2 files changed, 31 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/src/db.cpp b/src/db.cpp
index c4ea81e..771a4ba 100644
--- a/src/db.cpp
+++ b/src/db.cpp
@@ -1496,6 +1496,22 @@ bool LoadWalletFromSQLiteRuntime(const string& strPath)
         return false;
     }
 
+    // Refuse an empty or non-wallet SQLite file up front, with a message that
+    // names the likely cause. FinishLoadedWallet below already rejects a
+    // missing default key (it is the fMayCreateDefaultKey=false path), but its
+    // wording -- "no usable default public key" -- reads as corruption when the
+    // real story is usually "this file was never an exported wallet". A blank
+    // wallet.sqlite left by a typo or a half-run export should say so.
+    if (visitor.vchDefaultKey.empty())
+    {
+        WalletSQLiteRuntimeClose();
+        strWalletLoadError =
+            "SQLite wallet has no default key record; it may be empty or not a "
+            "wallet export. Create it with -walletsqliteexport.";
+        printf("LoadWallet: %s\n", strWalletLoadError.c_str());
+        return false;
+    }
+
     if (!ReconcileLoadedWalletMetadata(visitor.fHaveStoredMineMode,
                                        visitor.fHaveStoredHDCoinType))
     {
diff --git a/src/main_gui.cpp b/src/main_gui.cpp
index 4d77533..4be4995 100644
--- a/src/main_gui.cpp
+++ b/src/main_gui.cpp
@@ -625,6 +625,21 @@ int main(int argc, char* argv[])
         string strWalletSQLite =
             argval2(argc, argv, "/walletsqlite", "-walletsqlite");
 
+        // A misspelled backend must not fall through to Berkeley DB silently --
+        // someone who typed -walletbackend=sqlit meant to run on SQLite, and
+        // opening wallet.dat instead of telling them is the wrong surprise.
+        if (!strWalletBackend.empty() &&
+            strWalletBackend != "sqlite" && strWalletBackend != "bdb")
+        {
+            AttachTerminal();
+            FatalStartupError(fHeadlessStartup,
+                strprintf("Unknown wallet backend '%s'.", strWalletBackend.c_str()),
+                "Use -walletbackend=sqlite for the experimental SQLite backend, "
+                "or omit -walletbackend (or -walletbackend=bdb) to use the "
+                "default Berkeley DB wallet.dat.");
+            return 1;
+        }
+
         if (strWalletBackend == "sqlite")
         {
             // Opt-in, experimental. The node runs on <datadir>/wallet.sqlite and