Where Does Profanity Store Config and Chat Logs?
Profanity config and chatlogs on Linux and Mac, the accounts file, and moving XMPP history over.
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Profanity splits its data the XDG way: settings and accounts in the config home, chat logs in the data home. The main config file holds preferences, while accounts live in a separate accounts file beside it. Logs accumulate per contact in a chatlogs tree.
Copying the config folder moves settings and accounts; copying the data tree moves history. Transfer both with Profanity closed for a complete migration. Server side history needs XMPP message archiving enabled, which no local file can replace.
Where Profanity stores this, by platform
~/.config/profanity
profanity.cfg plus accounts file inside. Chat logs live separately under ~/.local/share/profanity/chatlogs. Both trees respect their XDG homes if set.
~/.config/profanity
Same XDG style layout on Mac for Homebrew builds. Use ls -a in Terminal since Finder hides dotfiles.
Frequently asked questions
Where are Profanity chat logs stored?
Under ~/.local/share/profanity in a chatlogs tree, one log per contact. Logging must stay enabled in preferences; silent periods leave no files to recover.
How do I move Profanity to a new machine?
Copy ~/.config/profanity for settings and accounts plus ~/.local/share/profanity for history, with Profanity closed on both ends. Reconnect once to confirm accounts load before deleting the old copies.
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