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Troubeshooting

Resolving Decryption Errors through Key Backup

— Ben

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This guide will walk you through the steps to take to verify a new device or device that has problem decrypting messages sent to it through the Key Backup System.
You can learn more about Encryption Key Backup on its description page here.

What you will need:

  1. Acter logged in and working on at least one device
    we call this device Anki
  2. The second device, with Acter logged into the same account
    we call this device Betty
  3. Both need to be connected to a reliable internet connection
  4. A way to copy-paste information between the two

Steps

1 Enable Key Backup

On Anki, the working device, enable Key Backup in the Settings (go to Home, click your Avatar to get to the settings). It will prompt you the backup code, which is a crypt code of various letters. Copy this code somewhere safe, ideally a password manager!

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Already enabled but can't recall the code? See the troubleshooting section below.

2 Enter the Backup code

On Betty, navigate to the same settings screen. It should prompt you to enter the key backup automatically or upon pressing of the "provide backup key" button. Once you have submitted that, the screen should show that it is fetching the backup and shortly after tell you that it is all backed up.

3 Profit

On Anki check the chat again that wasn't working before. If it is works now all good, otherwise you might try restarting the App once and check again. Repeat step 2 on all other devices that you have to make sure all have the same backup key.

Troubleshooting

The Backup is already enabled, but I don't remember/can't find the code anywhere

In that case, you need to reset the backup. On the working device, Anki, trigger the reset of the Backup (the button in the settings). This will destroy the existing backup and create a new one, showing you the newly created code. Keep that code stored securely and continue with step 2.

Betty doesn't prompt for the backup but wants to enable one

Check on Anki that the backup is enabled and confirmed to be enabled. Close the App on Betty and reopen it, confirming that is synced up. Then retry to do step 2. If it still doesn't show up as enabled, make sure you are really using the exact same account on both devices.

Anki and Betty still can't read some messages

If Anki wasn't able to read some messages before you started the process, it won't be able to share that information with Betty either. This process only synchronizes the decryption key between the devices but if neither of them have them, then it still won't work. That could happen if you only created the backup after messages had already been sent to another device that isn't in the backup circle. For example, if you logged out with all devices or lost access to a device and its backup codes.