The saved password does not match this iPhone's backups

If Chatcove says "The saved password does not match this iPhone's backups", the iPhone's backup password was changed after Chatcove saved its copy. You have two ways out: enter the new password if you know it, or reset it on the iPhone and let Chatcove set a fresh one. Nothing is deleted either way.

Everything stays on your Mac. Chatcove keeps the password on this Mac only, so it has no way to learn a password that was changed somewhere else.

The mismatch card described here is in Chatcove 0.1.7 or later. On 0.1.6 or earlier, see the last section of this page.

Why it happens

The card explains it: the iPhone's backup password was changed after Chatcove saved it, for example:

after the iPhone was reset,
after encryption was turned on again in Finder,
after the password was set on another computer, or on a second Mac running Chatcove.

Chatcove finds out when it tries to read a backup and the backup rejects the saved password. At that point it marks the saved password as not matching (it keeps the password, it does not delete it) and shows the Password mismatch card.

You can reach the same card two ways:

In one-click export, a card titled "The saved password does not match" with the buttons Fix password and Check again.
In step-by-step mode, the Backup encryption card with the pill Password mismatch.

Fix password opens the step-by-step view on the mismatch card. Check again starts the one-click export again: Chatcove re-reads the iPhone's backup setting, stops at the same card if the password still does not match, and carries on with a new password if you have reset the iPhone's settings.

Option 1: I know the password

Use this if you set the password yourself in Finder, or on another computer.

On the mismatch card, find I know the password.
Type the backup password the iPhone uses now into the Backup password field.
Click Save password.

Chatcove checks the password against the backup already on this Mac. If it opens that backup, you see "Saved. This password decrypts your backup." and the card changes to On and verified.

If you see "That password does not open the backup on this Mac"

The backup stored on your Mac may have been made before the password changed. In that case even the right password cannot open it. The form says so and offers Save anyway.

Save anyway saves the password you typed without checking it against the old backup. What happens next:

The card moves to On, not verified.
You back up again. The new backup is made with the iPhone's current password.
Chatcove checks the new backup with your saved password. If it opens, the card becomes On and verified. If it does not, you come back to the mismatch card.

Check the password for typos before you click Save anyway, because a wrong password costs a full backup to find out.

Option 2: I do not know the password

Use this if the password is lost. Open I do not know the password on the card, then:

On the iPhone, open Settings, General, Transfer or Reset iPhone, Reset, Reset All Settings.
No data or messages are deleted. Network, privacy and Apple Pay settings go back to their defaults.
The iPhone asks you to trust this Mac again. Tap Trust and enter its passcode.
In Chatcove, click Check again. Backup encryption is now off, so the card shows Off. Click Turn on encryption: Chatcove sets a new password and saves it for you. Then back up.

The full walkthrough, with what the reset does and does not erase, is on Forgot your iPhone backup password?.

In Chatcove 0.1.7 or later, if you turned on encryption in Chatcove (or used Save anyway) and then tried to read a backup that was made earlier, Chatcove may say "Back up again to read your history". It means the backup on this Mac is older than the password Chatcove saved, so it was made with the iPhone's earlier password. This is not a mismatch. Click Back up again. See Wrong password errors.

On Chatcove 0.1.6 or earlier

Older versions have no mismatch card. The Backup encryption card keeps showing On and verified, with a Wrong password card under it, and Fix password only runs the same failing read again. To get out:

Reset the backup password on the iPhone: Settings, General, Transfer or Reset iPhone, Reset, Reset All Settings. No data or messages are deleted.
Quit Chatcove and open it again.
Plug in the iPhone, unlock it, and tap Trust when it asks.
Click Back up again on the main one-click card ("Export your WhatsApp history"), not in the step-by-step view, which can hang after a backup on 0.1.6.
If it hangs, quit Chatcove, open it again and click Use existing backup.