Guide

Setting up a passkey: sign in with fingerprint, Face ID or PIN

Step by step to your Notenarchiv passkey on Android, iPhone, iPad, Mac and Windows, in the browser and in the app. Plus help for when something goes wrong.

Notenarchiv has no passwords. The first time, you sign in with your email address and receive a login link plus a 6-digit code. That always works, but it gets tedious. A passkey is faster: tap Sign in with Passkey, confirm with your fingerprint, face or device PIN, and you are in.

What is a passkey?

A passkey is a digital key your device creates for exactly one website – here, app.notenarchiv.com. The secret part never leaves your device; Notenarchiv only receives the public part, which lets it check that it really is you.

What this means for you:

  • Nothing to remember: you unlock the key the same way you unlock your device – fingerprint, Face ID or device PIN.
  • Cannot be guessed or phished: a passkey only works on the real Notenarchiv site. On a fake site your device does not even offer it.
  • The device PIN is not a password: it stays on the device and is never sent to Notenarchiv.

How to set it up – in three steps

  1. Sign in by email once. On app.notenarchiv.com, enter your email address, click Send login link and open the link from the email or type in the 6-digit code. If you do not have a passkey yet, you are taken straight to your profile with the note Set up passkey.
  2. Click “Register” in your profile. The Passkeys section already suggests a name such as “iPhone” or “Windows PC” – change it if you like, so you know later which key belongs to which device.
  3. Confirm on your device. Your operating system now opens its own window and asks for your fingerprint, face or PIN. Afterwards you will see Passkey successfully registered!

From now on, choose Sign in with Passkey on the sign-in page.

What the window in step 3 looks like, and what needs to be set up beforehand, depends on the device.

Android

Passkeys are stored in Google Password Manager and unlocked with your fingerprint, face recognition or screen lock. The device needs a screen lock and you need to be signed in with a Google account. The passkey is then available on all Android devices and in Chrome on any computer with the same Google account.

In the Notenarchiv app, go to the Profile tab → Passkeys → Add passkey.

iPhone, iPad and Mac

Passkeys are stored in the iCloud Keychain and unlocked with Face ID or Touch ID. If Keychain is turned on in your iCloud settings, the passkey is automatically available on your Mac and your other Apple devices as well.

In the Notenarchiv app, you will find the setup in the Profile tab under Passkeys → Add passkey. In the browser (Safari) it works as described above, via the profile in the web app.

On a Mac, Safari saves the passkey in the iCloud Keychain and asks for Touch ID or your Mac password. Chrome and Edge additionally offer their own store – either works.

Windows PC and Windows tablet

On Windows the passkey store is called Windows Hello. It works the same in Edge, Chrome, Brave and Firefox.

Check first: is Windows Hello set up? Under Settings → Accounts → Sign-in options, at least PIN (Windows Hello) must be active; fingerprint or face recognition are optional if your device has them. Without Windows Hello, Windows asks for a “security key” or a phone in step 3 – that is the most common reason why setup seems not to work.

When registering, the Windows Security window opens. Enter your Windows PIN there or place your finger on the sensor. If your browser instead offers to save the passkey in its own password manager (such as Google Password Manager), that works too – the passkey is then also available on your other devices with the same account.

Good to know: a passkey stored in Windows Hello usually stays on that one device. For your phone or a second computer, simply set up another passkey there.

Signing in on someone else’s device

If you are at a computer without a passkey of yours – in the rehearsal room, for example – you can use your phone as the key: choose Sign in with Passkey, then the option for another device (usually “iPhone, iPad or Android device”). The computer shows a QR code that you scan with your phone’s camera. Bluetooth must be switched on on both devices. Alternatively, just sign in there by email.

When something goes wrong

“No Passkeys registered” when signing in: there is no Notenarchiv passkey on this device yet. Sign in by email and set one up in your profile afterwards.

The “Passkeys” section is missing from your profile: your browser does not support passkeys. Use a current version of Edge, Chrome, Brave, Firefox or Safari.

Device lost or sold: sign in on another device and delete the old passkey in your profile using the bin icon. It is worthless after that – for the new owner too.

New device, passkey gone: passkeys from Windows Hello do not move with you. Sign in by email and set up a new passkey on the new device.

Windows asks for a security key or a phone: Windows Hello is not set up. Create a PIN under Settings → Accounts → Sign-in options and start the registration again.

Signing in by email always remains available. A passkey is a shortcut, not a lock that can shut you out.