Data directory

The location where Bitcoin's data files are stored, including the wallet data file.

Default Location

Windows

Go to Start -> Run (or press WinKey+R) and run this:

explorer %APPDATA%\Bitcoin

Bitcoin's data folder will open. For most users, this is the following locations:

C:\Documents and Settings\YourUserName\Application data\Bitcoin (XP)

C:\Users\YourUserName\Appdata\Roaming\Bitcoin (Vista and 7)

"AppData" and "Application data" are hidden by default.

Linux

By default Bitcoin will put its data here:

~/.bitcoin/

You need to do a "ls -a" to see directories that start with a dot.

If that's not it, you can do a search like this:

find / -name wallet.dat -print 2>/dev/null

Mac

By default Bitcoin will put its data here:

~/Library/Application Support/Bitcoin/

Directory Contents

Subdirectories

• database
  • Contains journaling files for the block database
• testnet
  • Contains testnet versions of these files (if running with -testnet)

Files

• .lock
  • BDB lock file
• bitcoin.conf [optional]
  • Contains configuration options.
• blkxxxx.dat
  • Contains concatenated raw blocks
• blkindex.dat
  • Indexing information used with blkxxxx.dat
• __db.xxx
  • Used by BDB
• db.log
• debug.log
  • Bitcoin's verbose log file. Automatically trimmed from time to time.
• wallet.dat
  • Storage for keys, transactions, metadata, and options. Please be sure to make backups of this file. It contains the keys necessary for spending your bitcoins.
• addr.dat [Versions prior to v0.7.0]
  • Storage for ip addresses to make a reconnect easier
• peers.dat [Versions v0.7.0 and later]
  • Storage for peer information to make a reconnect easier. This file uses a bitcoin-specific file format, unrelated to any database system.

The data, index and log files are used by Oracle Berkeley DB, the embedded key/value data store that Bitcoin uses.

See Also

• Securing your wallet