Key Rotation

The Safe Option For Most Users

Most users who want to "change the key" actually want to change the Access Code for the same Personal Access.

That is the safe, normal path.

What To Avoid

Do not use Create New Personal Access as your normal way to change the Access Code.

That action creates a different Personal Access key version. Older protected data may still depend on the previous Personal Access, and this device may not be able to read that data until the older access method is unlocked again.

What to avoid

This path creates a different Personal Access instead of rotating the current code.

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What The App Supports Today

The desktop app currently gives users two important tools:

• Add access method to generate a new Access Code for the current Personal Access
• Use access method to unlock an existing Personal Access on another device

Because of that, the normal guidance is:

• Use Add access method if you want a new Access Code for the same Personal Access
• Use Use access method when setting up another device
• Avoid Create New Personal Access unless you intentionally want a separate Personal Access

Advanced Workaround: Replace The Local Personal Access

If you intentionally want this device to move to a new underlying Personal Access key, the current user-facing workaround is:

1. Disable synchronization.
2. Turn off Data Protection.
3. Let Trackself decrypt local protected entries back to plaintext.
4. Turn Data Protection on again.
5. Complete setup and choose Create New Personal Access.
6. Let Trackself protect the local plaintext entries again under the new Personal Access.

This is a local reset-and-rebootstrap flow. Existing local entries keep the same record identity and are rewritten with new protection, so after sync is re-enabled those updated records can propagate to other devices.

When This Workaround Is "Complete"

In the short term, a reset-based replacement can be considered complete when:

• Existing protected entries have been protected again under the new Personal Access
• The updated data has synced
• Your other devices can unlock the new Personal Access and read the updated entries

This is different from fully removing the old Personal Access everywhere.

Important Limitation: Old Personal Access Versions Can Remain

Today there is no normal desktop flow to selectively retire one older Personal Access key version while keeping the newer one.

That means an older Personal Access can continue to exist as long as:

• Old wraps still exist on the server or in Shared Folder Sync
• Another device still has the old Personal Access available locally
• Some older protected data still refers to that key version

In other words, the current workaround is a practical transition flow, not a full account-wide retirement flow.

Transition Risk During Replacement

During a reset-based replacement, other devices may still be working with the older Personal Access until they catch up.

This is usually manageable if:

• You still have the older access method available
• You complete the transition promptly
• You avoid making conflicting edits on multiple devices during the cutover

If another device edits older protected data during the transition, recovery may still be possible as long as both the old and new Personal Access methods remain available, but the process is no longer as clean as a simple Access Code change.