What is a BBB file? A file with an extension of .BBB is known as BlackBerry Backup file. These are backup files containing data and configuration settings from a BlackBerry phone. Depending on the options taken when first creating the backup, .BBB files can contain many different types of data.
The most common types of data backed up from a BlackBerry phone are the Address book (contacts), SMS messages, emails and calendar.
If the data on a BlackBerry becomes corrupt, lost or accidentally deleted; the data can be restored from the .BBB file to the original device.
UPDATE: BlackBerry desktop manager now uses the BBB file extension for storing backups on both Windows and Apple OS X operating systems.
How to Open a BBB file The only software available to reliably view the data inside a .BBB file is
phoneMiner. This software allows you to view the address book (contacts), SMS messages, emails and calendar inside a BlackBerry backup file.
phoneMiner also allows you to export the data to common formats such as Excel, CSV and XML.
It is possible to open a .BBB file using a plain-text editor, although the backup must not be password protected. This will display all the data within the backup (including the characters used solely by Blackberry's Desktop Software) and makes for difficult reading.
How to Create a .BBB file BlackBerry backups can only be created using the 'Blackberry Desktop Software', an application developed by Research In Motion Limited (RIM), the creators of the BlackBerry phone.
Blackberry Desktop Software is bundled with all new BlackBerry devices, however the most up-to-date version can be downloaded through RIM's website.
Once the software installed, a BlackBerry must be connected to your computer using a USB cable. Running the BlackBerry desktop software will give you the option of creating a full or partial backup.
Full backups will result in a .BBB file containing all personal data and phone settings from the BlackBerry. Selecting a partial backup will create a file with the chosen databases only (E.g Address Book and messages).
Before actually generating the backup, the software will provide the option to password protect the backup; doing so will encrypt the data using 256-bit AES encryption. Anyone attempting to view the data will then need to provide the original password.
Frequent
Categories
