A while ago I was trying to find a good way to extract my SMS messages from my blackberry. I found SMS-borer, but it has some limitations. So I started an open-source library. It's written in Java, so it's platform-independent. I thought I'd post it here to help out anyone that doesn't want to pay for proprietary programs.

The ipddump project page is hosted on Google code.

Brandon, many thanks for sharing!

Can you only restrieve SMS? What about contacts, calendar, etc?

How do I run it? Lets say I have the following file:

C:\TEST\BB.IPD

How & where should I place the JAR, what do I need to do to run it? Install JRE? What version?

What should the commandline path be?

oo, very interresting, I'm looking for something that allows me to edit IPD files and export them back, for example I want to create a lot of autotxt and upload them to the phone..

Yea, it is. I need to put this file over in the FAQ also.

how do you use it?

For those asking how you use it.... "use the source, Luke".

http://ipddump.googlecode.com/svn/tr...dump/Main.java

Download the jarball to your PC, install java (JRE should work and of course the JDK will work fine). Drop to a commandline prompt and run the tool as indicated above.

Works great - example step by step:

1) plug in BB to PC, use the Backup too and click "Advanced"; select "SMS Messages" only on the right, it moves to the left. Close that window and you will be prompted to save.

2) rename saved file as "Backup-SMS.ipd" to make things easier

3) install the Java JRE/JDK if necessary

4) download the above listed .jar file, save it in the same folder as the backup file from step #1/#2

5) drop to a cmd.exe prompt (shell if linux, Terminal if MacOSX) and change to that folder

6) run the tool in one of two ways; the first spits the output to screen, the second saves it to a file:

java -jar ipddump-0.1.0.jar Backup-SMS.ipd
java -jar ipddump-0.1.0.jar Backup-SMS.ipd > sms_messages.csv

You can open the CSV file in any text editor, import to Excel, etc. as usual. Here is an example line from one of my SMS's from a friend telling me which train they were on (sending phone number XXX'd out):

Tue Mar 25 13:24:32 PDT 2008,Tue Mar 25 20:24:29 PDT 2008,false,XXXXXXXXXXX,"On J at market and church"

Well this kinda works. Haven't tried all my files, but for some older ones it works just fine but for more recent ones it gives an error. Basically the 2007 ones that I've tried read just fine, but the 2008 ones give an error. Not sure at which date it starts giving problems, but I'm kind wondering if those are good backups now.

I'm gonna sync up and then try a wipe and restore.

But thanks for the instructions. Once in a while I need to pull text messages off and store them.

Bump, to make this EZ to find.

hahahha Clever JS

Thanks

customer thanks as well

Does anyone has the same problems?

I try to run "java -jar ipddump-0.1.0.jar 1.ipd"

Then i get this output
:

Exception in thread "main" java.lang.IndexOutOfBoundsException: Index: 257, Size: 79
at java.util.LinkedList.entry(LinkedList.java:382)
at java.util.LinkedList.get(LinkedList.java:332)
at org.quaternions.ipddump.data.Database.createRecord (Database.java:85)
at org.quaternions.ipddump.Main.parse(Main.java:177)
at org.quaternions.ipddump.Main.main(Main.java:36)


Thnx so far...

I'm not, but I see you're using an 8830 - the first thing I would make sure is that you're not using a newer version of IPD files than the program expects. IPDump wants a version 2 (0x02); check your 8830 IPD file by doing this:

- Download this freeware hex editor to your PC and unzip:
http://www.chmaas.handshake.de/delph...vi32/xvi32.htm

- Run xvi32, and open your IPD file

- Look at position 26 - is the value in the square '02'? (the value in position 25, right before it, should be a '0A' - just to make sure you're in the right spot)

You can get more nerdy if you want by checking your IPD file from the 8830 against the other values that he's expecting; here's his newest java source file with comments in it:

http://code.google.com/p/ipddump/sou...IPDParser.java

(look at line 164 or so, that's where it starts)

hope this helps some...

Thnx for the quick reply.
I had the right version (02) but not the latest java. I used the jar file. I found on google.
Now i have the right java and i get compile errors. I am not a great java programmer. So i have to study.
Just javac Main.java was not enough. So i am going to try some things today. And maybe come back later.

Thnx again

I have the right version.

When i use the sample data the app works. Still it doesn't work with the backup file.

It works perfectly for me. For the backup file, it should just contain the sms backup.

Thank you VERY much for this. Very cool.