Accounts Guide
Creating an account, changing your password, and deleting your account in OSAWARE.
OSAWARE works without an account — your programs and files stay in your browser in LOCAL mode. When you create an account, your work syncs to the cloud and follows you to any device you log into.
This guide covers the three commands you need to manage your account:
REGISTER, PASSWORD, and DELETEACCOUNT,
plus the supporting commands LOGIN, LOGOUT, and
WHOAMI.
1 Overview
Every command you'll run in this guide is typed at the OSAWARE prompt
(the ] character at the start of a line). You don't need to install
anything. If you can see the OSAWARE terminal, you can run these commands.
The three account-management commands are all interactive —
they prompt you for any sensitive information (like passwords) one step at a
time, with characters hidden as you type. You can press ESC at any
prompt to cancel without making changes.
2 Storage Modes
OSAWARE has three independent storage modes. They never mix and never see each other's data.
| Mode | Where Data Lives | Sync Across Devices |
|---|---|---|
| LOCAL | Your browser (localStorage) | No |
| REAL | OSAWARE backend (the cloud) | Yes — log in anywhere |
| DEV | In-memory sandbox (testing only) | No — wiped on refresh |
LOCAL is what you start with. The moment you create an account or log in, you switch to REAL mode and your LOCAL work is preserved in the background. When you log out, you're back in LOCAL with everything you had before.
LOGOUT,
your LOCAL sandbox returns exactly as it was. Each account is fully isolated
from every other account and from LOCAL.
3 Register
At the OSAWARE prompt, type REGISTER followed by a username in
quotes. You'll be asked for a password.
] REGISTER "alice"
Enter password: ******
Registered and logged in as alice
(your LOCAL data is preserved and will return on LOGOUT)That's it. You're now logged in, and your programs and files will sync across any device where you sign in with the same username and password.
Username and Password Rules
| Field | Rules |
|---|---|
| Username | 3 to 32 characters · letters, digits, and underscores only |
| Password | At least 6 characters, up to 128 |
| Uniqueness | Usernames are globally unique — if it's taken, REGISTER will say so |
4 Check Who You Are
To check who you're currently signed in as, use WHOAMI. It prints
your username, or local if you're not logged into any account.
] WHOAMI
aliceThis is useful at any time, especially if you're switching between LOCAL work and your account.
5 Login & Logout
To log out and return to LOCAL mode, use LOGOUT:
] LOGOUT
Logged out (was alice)
To log back in later — from any device, anywhere — use LOGIN:
] LOGIN "alice"
Enter password: ******
Logged in as alice6 Change Password
Type PASSWORD at the prompt. You'll be asked three things in
order: your current password, your new password, and the new password again
to confirm.
] PASSWORD
Current password: ******
New password: *********
Confirm new password: *********
Password changedAfter a successful change, you stay logged in on the device where you ran the command. Other devices where the same account is signed in are logged out automatically — they will need to enter the new password to get back in.
ESC at any of the three prompts to cancel without changing
anything. If the two new passwords don't match, you'll see
"passwords do not match — try again" and you can rerun
PASSWORD from the start.
7 Delete Account
Type DELETEACCOUNT at the prompt. You'll see a warning, then be
asked to type your username and enter your password to confirm.
] DELETEACCOUNT
WARNING: This will archive your account.
- You will be logged out everywhere
- Your username will be freed for re-registration
- Your data is preserved (admin can restore later)
Press ESC at any prompt to cancel.
Type your username to confirm: alice
Enter password to confirm: ******
Account archived: alice
You have been logged out. Your LOCAL data has returned.What Actually Happens
- You are logged out on every device where this account was active
- The username is freed up — someone else (or you) can register it again
- Your programs, files, and data are preserved server-side and can be restored by an administrator
- Your LOCAL sandbox returns — the work you had before logging in is back
ESC at either prompt also cancels
safely with no changes.
8 Command Reference
| Command | What It Does |
|---|---|
REGISTER "user" |
Create an account (prompts for password) |
LOGIN "user" |
Sign in to an existing account (prompts for password) |
LOGOUT |
Sign out and return to LOCAL mode |
WHOAMI |
Print current account, or "local" |
PASSWORD |
Change own password (3 masked prompts) |
DELETEACCOUNT |
Archive own account and log out everywhere |
For full BASIC documentation, type HELP at the OSAWARE prompt.
For more on accounts specifically, type HELP AUTH.
9 Troubleshooting
"username already taken"
Someone else has already registered that name. Pick another. Usernames are first-come-first-served and there's no way to claim one that's in use, even if it appears inactive.
"invalid credentials"
The username and password combination doesn't match anything in the system. Double-check both — usernames are case-sensitive in the database, and so are passwords.
"new password must differ from current password"
The PASSWORD command rejects an unchanged password. Pick something
genuinely new.
I changed my password and now another browser tab is signed out
That's expected. Changing your password invalidates all sessions except the one you used to make the change. Just sign in again on the other device with the new password.
I deleted my account by mistake
Your data is preserved on the server. Contact an administrator to request a restore. The username, however, may have been claimed by someone else in the interim — restoration will use a different username if needed.
OSAWARE · www.osaware.com