, I go to 3 Dots > Transfer Results > and it even shows the transferred call data listed, it says copied, 1mb. Its right there lol.

Yet, its not appearing in the phone or updating or whatever. Tried another call app too from playstore, but nothing shows either. Im wondering if its due to a difference between android versions from the S8 phone being so old, or Samsung Smart Switch software being changed since the backup was created (2020). idk I would think that does not matter, especially since I am getting successful confirmation messages.

 

[PacificTecher4]

Also, here are 2 screenshots specifically saying "Updating Call log data...." Then shows it completed. lol weird.

I tried restoring one specific APP from the backup, and it appeared immediately on my phone. So I am able to restore certain things.

 

[svim]

Bummer. After all the things you've tried at this point, I've got one last, very speculative, suggestion.
Try installing this Wondershare MobileTrans utility onto your PC and try opening that latest EXML file to convert it to XML.

[Official] The Best Secure Phone to Phone Transfer Solution

Wondershare MobileTrans is a secure, efficient, and professional phone to phone transfer software that helps you transfer contacts, music, photos, videos, WhatsApp messages, and more between devices.

mobiletrans.wondershare.com

Supposedly you should be able use the Wondershare utility to decrypt that file (requires password) back to XML, with the hope that unencrypted file will work out successfully.

 

[PacificTecher4]

Bummer. After all the things you've tried at this point, I've got one last, very speculative, suggestion.
Try installing this Wondershare MobileTrans utility onto your PC and try opening that latest EXML file to convert it to XML.

[Official] The Best Secure Phone to Phone Transfer Solution

Wondershare MobileTrans is a secure, efficient, and professional phone to phone transfer software that helps you transfer contacts, music, photos, videos, WhatsApp messages, and more between devices.

mobiletrans.wondershare.com

Supposedly you should be able use the Wondershare utility to decrypt that file (requires password) back to XML, with the hope that unencrypted file will work out successfully.

Thanks, I downloaded it and went through ever menu maze, can't find anyway to import/decrypt a backup file that is not from mobile trans itself.

Here's a screencast of the mobiletrans I made incase you spot something Im missing:

 

[svim]

Nuts, I mistakenly wasted your time on Wondershare. My apologies
Reading further this worked with the older Samsung Kies backups but Samsung continues to upgrade its encryption protocols in its newer SmartSwtich backups so this no longer applies.

This link is an interesting article on the matter, decrypting a SmartSwitch backup:

How to decrypt PIN-Based encrypted backup data of Samsung smartphones

Smartphones, which are a necessity for modern people, have become important to forensic investigators, as they have a lot of user information which ca…

www.sciencedirect.com

But apparently the report is based on using the SmartSwitch utility, which in this particular instance is the heart your problem -- getting that elusive phone call log to successfully import into the Phone app on your new phone. I'm out of other suggestions.

 

[PacificTecher4]

Nuts, I mistakenly wasted your time on Wondershare. My apologies
Reading further this worked with the older Samsung Kies backups but Samsung continues to upgrade its encryption protocols in its newer SmartSwtich backups so this no longer applies.

This link is an interesting article on the matter, decrypting a SmartSwitch backup:

How to decrypt PIN-Based encrypted backup data of Samsung smartphones

Smartphones, which are a necessity for modern people, have become important to forensic investigators, as they have a lot of user information which ca…

www.sciencedirect.com

But apparently the report is based on using the SmartSwitch utility, which in this particular instance is the heart your problem -- getting that elusive phone call log to successfully import into the Phone app on your new phone. I'm out of other suggestions.

Thats okay, was worth a try.

I asked this same question in another android forums, and a user volunteered to test restoring his S7 smart switch backup of his to his current phone, he found that the old call logs did NOT restore for him either, but everything else did.

He thinks its because of the older vs newer versions of android causing some conflict. Weird, because its just call history, its not like an old App or something