Bitcoin Core uses a hierarchical deterministic (HD) wallet structure by default (since version 0.13). The wallet.dat file contains:
Treat wallet.dat and any private-key exports as the highest-value secret you own. Plan backups, test restores, and prioritize deterministic seeds or hardware wallets to minimize risky manual wallet.dat handling. bitcoin core walletdat upd
As Bitcoin grew in popularity, the limitations of the wallet.dat file became apparent. The file's encryption scheme was deemed insecure, and its structure was not optimized for performance. Moreover, the increasing number of users and transactions led to issues with wallet synchronization, data corruption, and security vulnerabilities. Bitcoin Core uses a hierarchical deterministic (HD) wallet
Unlike a custodial exchange where you have a username/password, Bitcoin Core uses a Berkeley DB (BDB) database file named wallet.dat . This file is not a simple text file; it is a structured database containing: As Bitcoin grew in popularity, the limitations of the wallet