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How to use OTPClient

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Paolo Stivanin edited this page Nov 3, 2023 · 19 revisions

Table of Contents

First run

On the first run, you will be asked:

  1. where to store the database file
  2. to type two times the encryption password for the database

Please keep in mind that the password can't be recovered. This means that if the password is forgotten, the data is lost.

After the first run, every time you start the program you will be asked to enter the password you have previously chosen.

Add token

There are multiple ways to add a new token to the app:

  1. by using the webcam to scan a qrcode, for example, from your smartphone (Scan using webcam)
  2. by taking a screenshot of the screen you are currently using (Take screenshot). This requires gnome-shell
  3. from a QR code. Here you can choose between:
    • importing a QR code stored as a png file on the disk
    • importing a QR code from clipboard (tested on GNOME and KDE). Please note that when using Spectacle on KDE the image must be copied to clipboard before selecting this option
  4. by manually entering the needed info (Manually)

Delete token

To delete one or more tokens just click on the - sign next to the +. The button will become red and, from now on, every time you click on a row, the row will be deleted. To exit the deletion mode, just click on the - button again.

Show token

To show a token you just need to click (or hit enter or spacebar) on the desired row. This will:

  • show the token
  • copy the token to the clipboard (only the default clipboard is supported. External clipboard managers may or may not work)
  • show a notification

Each token is shown by default only 1 time. If you'd prefer to see the current token and the next one, you just need to activate the property "Show next OTP" from the settings menu (top right corner, then click settings)

Search token

By default, a token is searched by its label. If you prefer searching by Issuer, you can change this property from the top right menu, under settings. Please note that it's not possible to search by label and issuer at the same time

Sort token

It's possible to sort tokens on the main view by first clicking on the "double arrows" button at the top left of the title bar, and then dragging and dropping tokens where wanted. When you're done, you must click again the "double arrows" button.

Import and Export

To import/export a file, just open the hamburger menu on the top right, select Import or Export and then select the correct provider.

Lock and Auto-lock

App can now be locked both manually (by hitting CTRL-L) and automatically. By default, only the manual method is active, but you can choose to auto-lock the application after a certain amount of time (Auto lock when inactive for) and/or when the screensaver turns on (Auto lock on system lock).

Secret Service Integration

Since 2.6.0, OTPClient now uses the OS' secret service to store the password. This means that, once you're logged in, you won't have to type the password anymore. To disable this behavior, you need to either disable "Hamburger menu -> Settings -> Use Secret Service" or edit the config file (~/.config/otpclient.cfg) and set use_secret_service=false.

CLI

A simplified version of OTPClient is now available as CLI. Currently, only three operations are supported:

  • list: this will print all pairs of account and issuer that are in the database
  • show: this will show the OTP for a given account/issuer.
  • export: this will export data in either one of the following format: andotp_plain, andotp_encrypted, freeotpplus and aegis

You can call otpclient-cli help to get more details on how to use the CLI

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