OVHcloud 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app

Your OVHcloud account (formerly OVH; ovh.com now redirects to ovhcloud.com) is the one behind the OVHcloud Control Panel, where you manage domains, hosting and servers. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional, unless your account has to meet the HDS (health data hosting) certification, which requires it (OVHcloud). You can use SMS codes, an authenticator app, a U2F security key, or several of these, and OVHcloud adds a set of backup codes when you turn on the first one (OVHcloud). This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.

How we checked this guide: the OVHcloud steps come from OVHcloud's own documentation, including its screenshots, linked below, which we read on October 20, 2026. OVHcloud's main two-factor guide was last updated on April 28, 2025. We haven't tested the steps on an OVHcloud account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.

Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app

OVHcloud describes these steps (OVHcloud, OVHcloud US):

1. In the OVHcloud Control Panel, click your name in the top right, then Access my account, then Security.
2. Click Enable two-factor authentication. A setup window with five steps opens. On the first screen, click Next.
3. Under Select your method, choose Mobile application and click Next.
4. Scan the QR code: in Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code. If the Control Panel is open on the same iPhone, take a screenshot and use Choose a photo instead. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
5. Can't scan it? Click Show secret to see the key as text. In Novaz, tap +, then Enter key manually, type OVHcloud in Service, and paste the key into Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
6. Type the 6-digit code from Novaz in the Code field. Description is optional, but a name like "iPhone" makes the entry easy to spot later. Click Next.
7. OVHcloud now lists 10 backup codes. Copy them before you go on: the window warns that you can't display them again once you've validated them. Click Next.
8. On the last screen, click Confirm.

OVHcloud doesn't state how often its codes change, so scan the QR code if you can: it passes the code settings to Novaz, while a typed key always gets 6 digits every 30 seconds. The Next labels and the 6-digit hint come from newer screenshots on the OVHcloud US page. An older screenshot in the main guide shows Confirm on the QR code window, so your screen may differ.

Once one method is on, you can add one or two more, such as an SMS number or a security key, as a second way in.

Your backup codes are shown once

The 10 codes are single-use and only work alongside another method. OVHcloud asks you to always keep at least one unused, and suggests storing them in a password manager such as KeePass or Bitwarden (OVHcloud).

Unless you've made a Novaz backup, Novaz keeps its keys on your iPhone and nowhere else, so this list is your real way back in. Keep it even if you have a backup, since that may be out of date. If you've used up the codes or lost the list, click Regenerating codes on the Security page, where OVHcloud calls them emergency codes. See 2FA backup codes.

When OVHcloud asks for a code

After your customer ID (NIC handle) or email and password, the login page asks for a code from the method you used last. Try another method lists the others, including Use a backup code (OVHcloud, OVHcloud).

Don't confuse it with an email code: even without 2FA, OVHcloud sometimes emails a verification code to your primary address, and that check can't be turned off (OVHcloud).

Local users, who sign in with an ID like 1234-567-89/username, can turn on 2FA for their own access only (OVHcloud).

If OVHcloud rejects your code

OVHcloud's help doesn't cover rejected app codes. The usual cause is the iPhone's clock: open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. More fixes in Authenticator code not working?

Changing phones

OVHcloud doesn't document a phone switch or say whether two authenticator apps can be registered at once. It does say that removing a device takes a code from that device: on the Security page, click ... next to it, then Delete, enter the code and click Confirm. Without the device, only support can remove it (OVHcloud). So keep the old iPhone until the new one is set up and the old entry is gone. If you use Novaz's iCloud backup or keep a backup file, you can restore your accounts on the new iPhone instead of setting OVHcloud up again. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.

If you lose your authenticator

OVHcloud gives three ways back in (OVHcloud):

1. A backup code, through Try another method.
2. Another method you set up, such as an SMS number or a security key.
3. Removal of 2FA by OVHcloud. At the code step, click I have lost access to my mobile phone, U2F security key or emergency codes, which may sit under Try another method. A screenshot in the same guide labels it I can no longer access my devices, or my security codes.

The third route needs documents: an identity card, driver's license or passport in the account holder's name, showing full name, date of birth and expiry date. Companies add their registration documents, and the ID can be that of someone authorized to represent the company. Files must be JPG, JPEG, PDF or PNG, 10 MB at most each, sent from an email address registered on the account. One invalid or unreadable document cancels the request. OVHcloud says it confirms by email within 72 hours that 2FA is off.

Once you're back in, remove the lost device and turn 2FA on again. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?

Turning 2FA off

Delete every device on the Security page, each with its own code, then click Disable 2FA codes. Deleting one device leaves 2FA on (OVHcloud).

OVHcloud US accounts

OVHcloud US has its own help center, and its version differs in a few ways. There's no SMS option, and the path is your name, then your initials, then Security. Turning off the backup codes takes one of them, and lost access goes through support rather than an upload form (OVHcloud US).

Official OVHcloud help

• Securing your OVHcloud account with two-factor authentication
• Logging in to the OVHcloud Control Panel
• OVHcloud account management FAQ
• Securing my OVHcloud account and managing my personal information
• Creating and managing local users on an OVHcloud account
• Securing an account with two-factor authentication (OVHcloud US)