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Hello,
Ok, so you have AxCrypt 2 installed – but you tried to decrypt using “AxDecrypt” which can only decrypt version 1 files, and thus will fail with the message “New file version – cannot decrypt“. Use AxCrypt 2 for these files.
Ok, I misunderstood the following you wrote: “The last modified dates of the files (just 3 of over 50) I cannot access are dated a month after I installed the pc they now reside on and a few days before registering and installing axcrypt 2. ”
This says these files were encrypted using version 1, before installing AxCrypt 2. But the failure to decrypt them with “New file version – cannot decrypt” indicates that they were indeed decrypted at least once, and thus re-encrypted with AxCrypt 2.
Looking at the log files, it appears you actually *reset* your password 0n September 25 last year, after registering for AxCrypt 2 on June 10. So there is large gap in between where you may have use a subsequently forgotten password.
The “file password” requested is just that – AxCrypt asks for it when the sign in password does not work to decrypt the file. With default settings, any successful opening of a version 1 file will automatically re-encrypt it using the new AxCrypt 2 format and the then current sign in password.
When signing up for AxCrypt and starting the application, we give multiple warnings about the need to remember the password, and have a procedure where you are required to enter it at least three times before it is ever used to encrypt anything.
Hello,
Those three files were successfully opened when you had version 2 installed, and were then re-encrypted using version 2 file format AND the new password you used when registering for version 2 (perhaps different from the one you used for version 1).
You need to download the portable version 2 program (this can run in parallel to version 1) from our download page, and decrypt the files that are in version 2 format (the ones with the newer last modified date most likely).
Hello Ivann,
It’s on the to-do list, but has had to stand back for some time. I’m afraid it’s one the oldest issues we have – but to be honest, you are the first to mention it in 2 years which is why we’ve not prioritized it higher… The issue is here: https://bitbucket.org/axantum/axcrypt-net/issues/22/use-high-resolution-graphics-and-prepare .
Hello Carl,
I am not sure about what you mean with “In the old version, when I saved a file, I could go to a drop down and save as ‘Encrypted’.“. There never was such a function, since the implication is that you do this from an application when you “save a file”. Possibly you refer to right-click context menu options in Windows Explorer “Encrypt Copy” and “Encrypt Copy to .exe”? These are no longer available in AxCrypt 2, the first because of limited use and the second because of the inherent problems with encrypted “self-decrypting” exe-files.
Your second question is about the “recent files list”. This is a convenience function in AxCrypt 2. What is perhaps not apparent is that the plain text (original file name) is actually encrypted before stored in the recent files list, so if they files are renamed after encryption that information is not easily obtainable. We made the decision that the convenience of use is worth more than the very doubtful “security” of not listing recently used files – this information is available in so many other places in the file system and other places, such as the respective applications etc. In order to minimize the use of AxCrypt for illegal purposes, the AxCrypt feature-set is aimed at users who have files to keep confidential – but not users who need to hide the fact that they have encrypted files at all.
Hello Jason,
Well, some of the web access does require knowledge – specifically the online password manager. We will be working on a more complex model in the future where indeed we’ll have a ‘zero knowledge’ protocol for all that can work that way, and not require sending any passwords to the site.
Most components for this are in place already, but it’s still non-trivial to implement so it’ll probably take a little while more.
Hello Jason,
Thanks for the input! However, there’s a fundamental difference between authentication (with any number of factors) and encryption. I’ve written a longer text on this here: https://forum.axcrypt.net/blog/encryption-vs-authentication/ .
Svante
Hello andrew,
We should support your version of macOS.
Can you check the contents of the following folder: ~/.local/share/AxCrypt and send the text-files you find there to our email support (support att axcrypt dott net). You can also check the contents yourself, and see if it might give you an idea. If AxCrypt starts but crashes, there should be some crash information there.
Hello Andrew,
What version of macOS are you running?
Are you blocking Internet access for the app?
Did you actually install the app after downloading? You should go through a dialog with acceptance of the license agreement etc.
Did it ever start at all – the normal sequence is to download, install, start it, and then register via the app. You, however, seem to have downloaded the app and then just registered directly via the web (nothing wrong with that, just unusual).
Hello Justine,
The most likely reason for this is that the files you can’t open now, you couldn’t open before either because they are in fact not encrypted with any of the passwords you’ve tried.
This is easy to demonstrate. First check the “last modified” date of the encrypted files in question. If this is *before* the upgrade to a new PC, they have not changed since.
You can now uninstall AxCrypt 2, re-install AxCrypt 1, and verify that the files in fact do not decrypt using the passwords you expect now either. If you’d like to avoid the inconvenience of uninstalling AxCrypt 2, you can use either AxDecrypt, or AxCrypt2Go which can be downloaded and run independently. All of the legacy version 1 software is available at the legacy web site, http://www.axantum.com/ .
If the above does not clarify the situation, please provide more information and screen shots.
Hi Oliver,
What I really meant is often causing problems is the file associations for whatever the decrypted file is.
Start by copying the encrypted file, then right-clicking in Windows Explorer and select AxCrypt | Decrypt. You should now have the original file. Double-click it and see if it opens properly in the expected application,
Hello Oliver,
If you’re having similar issues even after upgrading to version 2, it’s perhaps not an AxCrypt problem at all. They are so differently implemented that it’s very unlikely that they would behave the same.
Often, problems similar to what you describe, occur because of faulty windows file associations.
Best if you can describe step-by-step with screen shots what you do and what happens or does not happen in the end.
Hello Gary!
If you’re referring to encrypted AxCrypt files, you are not dependent on Internet or our servers. All you need is the AxCrypt software and the correct password.
Hello Jack,
It appears you’re using different email addresses. One @aol.com, one @probably-your-employer.com . Also, you used to use a address of the form, if your name is ‘John Doe’ as ‘jdoe@aol.com’. Then, when you were prompted to start the registration process, you used ‘john.doe@probably-your-employer.com’, and then ‘john.doe@aol.com’.
Most likely, you were using AxCrypt for the first time on a new computer, and entered the wrong email address.
Your original, verified, email account is thus of the form ‘jdoe@aol.com’ (substitute your own first name first letter and last name of course).
There should be no special instructions needed for Citrix installations.
Technically, if you’re a company, you’re obliged to use the Business plan according to the terms of use. Of course we won’t go after you if you use the Premium version instead – but we may be unable to help you out in situations where the Business plan would have been the right thing to use.
Using a single account does not make sense in most cases, unless the use-case is to share information between the users, but protect against all others. It’s also another violation of the terms of use… A Premium account is for one person on any number of devices.
The Free Plan is available for all though and you can use it in almost any way you want. It does lack some features of course.
Hello Antoine,
You can select all files in a folder and rename them.
No, we don’t yet have a function to display the original file name from Windows Explorer. Files in the recent files view will display the original file name though.
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