Frequently Asked Questions

How do I add a code to Ente Auth?

If a service shows a QR code:

1. Open Ente Auth.
2. Tap the + button.
3. Select "Scan a QR code".
4. Scan the QR code shown by the service.
5. Enter the generated code to verify setup.

If a service shows a setup key:

1. Open Ente Auth.
2. Tap the + button.
3. Choose "Enter details manually".
4. Enter the account name, issuer, and secret (setup key).
5. Save and verify the generated code.

What should I enter in the Secret field when adding a code manually?

Enter the two-factor setup key provided by the service you are securing. It is not your login password or Ente password.

1. On the service's two-factor setup page, look for Show setup key or Can't scan?
2. In Ente Auth, choose Enter details manually and enter that setup key in Secret.
3. Save the entry and enter the code Ente Auth generates on the service's setup page to verify it.

Keep the setup key private.

Why does Ente Auth say "No QR code found in image"?

If the QR code is sharp and high-resolution but Ente Auth still won't scan it, the most likely cause is that the service is using a QR format Ente Auth doesn't recognise. Some sites embed proprietary or non-standard data instead of the standard otpauth:// URI that authenticator apps expect.

The easiest workaround is to add the code manually:

1. Open Ente Auth.
2. Tap the + button.
3. Choose "Enter details manually".
4. Enter the account name, issuer, and secret (setup key) shown by the service alongside the QR code.

If the service only offers a QR code and no setup key, check its security settings for an option to "show setup key" or "can't scan?".

How secure is Ente Auth?

All codes you backup via Ente is stored with end-to-end encryption. This means only you can access your codes. Our apps are open source and our cryptography has been externally audited.

Where are my 2FA codes stored?

When you use Ente Auth with an account, your codes are encrypted on your device before they sync. Ente's servers store only encrypted copies of your codes and master key. They cannot read your codes or password.

When you sign in, your device uses your password to unlock the master key locally. The key is then protected by your device's secure storage. Keep your recovery key safe so you can regain access if you forget your password.

If you choose Use without backups, your codes stay on that device and are not synced to Ente. Make an encrypted export or local backup before changing devices or resetting it.

Do I need my Ente recovery key or a website's backup codes?

Use the recovery method for the account you are trying to access:

• Ente recovery key: The 24-word phrase for your Ente account. If you use the same Ente account in Photos, Auth, and Locker, the recovery key is the same across those apps. Separate Ente accounts have separate recovery keys.
• A website's backup or recovery codes: Codes provided by that website when you set up its two-factor authentication. Ente Auth generates authenticator codes from the setup key you saved; it does not generate the website's separate backup-code list.
• Email verification code: A temporary code sent to your email during a sign-in or verification step. It does not replace your Ente recovery key or another website's backup codes.

If you cannot sign in to another service, use that service's recovery options or contact its support team. If you cannot sign in to Ente, see account recovery and lost second-factor help.

Keep your recovery materials somewhere you can reach without signing in to the account they protect. See Enteception if you store the second factor for Ente or your email account inside Ente Auth.

How can I delete or edit codes?

You can delete or edit a code by long pressing (or right clicking on desktop) on that item.

How can I support this project?

You can support the development of this project by subscribing to our Photos app at ente.com.

How can I enable FaceID lock in Ente Auth?

You can enable FaceID lock under Settings → Security → Lockscreen.

How secure is the lock screen provided by Ente Auth?

Auth's lock screen acts as a barrier to prevent an attacker from accessing the contents of the app. It does not introduce a layer of cryptographic security.

Why is Ente Auth blank in Android screenshots or screen mirroring?

Check Hide content on your phone under Settings > Security > App lock. When enabled on Android, it blocks screen capture, which can also make Auth appear blank in screen recordings or mirroring tools.

If you need to capture the screen, you can turn Hide content off on the phone. Doing so can expose your codes to screenshots, recordings, or anyone viewing the mirrored screen. Only turn it off if you accept that risk, and turn it back on afterwards. Ente support cannot change this setting remotely.

Hide codes is a separate display option. Learn more in the App lock guide.

Why do the desktop and mobile apps display different codes?

Please verify that the time on both your mobile and desktop is the same.

The codes depend on time. If the time is the same on both your browser and mobile, the codes you see will be the same.

Usually, this discrepancy occurs because the time in your browser might be incorrect. In particular, multiple users have reported that Firefox provides incorrect time when certain privacy settings are enabled.

TIP

Newer Ente Auth clients (upcoming 4.4.0+) will automatically try to correct for incorrect system time, so you should be seeing correct codes even if your system time is out of sync. However, this automatic correction will not work if you're using Ente Auth in offline mode.

If you've recently changed your system time and the codes are still incorrect, try to refresh / restart the app if needed.

Why may TOTP verification fail with Google Workspace?

Google Workspace doesn't explicitly block Ente Auth, but its implementation of TOTP is more restrictive and can sometimes be incompatible with third-party authenticators. While Ente Auth follows the open TOTP standard, Google's system occasionally expects additional metadata or a specific app ID, which can cause verification to fail.

That said, many users are able to use Ente Auth with Google Workspace without issues, so this behavior can vary.

Also ensure that your system time is accurate, as any time drift can cause TOTP codes to be invalid. You can verify your time at https://time.is/

Can I access my codes on web?

You can access the codes synced to your Ente account at auth.ente.com.

Why doesn't auth.ente.com recognize my email when I try to log in?

First check the email shown in the settings of a working Ente app. If you changed your account email, use the new address. For a self-hosted account, also check that you are using the correct server.

If the same account works in an app or another browser, try these browser-specific checks:

1. On the login screen, choose Change email address and re-enter the account email.
2. Try auth.ente.com in a private or incognito window. Keep any working session in the original window or another app.
3. If the private window works but the normal window still fails, clear site data for auth.ente.com in the affected browser and try again. This removes that site's saved browser session, so first make sure you can sign in again and have preserved any working access elsewhere.

These checks can also help when only one browser rejects the password. They do not establish that cached site data is the cause of every sign-in failure. If the problem remains, see verification troubleshooting.

Why don't I see my codes after logging in?

A few common reasons and what to check:

• Wrong account: confirm you're signed into the same Ente account everywhere. Open Settings and check the registered email at the top, then compare across your devices.
• Offline mode: if you were using Ente Auth in Use without backups (offline mode), your codes live only on that one device and aren't synced to the cloud. They won't appear on a new device or on the web until you sign in on the original device and let it sync.
• Sync check: log in once on the web app at auth.ente.com/login to confirm whether your codes exist in your account at all. If they show up there, the issue is local to one device — try logging out and back in on that device.

If your codes were created offline and you've since lost access to that device, they cannot be recovered from the server because they were never uploaded.

Does Ente Auth require an account?

No, Ente Auth does not require an account. You can choose to use the app without backups if you prefer.

Can I merge two Ente accounts or move my Auth codes to another account?

Separate Ente accounts cannot be merged. Changing an account's email address does not combine it with another account.

You can move Auth codes by exporting and importing them:

1. In the source account, create an encrypted export. Save the file outside the app and keep the export password safe.
2. Keep the source app signed in. On another trusted device or installation, sign in to Auth with the Ente account you want to keep. Check the account email before importing.
3. Open Settings > Data > Import codes, choose Ente Encrypted export, select the file, and enter the password you chose for the export.
4. Compare the imported entries with the source. Verify that the codes work for the services you need, and that the destination account has synced and is accessible on your other devices.
5. Keep the source and encrypted backup until these checks are complete. If you cannot keep a working copy while switching accounts, contact [email protected] before signing out or removing data.

This moves Auth codes only. Photos libraries, subscriptions, account history, and Locker data do not merge through this process.

WARNING

Delete account deletes that account's Photos, Auth, and Locker data. Do not use it just to stop using Auth or to free an email address before checking what is stored in the account. See shared-account deletion.

How can I delete my account?

IMPORTANT

Deleting a code from Ente Auth, uninstalling Auth, or deleting your Ente account does not disable two-factor authentication at the websites or services that use those codes. They will continue asking for their second factor.

Before removing your codes, create an encrypted export and verify that you can import it, or verify that another authenticator or recovery method works for each service. Keep a working copy until you have checked access to every account you need.

If you have already lost the codes, use each service's backup codes, account-recovery process, or support team. Ente cannot disable another service's MFA or recover that service's account for you.

You can delete your account at any time by using the "Delete account" option in the settings. For security reasons, we request you to delete your account on your own instead of contacting support to ask them to delete your account.

Note that Ente Photos, Ente Auth, and Ente Locker data will be deleted when you delete your account (irrespective of which app you delete it from) since Photos, Auth, and Locker use the same underlying account.

If you want to stop using only one app, see Will deleting my Ente Auth or Locker account also delete my Photos account?.

To know details of how your data is deleted, including when you delete your account, please see https://ente.com/blog/how-ente-deletes-data/.

Can Ente Auth be used offline?

Yes. Choose Use without backups to use Ente Auth offline without an account. Your codes are stored locally and are not synced or backed up to Ente.

Desktop and direct-download Android builds may still contact Ente to check for app updates when launched, including in offline mode. Learn more in Using offline mode safely.

Will I lose my offline codes if I create an account later?

No. When you sign in after using Ente Auth offline, the desktop app migrates any remaining offline codes into the newly created account so you keep them.

NOTE

The app will still recommend you to export your codes first before starting the sign in, so you have your own copy in case something unexpected happens during the sign-in.

Can I use Ente Auth on multiple devices and sync them?

Yes, you can download Ente Auth on multiple devices and sync the codes with end-to-end encryption.

Do you support exporting to Google Authenticator format?

Yes, you can export your codes as HTML QR codes and then scan them in Google Authenticator to import them.

To export for Google Authenticator:

1. Open Settings > Data > Export
2. Select "Plain HTML"
3. Acknowledge the security warning (this export is unencrypted)
4. Save or share the HTML file
5. Open the HTML file in a browser
6. Use Google Authenticator's "Scan a QR code" feature to scan each QR code from the HTML page

The HTML export generates individual QR codes for each of your codes, making it easy to import them into Google Authenticator or other compatible authenticator apps.

IMPORTANT

This export is unencrypted. Handle the exported HTML file carefully and delete it after importing your codes.

What information about my codes is stored on Ente server?

Due to E2EE, the server doesn't know anything about your codes. Everything is encrypted, including the tags, type, account, issuer, notes, pinned or trash status, etc.

Why did only some of my codes import?

An import may skip entries it cannot read. Check that you selected the correct import option for the exported file, then compare the imported entries with your original authenticator and verify the codes.

Keep the original authenticator and export until all the entries you need are present and working. Switching to Plain text does not fix every provider-format problem. If entries are still missing, contact [email protected] with the app versions, export type, and entry counts. Do not send secret-bearing exports or QR codes.

Why do some Google Authenticator codes fail to import?

Google Authenticator exports some codes in a format that other authenticator apps may not be able to read correctly. This can happen especially with Google account entries.

If a code fails to import, re-add it directly from the original service:

1. Open that service's security or 2FA settings.
2. Remove the existing authenticator setup.
3. Set it up again.
4. Scan the new QR code using Ente Auth.
5. Save the backup or recovery codes provided by the service.

Codes that imported successfully continue working normally.

What does it mean when I receive a message saying that my current device isn't powerful enough to verify my password?

This means that the parameters that were used to derive your master-key on your original device, are incompatible with your current device (likely because it's less powerful).

If you recover your account using your current device and reset the password, a new key will be generated with different parameters. This new key will be equally strong and compatible with both devices.

Why do I get verification errors when signing in on a new device, but it works hours later?

When you sign in to Ente Auth, the app performs a deliberately heavy cryptographic step that needs around 1 GB of free RAM on the device. This is part of how we keep your password secure. If a lot of other apps are running in the background, there often isn't enough free memory available and the sign-in fails. After a few hours, the operating system clears out enough background apps to free up that memory, which is why it eventually works.

This is more likely on phones and tablets with 2-3 GB of RAM (older models such as iPhone 7, 8, SE, or older iPads).

Try the following:

1. Restart your device, then open Ente Auth immediately before other apps load.
2. Close other apps (swipe them away in the app switcher) and try again.
3. In the meantime, access your codes at auth.ente.com in a browser on another device.

I can't change my app lock PIN. What do I do?

If the option to change the PIN doesn't appear, log out by tapping the back arrow on the app lock screen. Once logged out, the app lock is no longer in effect and you can set it up again from scratch when you sign back in.

Codes won't sync, password is rejected, or recovery key keeps failing. Where do I start?

A generic verification error can have several causes, including a request timing out while contacting the server. The message alone does not establish that your password is wrong, an email code was missed, your account is locked, or your device is short of memory.

Keep any working app or browser session signed in while you troubleshoot. Before resetting your account or reinstalling the app:

1. Try another trusted connection, such as switching between Wi-Fi and mobile data.
2. If only one browser fails, follow the browser checks.
3. If you are entering a recovery key, check its format and word order.

Network filtering can interfere with sign-in and sync. Check whether a DNS blocker, custom Private DNS configuration, or VPN is blocking Ente endpoints such as *.ente.io, *.ente.com, or *.backblazeb2.com. Review its settings or temporarily test without it, then restore your usual protection. On a managed network, ask the administrator for help.

If a password reset failed partway through, the new password may already have been saved even though the app did not receive confirmation. Try signing in with the new password before repeating the reset.

If the problem continues, contact [email protected] with the exact error text, Auth version, operating system, and whether another device or connection works. Never include your password, recovery key, or authenticator codes.