Password Backup
A password backup lets you restore your access to twonly, along with your contacts and messages, if you lose or replace your phone.
Why do I need a backup?
twonly does not have traditional user accounts where you simply sign in on a new device and retrieve all your content. Your access depends on private keys stored on your device. Your messages and the contents of your backups are end-to-end encrypted. You hold the keys needed to decrypt them; twonly cannot read your content.
Your username alone is therefore not enough to restore access. You also need your keys. A backup lets you recover them on a new phone.
How does password backup work?
You choose a password in the app. On your device, the app derives a key from that password and uses it to encrypt a backup of your private keys. Your contacts and messages are also encrypted before uploading. The server only stores the encrypted backups. Your password is not sent to the server.
On a new phone, you enter your username and backup password. The app can then recover your backed-up keys and decrypt your contacts and messages. The password lets you unlock your backup.
Setup
- Open Settings > Backup.
- Select Classic Password and choose a strong password. Keep it somewhere safe, such as a password manager.
- Wait for the first backup to finish successfully. You can check its status in the backup settings. The app then updates the backup automatically in the background.
Recovery
Install twonly on your new phone and choose recovery with a password. Enter your existing username and backup password. The app downloads your backup and restores the state of the last successful backup.
Pictures and videos are not included in this backup. Save them separately with Memories Backup or export them manually.
If you forget your password, twonly cannot reset it or decrypt the backup for you. While you still have access on your old phone, you can set a new backup password there. For another way to restore access, you can also set up passwordless backup with trusted contacts beforehand.
