Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Discussion related to the Garmin Oregon 7x0 series GPSr
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marcmerlin
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Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2019 6:24 pm

Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by marcmerlin »

I'm replacing a failing oregon 700 with another one.
I'd like not to spend 1H+ finding every single setting and copy it one by one, never mind the ones that I forget.
I'm in classic UI mode and know that my settings are saved in a file named after my current activity:
./Profiles/Hike.gpf
clearly has all my settings, but if I try to restore that file from my previous GPS while in USB mode, and then reboot the unit, it ignores all the new settings, and rewrites the file with its own settings that are stored elsewhere, maybe in some flash I cannot access?

Is there any way around this, or I'll be forced to one again copy all the settings one by one, menu by menu, as the list grows ever longer in newer units?

Thanks
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GPSrChive
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Re: Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by GPSrChive »

My first guess is that you have the 'Hike' profile active when you enter USB Mass Storage Mode....

The active profile can never be overwritten...

I like to make a 'dummy' profile named USB or MSM on my units and I try to remember to enable it before connecting to the computer.

More info in 'How To... > Profiles > 2'
marcmerlin
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2019 6:24 pm

Re: Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by marcmerlin »

I did try switching profiles, but that didn't work.
I guess I'll try again since you said it works for you. You did say that by switching profiles first and then copying the Hike profile over, all your settings were copied over and re-used when you switched the destination GPS back to Hike, correct?
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GPSrChive
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Re: Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by GPSrChive »

Make certain the new GPSr is same or newer firmware version as old GPSr.

Copy desired profiles from old GPSr to safe location.

Create a dummy profile on the new GPSr.

Enable that profile.

Power off and connect new GPSr to PC in USB Mass Storage Mode.

Remove all unwanted profiles from new GPSr manually. (make backup for just in case)

Reboot new GPSr.

Only untouched profiles should be available.

Power off and connect new GPSr to PC in USB Mass Storage Mode.

Copy saved profiles manually.

Reboot new GPSr.

Copied profiles should be available.
marcmerlin
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Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2019 6:24 pm

Re: Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by marcmerlin »

Thanks for the help.
I got it working eventually. When I thought I was switching profiles, it wasn't actually switching and stayed on 'hiking' making the rest of the steps, not work.
After that, I got it to work.
I haven't checked yet, but is there a list of settings that do _not_ get migrated by this, like whether the GPS uses glonass, or other settings that might not be linked to an activity, or are all settings saved in each activity?
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GPSrChive
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Re: Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by GPSrChive »

Most settings are profile dependent, however there are a few that are global, which vary by model (and sometimes firmware version).

If there is a specific setting you are not sure about, change it in one profile, switch to another, change the same setting to a different option, then switch back to the original profile and see if it changed. If so, that setting is global, otherwise it is profile dependent.
marcmerlin
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2019 6:24 pm

Re: Is there any way to copy settings from one GPS to another?

Unread post by marcmerlin »

thanks, and to be clear, global settings aren't saved, so they have to be copied manually, correct?
If so, it'd be nice to have some list of such unsaved settings so as to know what ought to be copied manually when you migrate to a new GPS, but given that the list is likely pretty small, it's not the end of the world if I have to find them by trial and error when I realize they are missing later :)
Thanks again for your help, it was very much appreciated.
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