New Number or New Phone

 

Android

New Android phone

  1. Download and install Signal Android 
  2. Confirm you've completed a backup on your old phone and transferred files to your new phone.
  3. Enter your 30-digit passphrase for your backup.
  4. Register with your new phone number. All new messaging and calling will be handled by this new phone.
  5. Ask your contacts to send messages in or update any groups that they share with you.
  6. Re-link any instances of Signal Desktop.

New phone number

  1. Leave all groups 
    You may want to notify your group members that you will be leaving the group and will need them to add your new number to the group.
  2. Unregister your Signal number 
    This will prevent you from missing messages until your contacts update their phones with your new number. 
  3. Reinstall and register with your new number. 
  4. Ask your contacts to add your new number to groups that you left. 
  5. Re-link any instances of Signal Desktop. 

Changed your phone number and no longer have access to it

  1. Follow steps for a new Android phone.
  2. Just as you would do this for your non-Signal contacts who only send you SMS, tell your Signal contacts about your new number and ask them to remove the old number.
  3. Messages and calls to your old number will go undelivered.

What if someone registers with my old number? 
If someone were to register with your old number on a new phone, then they will have an empty message history. Your contacts will also be made aware of a safety number change if they start messaging with the old number. 

 

iOS

If you have a new iPhone

  1. On your new iPhone, Download and install Signal iOS and register with your new number.
    • All new messaging and calling will be handled by this new phone.
    • A new install of Signal also generates a new safety number with your contacts.
    • An iTunes or iCloud backup does not contain any of your message history. Only new messages, not conversation history, will be displayed. 
  2. Ask your contacts to send messages in or update any groups that they share with you. 
  3. Re-link any instances of Signal Desktop. 

If you have a new phone number

  1. Leave all groups.
    You may want to notify your group members that you will be leaving the group and will need them to add your new number to the group.
  2. Unregister your Signal number.
    This will prevent you from missing messages until your contacts update their phones with your new number. 
  3. Reinstall with your new number. 
  4. Ask your contacts to add your new number to the groups that you left. 
  5. Re-link any instances of Signal Desktop. 

If you changed your phone number and no longer have access to it

  1. Follow steps for a new iPhone.
  2. Just as you would do this for your non-Signal contacts who only send you SMS, tell your Signal contacts about your new number and ask them to delete the old number so there is no confusion.
  3. Messages and calls to your old number will go undelivered.

What if someone registers with my old number? 
If someone were to register with your old number on a new phone, then they will have an empty message history. Your contacts will also be made aware of a safety number change if they start messaging with the old number. 

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