EchidnaLicence and devices
Echidna opens browsers only on signed-in computers. Your licence allows a set number of devices; this page explains how sign-in, device slots and offline use work.
Account or licence key
You sign in with one of two things you were given:
- Email and password for your account, or
- a License key, which looks like
XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX. Letter case doesn't matter, and the dashes are optional.
Keep your password and key private. Sharing a key beyond your own devices isn't allowed under the Acceptable Use Policy. Your password or key is used only to sign in; the app doesn't store it.
See Install and activate for the sign-in steps.
Devices
A device is one Echidna installation on one computer. Signing in uses one of your licence's device slots; signing in again on the same computer keeps the same slot.
Echidna recognises a computer by combining its operating system's machine ID with a random ID created when you first sign in, and sends only a salted hash of them. The licence server can't turn that back into your hardware details. Online requests are also signed with a key that stays on the computer.
You can see your status in Settings → License:
| Row | Shows |
|---|---|
| Status | Active, Working offline, Signed out, Expired or Access removed |
| Signed in as | Your account |
| This device | This computer's device name |
| Devices in use | How many of your device slots are taken, for example “1 of 2” |
| Last check-in | When Echidna last reached the licence server |
| Works offline until | How long Echidna keeps working without reaching the server |
Refresh now checks in straight away.
The device limit
Your licence sets how many computers can be signed in at once. When all slots are taken, signing in on another computer is refused with:
To move Echidna to a new computer, sign out on the old one first.
Free a device slot
- On the computer you want to free, open Settings → License.
- Under Sign out of this device, press Sign out and confirm.
You'll see “Signed out. This computer's device slot is free again.” Echidna stops opening browsers on that computer until you sign in again. Your profiles, cookies and settings stay on it.
If the licence server can't be reached, you can choose Sign out here to sign out on this computer only. The slot then stays in use until it is released by the person who gave you access.
Signing out on one computer and signing in on another always works straight away. If you sign out and in on several computers in a row, though, a signed-out computer keeps holding its slot until its offline period runs out. If you've lost access to a computer, ask the person who gave you access to release it; that computer is then signed out the next time it checks in.
Working offline
Echidna checks in with the licence server every few hours. Each successful check-in moves the Works offline until date forward.
- If Echidna can't reach the server, a Working offline banner shows the date it keeps working until. Everything works as usual meanwhile, and Echidna keeps trying by itself. Try again retries straight away.
- If the offline period runs out, Echidna asks you to sign in again. It stops opening browsers and closes any that are running; your profiles and data are kept as they are.
- Creating profiles and issuing new fingerprints always need a connection, because fingerprints come from Echidna's servers.
Each launch also needs a short-lived signed pass for this device, which Echidna receives with every successful check-in. It expires with the offline period, so the browser engine stays usable only on a signed-in, licensed computer.
When a licence ends
At its next check-in, a computer learns if its licence was turned off, has ended, if the account was paused, or if the device was removed. Echidna then signs that computer out, closes running browsers and shows a message explaining why. Profiles and data on the computer are never touched.
What the licence server knows
The licence server at keys.renotsnkrs.com controls who may run Echidna on which computer. It receives:
| When | What is sent |
|---|---|
| Sign-in | Your email and password, or your licence key; a hashed device ID; the device name (your computer's name unless you change it); your operating system and version; the app version; a public key for this device |
| Check-in | The device's signed licence file, the hashed device ID, the app version and a signature proving it's the same device |
| Creating a profile or new fingerprint | A request for a new fingerprint for your operating system. For a new fingerprint on an existing profile, it can include the proxy exit IP Echidna last saw for that profile |
| Downloads and engine updates | Your licence details, to authorise the download |
The server stores your email, a password hash, your licence key only as a hash, your devices (hashed ID, name, operating system, app version, first and last seen) and the last IP address each device connected from, plus a security log of sign-ins and changes.
It never receives your profiles, cookies, saved logins, proxy lists, browsing history or page content. See the Privacy notice for details.