I lost my .keystore file?

Question

Ok folks.. long story short, I was developing on a computer that I no longer have access to. I was able to retrieve the source code, but not the .keystore file used to sign and publish my application to the market (with several updates). Am I, and my poor users, out of luck if I ever want to update?

I know the password used to sign the key (at least it is one of three it could be), so can I create another? There must be a way around this.. what about a hard drive fail?

Answer 1

Faced the same problem. I was trying to restore it via deleted files restoring tools, but it failed. So, there is no other way: you should issue another application.

Generally, the only advise that exists on keystores: "always back it up!"

Answer 2

I have generated the signed apk using android studio , so in the "key Store Path" i just typed some name without extension, and fill this popup and signed the application.

next time for publishing the application i don't remember the path and name where it was created.

somehow i find the default location which is "C:\Program Files\Java\jdk1.8.0_45\jre\bin" : \jre\bin

and in that folder short by date ,then i tried with recent file and it worked for me.

Note : you should remember the Key store password and key password.

Answer 3

It is possible for a long while.

1. Follow the instructions in the Android Studio Help Center to generate a new key. It must be different from any previous keys. Alternatively, you can use the following command line to generate a new key:

keytool -genkeypair -alias newalias -keyalg RSA -keysize 2048 -validity 9125 -keystore nameofkeystore.jks

This key must be a 2048 bit RSA key and have 25-year validity.

2. Export the certificate for that key to PEM format:

keytool -export -rfc -alias newalias -file upload_certificate.pem -keystore nameofkeystore.jks

Then upload this pem file and fill the form and submit it to this site . And then you will receive an email once we've registered the new upload key . Only accepts key reset requests from the Play Console account owner.

All well and good. You can publish new release apk with your new jks file.

Answer 4

There must be a way around this.. what about a hard drive fail?

I would like to add that always keep a backup of the keystore in cloud storage like Google Drive, Dropbox or email it to yourself.

Answer 5

Be careful when updating your app. Here are the 3 main things that you should be aware of. Modifying the first two will result to an entirely new application.

1. keystore / certificate
2. package name
3. Manifest.xml

Android Developers Blog > Things That Cannot Change

Answer 6

It’s Possible now, After May 2017 you can Update your app if you lost your keystore or keystore password. You can not recover your lost keystore but you can replace keystore on playstore. Click here