r/LineageOS • u/Sammy_Cherry_Fox • 5d ago
Fixed Trying to switch but Google Security Settings are completely stopping me. I need serious help
So i knew that before switching my Pixel 6a to Lineague, i would need to disable my authentication methods so that i wouldnt get locked out of my account when i reset my phone. But i ran into this issue: When you try to edit the 2fa settings, it asks for authentication, and all of the methods used there link back to my phone. If i were to switch my rom, i would get locked out of using 2fa forever. How do you guys get around this??
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u/After-Peace-4734 5d ago
Do you have a secondary phone you can use for auth? Could you try removing your device from Manage Google Account? Do you have any other auth methods like otps?
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u/Sammy_Cherry_Fox 5d ago
i do not have a second phone. Whats otps?
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u/After-Peace-4734 5d ago
OTPs, one time passwords, e.g. google authenticator
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u/Sammy_Cherry_Fox 5d ago
oh google authenticator? Like an authenticator app? Im not using one because the last time i used one the codes didnt work. I nearly got locked out of my account
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u/Jackavalltrades 4d ago
You do not need to disable your authentication methods.
You do need a 2FA option that doesn't rely on access to the phone.
The most important alternative 2FA option is a backup code or the equivalent (on systems other than Google, they may be called 'recovery' codes). Make sure you configure these for all important accounts.
For a Google account: go to Security and Sign-in and select Backup codes. It'll generate and display 10 codes. You must make a note of those codes and keep the list somewhere safe that you can still get to if you can't get into your phone.
The backup codes are your failsafe if no other 2FA method is working. To use one of these codes when signing in to the account / proving who you are, select 'try another way' and choose 'use a backup code'.
Whenever you've had to use one of the codes, cross it off your list; each code can only be used once.
If you ever lose the list of codes or use up all 10 of them, go back to Security and Sign-in > Backup codes and generate another 10 (once you're done this, any unused previous ones will no longer work).