Android How to back up and restore Airport City

[Dave]

You use this backup method at your own risk. Please ensure you do a practice run first. Make sure you have read all the comments in the thread below.

This is a quick guide on how to backup and restore your game and data from Airport City. This is especially useful if you're changing to a new Android device, or simply because you wish to keep a backup incase anything happens.

Please note, this backup process does not require your device to be rooted - So anyone can use it!

1) Download Helium from the Google Play Store and install.
2) Download the Helium PC application and install.
3) Once installed and connected to your PC, on the Android device, within the Helium app click on the 3 dots in the top right which will bring up a pop up. Click on PC Download.

4) This will then show you a page with an address which you will need to use to navigate to on your PC. Type this address into the PC your Android device is connected to.

5) You should now be looking at a screen like the one below. This will list all the apps currently on your device. Simply click on Airport City and then click on "Start Backup". Make sure "Backup App Data Only" is not ticked.

A pop up box will appear asking you to save "backup.zip" - Save this somewhere safe on your PC as this contains your backup.

Job done! You now have a backup of Airport City and your game progress!

To Restore The Game

1) Follow the same advice in steps 3 & 4 above.
2) Click on "Browse" and navigate to the backup.zip that has your backed up copy of Airport City inside it.

3) This will then start to upload the entire backup.zip file

4) Simply click on the "Restore" button and this will re-install the saved Airport City game and its data.

 

[flip123]

Hi,

As my game is crashing every time it is connected to Wifi, I thought, lets back it up.
But for some reason, helium doesn't work. It gives me a 1kb file which can't be right.
Any ideas?

 

[S3R3G4]

Only a few days ago I transferred my AC game to another tablet with Helium making back up on old tablet and restore on new one. Worked well. Now I can watch adverts for building upgrade items that did not work on my old tablet

However the backup files were stored in folder "Carbon" on the tablet. So I copied the folder on removable SD and then restored game on new tablet from SD

 

[flip123]

It gives an error message when I try an internal back-up....

 

[AJ]

I also tried to backup my game using helium and as a result lost my whole progress.
I think i didn't follw the steps of backing up and restoration.
Question÷ do we have to install a new airport city to do restoration?
And also it doesn't create a .zip file but creates .json file.
Anyone knows why?

 

[Dave]

I also tried to backup my game using helium and as a result lost my whole progress.
I think i didn't follw the steps of backing up and restoration.
Question÷ do we have to install a new airport city to do restoration?
And also it doesn't create a .zip file but creates .json file.
Anyone knows why?

Following the steps above it would create a zip file.
No need to download a new copy of AC, as the backup would include the game as well as the game data.

 

[tonight2cold]

@Dave please guide proper method to make backup / restore for iOS. Thank you in advance

 

[Dave]

@Dave please guide proper method to make backup / restore for iOS. Thank you in advance

I can't assist with iOS I'm afraid as all the devices I use are all Android.

 

[AJ]

@Dave are you talking of using helium on ios device or Android device?

 

[Dave]

@Dave are you talking of using helium on ios device or Android device?

This guide was written specifically for Android.

 

[flip123]

Helium is only for android I think......

 

[mel]

Important to mention: you can only restore from phone to phone or from tablet to tablet. When you change devices (brand, type) it is not sure the game will work after the restore by Helium (I've been there after a crash of my really old tablet, couldn't restore the game with my Helium backup to another device).

 

[Dave]

Important to mention: you can only restore from phone to phone or from tablet to tablet. When you change devices (brand, type) it is not sure the game will work after the restore by Helium (I've been there after a crash of my really old tablet, couldn't restore the game with my Helium backup to another device).

Good advice Mel, I wasn't aware of that. I only used Helium to back up from my old tablet to my new tablet. Although these were two different brands.

 

[S3R3G4]

It gives an error message when I try an internal back-up....

Yesterday I tried again to put the AC game with the same back up method from my new tablet to the old one and it didn't work. Helium said something like "restore was not successful" and that's it, the game started from LVL1. Good that it was only a "trial restore". So guys be careful if you use Helium to back up & restore. It doesn't always work!!!

 

[S3R3G4]

@mel might be right in the above post. Maybe in my case I backed up the game on old tablet and managed to restore it on new model. When I tried to back up on new model and restore on old it didn't work. I have both tablets of the same make - ASUS TF201 (old) and Memo Pad 7 (new)

 

[Bali Hi]

@mel might be right in the above post. Maybe in my case I backed up the game on old tablet and managed to restore it on new model. When I tried to back up on new model and restore on old it didn't work. I have both tablets of the same make - ASUS TF201 (old) and Memo Pad 7 (new)

Is the "old" tablet running on the same version of Airport City as on the "new" tablet?
Backup files of newer Airport City version may not restore properly on older Airport City version, especially if there is a big upgrade.

 

[mel]

You'll restore the game progress as well as the apk for the game itself, so the version is the same. I contacted the game insight helpdesk when it happened to me and they explained that tablet and phone weren't compatible with each other. Probably the same goes for completely different tablets?

 

[S3R3G4]

@Bali Hi yes, the AC version is the same. I think it has something to do with the age difference of the devices

 

[paulkate]

I'd like to backup my main game "just in case". But Helium (free) not work on my device cause I have no possibility to conntect it with PC via USB.
I've read that Helium Premium can do cloud back up. But is it possible to setup cloud backup on Helium Premium without connecting Android device to PC via USB first?
Are there other ways to do backup on device with crashed USB slot?

 

[M22]

I think with helium you need connect with USB at least once. I don't know if you can root your device without USB connectivity, if you can then titanium backup is your best bet, I have it upload to Dropbox daily. I notice on my daily visits you've been really been hitting those map destinations @paulkate I presume that's for the gold tokens, been revisiting them myself but you seem to be steaming through.