Reference
Troubleshooting and FAQ
Common problems and error messages, what they mean, and what to do about them.
I forgot my master password
It can’t be recovered, and there is no reset.
That’s on purpose. The master password is the only way to derive the key that decrypts vault.enc, and there is no copy of that key anywhere. That’s what keeps your secrets safe if someone gets hold of your files, and it also means nobody can open the vault without the password.
Your hosts, snippets, known hosts and settings are plain JSON, so those details are still readable. The passwords, private keys and passphrases in the vault are gone.
TODOExplain how to start over with a new vault after a forgotten master password.
macOS says it can’t verify the app
That’s expected, because release builds aren’t signed with an Apple developer certificate. Click Done, then go to System Settings → Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway next to Burrow Client.
You need to do this again after installing an update. See Installation.
“Host key changed” warning
The server’s key isn’t the one Burrow saved. Either the server was reinstalled, or someone is intercepting the connection. Don’t accept the new key until you’ve compared its fingerprint with the one on the server. Known hosts walks you through it.
“The server only supports outdated, insecure algorithms”
The server only offers algorithms based on SHA-1 or MD5, and Burrow turns those off. The fix is on the server: update its SSH server, or ask the admin to. See Outdated algorithms.
Connection errors
“Authentication failed”
The server rejected the login. Check the user name, and the password or key. With a key, make sure its public key is in ~/.ssh/authorized_keys of that user on the server. If a wrong password is saved, remove it in the host form so Burrow asks again.
“Connection refused”
The server is there, but nothing accepts connections on that port. Check the Port in the host form, and that the SSH server is running.
“Host not found”
The name in Host couldn’t be looked up. Check it for typos, or try the IP address.
“Connection timed out”
Nothing answered. The server may be down, the address may be wrong, or a firewall may be dropping the connection. Host status shows at a glance which hosts are reachable.
Sync errors
“Registration is turned off on this server”
The server has no invite code set, so nobody can create an account. If you already have one, log in instead. Otherwise ask the admin to set REGISTRATION_CODE for a moment, as in step 4.
“Wrong invite code”
Check the code with the server admin. It’s the value of REGISTRATION_CODE in the server’s .env.
“Too many failed attempts, try again in 15 minutes”
The server blocks an IP address for 15 minutes after 10 failed attempts. Wait, and check the user name and password before you try again.
“The account password was changed or the account was deleted. Log in again.”
The account password was changed on another device, or the account was deleted. Log in again under Settings → Sync → Log in with the current password. If the account was deleted, you need a new one.
Update errors
“GitHub’s rate limit was reached. Try again in an hour.”
GitHub limits how often one IP address can ask its API. Wait an hour and check again, or download the new version from the Releases page.
Screenshot blocking doesn’t work on Linux
That’s expected. Hiding the window from screenshots, screen recordings and screen sharing only works on macOS. On Linux, a shared screen shows the Burrow window like any other.
Something else
Open an issue on GitHub. For anything security related, use the private channel instead.