{
  "schema": "https://storagestudio.us/schema/wiki-page.v1",
  "title": "How Storage Studio protects your settings on this Mac",
  "slug": "your-settings-are-encrypted",
  "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/your-settings-are-encrypted",
  "markdown_url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/your-settings-are-encrypted.md",
  "category": "Privacy & security",
  "category_url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/privacy-and-security/",
  "tags": [
    "privacy",
    "security",
    "encryption",
    "licence"
  ],
  "summary": "Storage Studio keeps its most sensitive records, and the passwords you type in for storage accounts, encrypted and tied to this Mac. Its other files can be read only by your user account. Changing your licence email keeps everything readable.",
  "published_at": "2026-10-01T06:20:29.000Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-01T05:37:01.000Z",
  "headings": [
    {
      "level": 2,
      "text": "What is encrypted",
      "id": "what-is-encrypted"
    },
    {
      "level": 2,
      "text": "Everything else is private to you",
      "id": "everything-else-is-private-to-you"
    },
    {
      "level": 2,
      "text": "Changing your licence email",
      "id": "changing-your-licence-email"
    },
    {
      "level": 2,
      "text": "What this protects against, and what it doesn't",
      "id": "what-this-protects-against-and-what-it-doesn-t"
    }
  ],
  "links_out": [
    {
      "slug": "shared-folders-between-macs",
      "label": "Shared Folders",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/shared-folders-between-macs"
    },
    {
      "slug": "how-account-sign-ins-are-stored",
      "label": "How your account sign-ins are stored",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-account-sign-ins-are-stored"
    },
    {
      "slug": "moving-to-a-new-mac",
      "label": "Using your licence on a new Mac",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/moving-to-a-new-mac"
    },
    {
      "slug": "privacy-overview",
      "label": "Privacy: what stays on your Mac",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/privacy-overview"
    },
    {
      "slug": "what-leaves-your-mac",
      "label": "What leaves your Mac",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/what-leaves-your-mac"
    },
    {
      "slug": "self-backup-of-settings",
      "label": "Backing up Storage Studio's own settings",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/self-backup-of-settings"
    },
    {
      "slug": "restore-points",
      "label": "Restore Points",
      "exists": true,
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/restore-points"
    }
  ],
  "links_in": [
    {
      "slug": "how-account-sign-ins-are-stored",
      "title": "How your account sign-ins are stored",
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-account-sign-ins-are-stored"
    },
    {
      "slug": "privacy-overview",
      "title": "Privacy: what stays on your Mac",
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/privacy-overview"
    },
    {
      "slug": "the-backup-passphrase",
      "title": "The backup passphrase",
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-backup-passphrase"
    },
    {
      "slug": "what-leaves-your-mac",
      "title": "What leaves your Mac, and when",
      "url": "https://storagestudio.us/wiki/what-leaves-your-mac"
    }
  ],
  "diagrams": [
    {
      "kind": "flowchart",
      "caption": "What happens to an encrypted record after you change your licence email",
      "outline": "- Storage Studio opens a record\n  - leads to Opens with the current email?\n- Opens with the current email?\n  - Yes: leads to Used as normal\n  - No: leads to Opens with an earlier email?\n- Opens with an earlier email?\n  - Yes: leads to Locked again under the current email\n  - No: leads to Set aside unchanged, never overwritten\n- Locked again under the current email\n  - leads to Used as normal\n",
      "source": "%% caption: What happens to an encrypted record after you change your licence email\nflowchart TD\n  A[Storage Studio opens a record] --> B{Opens with the current email?}\n  B -->|Yes| C[Used as normal]\n  B -->|No| D{Opens with an earlier email?}\n  D -->|Yes| E[Locked again under the current email]\n  E --> C\n  D -->|No| F[Set aside unchanged, never overwritten]"
    }
  ],
  "images": [],
  "screenshots_pending": [],
  "faqs": [],
  "text": "Storage Studio keeps its most sensitive records encrypted on your Mac, locked to this Mac and to your licence email. A copy of those files that ends up somewhere else — in a backup, a synced folder or on a disk taken out of the Mac — can't be read. The rest of Storage Studio's own files can be read only by your user account on this Mac. What is encrypted Your licence and trial details. Details of the cloud accounts you've connected , such as the names you gave them. Your recent Data Parking pairings — the pairs of folders you've moved between. Folders you keep the same on two Macs — which folders are paired and the sharing requests behind them. See Shared Folders . Passwords and access keys you type in for S3-compatible storage, FTP and SFTP servers. These sit in a separate encrypted store and aren't included in the copy of settings Storage Studio keeps on your external drive. For accounts you sign in to through a web page, such as your Google Drive or Dropbox, see How your account sign-ins are stored . Everything else is private to you Logs, status files and your rules aren't encrypted, because Storage Studio's background service needs to read them directly. Each time Storage Studio starts, it checks its folders and makes sure only your user account can open them, so other people with accounts on the same Mac can't. Changing your licence email The lock on your encrypted records uses your licence email. Changing that email — re-registering, activating a licence under another address, or fixing a typo — doesn't lock you out: Storage Studio remembers the addresses it has used on this Mac and tries them when it opens a file. When a file opens with an old address, it's locked again under the new one straight away. If a file can't be opened with any address it knows, it's set aside, not overwritten, so it can still be recovered. What happens to an encrypted record after you change your licence email Flowchart outline: What happens to an encrypted record after you change your licence email Storage Studio opens a record leads to Opens with the current email? Opens with the current email? Yes: leads to Used as normal No: leads to Opens with an earlier email? Opens with an earlier email? Yes: leads to Locked again under the current email No: leads to Set aside unchanged, never overwritten Locked again under the current email leads to Used as normal What this protects against, and what it doesn't Encryption protects copies of these files that leave this Mac. It doesn't protect against someone who is using your Mac while you're logged in. To protect the whole disk if your Mac is lost or stolen, keep FileVault turned on in System Settings → Privacy & Security. Because the lock is tied to this Mac, these records can't be opened on a different Mac, or after macOS is installed again from scratch. Reinstalling Storage Studio on the same Mac, with the same licence email, keeps the encrypted records readable. On a new Mac, you may need to enter account passwords again — see Using your licence on a new Mac . More answers are in the Storage Studio FAQ . See also: Privacy: what stays on your Mac · What leaves your Mac · Backing up Storage Studio's own settings · Restore Points",
  "markdown": "Storage Studio keeps its most sensitive records encrypted on your Mac, locked to this Mac and to your licence email. A copy of those files that ends up somewhere else — in a backup, a synced folder or on a disk taken out of the Mac — can't be read. The rest of Storage Studio's own files can be read only by your user account on this Mac.\n\n## What is encrypted\n\n- **Your licence and trial details.**\n- **Details of the cloud accounts you've connected**, such as the names you gave them.\n- **Your recent Data Parking pairings** — the pairs of folders you've moved between.\n- **Folders you keep the same on two Macs** — which folders are paired and the sharing requests behind them. See [Shared Folders](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/shared-folders-between-macs).\n- **Passwords and access keys you type in** for S3-compatible storage, FTP and SFTP servers. These sit in a separate encrypted store and aren't included in the copy of settings Storage Studio keeps on your external drive.\n\nFor accounts you sign in to through a web page, such as your Google Drive or Dropbox, see [How your account sign-ins are stored](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-account-sign-ins-are-stored).\n\n## Everything else is private to you\n\nLogs, status files and your rules aren't encrypted, because Storage Studio's background service needs to read them directly. Each time Storage Studio starts, it checks its folders and makes sure only your user account can open them, so other people with accounts on the same Mac can't.\n\n## Changing your licence email\n\nThe lock on your encrypted records uses your licence email. Changing that email — re-registering, activating a licence under another address, or fixing a typo — doesn't lock you out:\n\n- Storage Studio remembers the addresses it has used on this Mac and tries them when it opens a file.\n- When a file opens with an old address, it's locked again under the new one straight away.\n- If a file can't be opened with any address it knows, it's set aside, not overwritten, so it can still be recovered.\n\n```mermaid\n%% caption: What happens to an encrypted record after you change your licence email\nflowchart TD\n  A[Storage Studio opens a record] --> B{Opens with the current email?}\n  B -->|Yes| C[Used as normal]\n  B -->|No| D{Opens with an earlier email?}\n  D -->|Yes| E[Locked again under the current email]\n  E --> C\n  D -->|No| F[Set aside unchanged, never overwritten]\n```\n\n*Flowchart — What happens to an encrypted record after you change your licence email. Outline:*\n\n- Storage Studio opens a record\n  - leads to Opens with the current email?\n- Opens with the current email?\n  - Yes: leads to Used as normal\n  - No: leads to Opens with an earlier email?\n- Opens with an earlier email?\n  - Yes: leads to Locked again under the current email\n  - No: leads to Set aside unchanged, never overwritten\n- Locked again under the current email\n  - leads to Used as normal\n\n## What this protects against, and what it doesn't\n\nEncryption protects copies of these files that leave this Mac. It doesn't protect against someone who is using your Mac while you're logged in. To protect the whole disk if your Mac is lost or stolen, keep FileVault turned on in System Settings → Privacy & Security.\n\nBecause the lock is tied to this Mac, these records can't be opened on a different Mac, or after macOS is installed again from scratch. Reinstalling Storage Studio on the same Mac, with the same licence email, keeps the encrypted records readable. On a new Mac, you may need to enter account passwords again — see [Using your licence on a new Mac](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/moving-to-a-new-mac).\n\nMore answers: https://storagestudio.us/faq\n\nSee also: [Privacy: what stays on your Mac](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/privacy-overview) · [What leaves your Mac](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/what-leaves-your-mac) · [Backing up Storage Studio's own settings](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/self-backup-of-settings) · [Restore Points](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/restore-points)\n"
}