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I have ran several tests using backups taken with 9.4.2. I cannot reproduce this issue. I have no notices, my database restores correctly, and my configuration.php is updated just fine.

Reading the code, the only way this can happen is if there is a discrepancy between the version of the backup engine and the restoration script (the installation/databases.json file would not have the sqlfile key). This can only happen if Joomla failed to update the component correctly which does happen, see https://github.com/joomla/joomla-cms/issues/38956 for the latest installment of my saga trying to address this issue in Joomla. Now, if they let me fix it that would be grand; I've only spent the last 8 years chasing this issue down.

Please install Akeeba Backup 9.4.2 twice in a row on your site, without uninstalling it before or in between. Take a new backup and try restoring that instead.

UNiTE doesn't have its own restoration method; it uses the ANGIE installer which is embedded in the archive. This is intentional. It allows us to address new versions of Joomla, WordPress, MySQL, and PHP by writing code in one place only. Otherwise we'd have to essentially maintain two restoration scripts which doubles the work and the chance of introducing a subtle bug.

The error you got comes from ANGIE, not UNiTE. The path .../installation/framework/database/restore.php is inside the restored site, not inside UNiTE's PHAR archive. This happens because the sqlfile key for the current database is missing.

It's not a matter of UNiTE not having ran the initial ANGIE step which reads the installation/sql/databases.json file as that would have caused no database data to be available, with the immediate result that the database restoration would fail with an error, failing the entire restoration run. It means that something is missing from the databases.json file.

ANGIE used to use a databases.ini file, then moved to databases.json. A different file format. Moreover, at a later point in time we added one more key, sqlfile, in the databases.json file.

So, we have one the following problems:

• Your backup engine produces databases.ini but ANGIE expects database.json
• Your backup engine produces database.json without the sqlfile key but ANGIE expects all keys

That's why on November 16th I told you

> Reading the code, the only way this can happen is if there is a discrepancy between the version of the backup engine and the restoration script (the installation/databases.json file would not have the sqlfile key).

After doing the double installation you must take a new backup archive and try to restore that new backup archive. Any existing archive would not be updated.

Kickstart does not restore your site, it only extracts the backup archive which contains ANGIE. It's ANGIE which restores your site. Kickstart is irrelevant. ANGIE on the web also makes another assumption if the sqlfile is missing, that it should be filled in with the value "site". This happens in a part of the code which is not executed by UNiTE. So if the key is missing ANGIE on the web might work (only for the main site database, though!) and UNiTE won't.

That's why I need you to install Akeeba Backup twice in a row without uninstalling it before or in between, then take a new backup, then try to restore the new backup. When I use a brand new Joomla 4 site with the latest released version of Akeeba Backup I can restore it with the latest dev build of UNiTE. If you still have a problem restoring I'll have you test with the dev build of UNiTE so we can be certain what the problem is. There is a reason I am asking you to do things. I am not following a script, I have a decision tree in my head with branches six levels deep but I don't want you to get confused by dumping this on you. I am instead asking you to do the fastest, minimum fuss troubleshooting steps so I can narrow down the issue.