Sync.com 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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Sync.com is an end-to-end encrypted cloud storage service with desktop apps, mobile apps and a web panel. Its two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional, and you pick one of two ways to get the extra code: by email, or from an authenticator app. You can't have both at once, so moving from email codes to an app means turning email off first (Sync). This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.
If you're a sub-user on a Sync Teams plan, your administrator manages 2FA for you, and you'll need to ask them for changes (Sync).
How we checked this guide: the Sync.com steps come from Sync's own help center, linked below, which we read on October 21, 2026. The article pages show a bot check to automated readers, so we read the same articles through the help center's public article feed on help.sync.com. We haven't tested them on a Sync.com 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
The setting is in the web panel, not in the desktop or mobile apps (Sync):
- Sign in to the Sync web panel at cp.sync.com.
- Click Settings in the left navigation bar, then the Security tab.
- Click the settings cog next to Two-factor authentication.
- Click Enable 2FA via Authenticator app. If email codes are already on, click Disable 2FA first, then come back to this step.
- Sync shows a QR code. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at it. If the web 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.
- Click Continue.
- Type the 6-digit code from Novaz on the web panel and click Save.
- Download the backup codes and put them somewhere safe.
Sync's article doesn't mention a text key you could type instead of scanning, so plan on scanning the QR code.
Your backup codes
Each backup code works once, and you type it where Sync asks for your 2FA code. Sync sends you an email whenever a backup code is used to sign in (Sync). Unless you've backed up Novaz with iCloud backup or a backup file, its keys exist only on your iPhone, so these codes are what gets you back in if that phone is gone. See 2FA backup codes.
To get a fresh set, go to Settings > Security, click the cog next to Two-factor authentication, select Generate new backup codes, and enter your password. Your old codes stop working. If you've used them all up and can't make new ones, Sync says to contact support (Sync).
Sync's pages describe the codes in two ways: the setup steps say to download them, while the recovery article and the method-change steps say they're sent to your email. Check both places.
When Sync asks for a code
With 2FA on, Sync wants a code each time you sign in to the web panel and each time you install a Sync app on a new computer or device (Sync). The desktop app's shortcut into the web panel, single sign-on, doesn't skip that step (Sync).
A new device can also show as suspended until you approve it, either from an email Sync sends or from the Devices tab in the web panel. The labels in that older article, such as Activate, may have changed (Sync).
If Sync rejects your code
A wrong 2FA code gives the same "6001 Incorrect login credentials" error as a wrong password. Sync suggests using the newest code, checking that your phone's date and time are accurate, and keeping your authenticator app up to date (Sync).
On iPhone, the clock fix is Settings > General > Date & Time > Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. More causes are in Authenticator code not working?
Changing phones or turning it off
Sync doesn't describe moving the authenticator to a new phone. Its documented way to change methods is to go to Settings > Security, click the cog next to Two-factor authentication, click Disable next to your current method, then click the cog again and pick a method (Sync). Picking the authenticator app again lets you scan a new QR code with the new phone. Doing this creates new backup codes.
The same Disable step turns 2FA off if you want to stop using it. Do any of this while you still have the old phone. For a new iPhone, you can skip the method change if you have a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file: restore your accounts there and the Sync codes keep working. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
Sign in with a backup code, then set 2FA up again with a new method (Sync).
Without backup codes, you have to contact Sync support at sync.com/support. For a lost, broken or replaced phone, Sync says support can temporarily switch your 2FA to email codes so you can get back in. That only helps if you can still read the email on your account. Sync doesn't say what proof support asks for or how long it takes. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
