cloudHQ 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
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cloudHQ is the account behind its sync and backup services and its long list of Gmail and Chrome extensions. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional, and any cloudHQ account can turn it on (cloudHQ). There is one method: a 6-digit code from an authenticator app. cloudHQ's help names Google Authenticator, but the code is standard, so this guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any other authenticator app works the same way.
cloudHQ gives no backup codes. The spare it gives you is the key printed next to the QR code, so keep it.
How we checked this guide: the cloudHQ steps come from cloudHQ's own help article and security page, linked below, including the article's screenshots. We read them on October 21, 2026. We haven't tested them on a cloudHQ account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
It works even if you sign in with Google
You can sign in to cloudHQ with your Google account or with a cloudHQ password. cloudHQ's security page says its 2FA helps in both cases: it guards against a guessed cloudHQ password, and against someone who has broken into the Google account you sign in with (cloudHQ). So the cloudHQ code is a separate layer from Google's own 2-Step Verification, not a replacement for it.
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
cloudHQ's help article describes these steps (cloudHQ):
- Sign in to cloudHQ and open My Account.
- Click Enable Two-Factor Authentication. A Two-Factor Authentication page opens with a QR code and, beside it, a box headed PLEASE WRITE DOWN YOUR AUTHENTICATION KEY.
- Write down that authentication key and keep it somewhere safe, away from your phone. It's shown in groups separated by dashes.
- In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at the QR code. If the page is open on the same iPhone, take a screenshot, tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- If you can't scan it, tap +, then Enter key manually in Novaz. Fill in Service (for example, cloudHQ) and type the authentication key as the Setup key, leaving out the dashes. See What is a 2FA setup key?
- Type the 6-digit code from Novaz into the Enter 6-digit code box and click Enable Two-Factor Authentication.
The setup page says codes are 6 digits and change every 30 seconds, which matches what Novaz makes from a typed key.
No backup codes: keep the authentication key
cloudHQ says plainly that it doesn't provide backup codes (cloudHQ). Its advice is either to use an authenticator app that syncs your codes to an online account, or to keep the setup key from the QR code page in a safe place.
Novaz can keep a copy too, with iCloud backup (PRO, end-to-end encrypted) or a password-protected backup file; without one, its keys stay on that iPhone. Either way, keep the written-down authentication key: it still works if your Novaz backup is missing or out of date. Store it in a password manager or on paper in a safe place, and treat it like a password, because anyone who has it can make your codes.
When cloudHQ asks for a code
According to the help article, cloudHQ asks for the code in two places: when you sign in, and when you turn 2FA off (cloudHQ). At sign-in you'll see a 2-Factor Authentication screen with a Verification code box and a Continue button. The article doesn't mention a way to trust a device and skip the code.
If cloudHQ rejects your code
cloudHQ's help puts this down to the phone's clock. Codes are tied to the time, so turn on automatic date and time: on iPhone, open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when your clock is 15 seconds or more off.
Don't keep guessing. cloudHQ locks the account after too many wrong codes, and then only support@cloudhq.net can help (cloudHQ). Other causes are in Authenticator code not working?
Changing phones
While the old phone still works, the cloudHQ route is simple: read a code from the old phone, sign in, click Disable Two-Factor Authentication on My Account, and then turn it on again with the new phone (cloudHQ). You'll get a new QR code and a new authentication key, so write the new key down.
If you have a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, you can restore it on the new iPhone instead, and cloudHQ comes along with your other accounts. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
If you turned on iCloud backup in Novaz or kept a backup file, restore it on the new iPhone and cloudHQ comes back with it. Otherwise, if you saved the authentication key, add it to Novaz on your new phone with Enter key manually and sign in as usual.
If you didn't save it, email support@cloudhq.net from the email address on your cloudHQ account. The sign-in code screen shows the same address next to "Lost your device?". cloudHQ says it won't turn 2FA off until it's sure the account is yours, and it may ask about the apps you use, your plan, your payment details and when you last signed in (cloudHQ). Never send a full card number or a card security code. cloudHQ doesn't say how long this takes, only that it will tell you once 2FA is off.
After support turns 2FA off, cloudHQ's article suggests clearing your browser cookies, signing in to Google with your cloudHQ email, clicking Login on cloudHQ, and then turning 2FA on again under My Account with the new QR code. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Turning 2FA off
Go to My Account, click Disable Two-Factor Authentication, and enter a code from your authenticator app (cloudHQ). Afterwards, open the cloudHQ account in Novaz and tap Remove account.
