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Settings

The Settings tab holds your identity, the storage FEN syncs through, and everything about keeping your data safe.

Profile​

Settings › Profile holds your display name — the name other members see in groups. Changing it is safe at any time; it propagates the next time your devices sync.

Your name is not your identity. The account key created on first launch is, and it never changes.

Storage backend​

Settings › Storage Backend is the storage FEN syncs your groups through. The row shows a green dot when one is connected.

FEN syncs through a Nextcloud instance: enter its server URL and your credentials, then tap Test connection. If the test succeeds, the configuration is saved automatically — there is no separate save step.

You need a backend to create groups. You don't need one to join them: groups you're invited to sync through the storage their owner provides. A group created while no backend is configured stays on your device and is labelled Local only.

The operator of that storage — you, or whoever runs the server — sees encrypted files, their sizes and their timestamps. Not amounts, not names, not who owes whom. See the privacy policy for the full picture.

Additional devices​

Settings › Devices lists every device on your account, with its platform and when it last recorded a change. Your current device is marked this device and is the only one you can rename.

:::caution Use FEN on one device at a time This is the important part of this chapter. FEN has no central server to arbitrate between two devices, so running the same account on a phone and a tablet at once means each can record a different version of the same expense — and neither will show both. :::

Moving to a new device​

The supported path is replacement, not addition: restore your account onto the new device, then stop using the old one.

On first launch of the new device, instead of typing a name, choose:

  • Restore from backup file — pick the backup written to your local save folder. This is the path that works everywhere, including between iOS and Android.
  • Restore from iCloud Keychain — iOS only, if a keychain backup exists.

Restore brings back your account key and the group keys it had, so the restored device can read your groups again.

The divergence warning​

If two devices do end up writing as you, FEN shows a warning — at the top of the Groups tab and on the Devices screen — naming the devices involved. It is a warning, not a lock: nothing is blocked, and the fix is to pick one device and stop using the other.

Last active on the Devices screen is the newest change a device recorded. A device you only ever read on can sit quiet for a long time with nothing wrong.

Local store and backup​

Everything in this chapter lives under Settings › Profile › Export & Backup, and it is the difference between "I reinstalled the app" and "I lost everything".

The local saving path​

Local Saving Path is a folder on this device that FEN writes to. Pick it once; the other two options below only become available after you have.

It is used for two things: archives of closed groups, and your key backup.

Save closed groups locally​

When a group is closed, FEN exports its full history — expenses, receipts, settlements — into an archive in that folder. That archive is the long-term record: the copy on the backend is only kept for about 30 days after closing.

If you close a group with no folder configured, the export is queued instead, and the Groups tab shows a banner. Set the folder and the pending archives are written automatically.

Back up encryption keys​

This toggle writes your profile key and every group key you hold into the saving folder, and keeps the file current as you create and join groups. It is what Restore from backup file reads on a new device.

:::danger The key backup is not encrypted The backup file is stored in plain form. Anyone who can read that folder can read your groups. Choose a folder that isn't synced to somewhere you don't control, and don't hand the file to anyone. :::

Turning the toggle off deletes the file, so opting out doesn't leave key material lying around.

Encrypt exports​

Separately from the key backup, the closed-group archives can be password-protected:

  • Off — archives are written as plain .zip files.
  • On — archives are written as password-encrypted .fengroup files.

One password covers the whole folder. When you set it, FEN re-writes the archives already there so the folder ends up consistent — that sweep can take a moment and blocks the screen while it runs. Change password re-encrypts them again with the new one.

There is no recovery for this password. Lose it and the archives stay unreadable.

What to set up, minimally​

If you do nothing else in this chapter: pick a saving path and turn on Back up encryption keys. Without a key backup, a lost or wiped device means a lost account — no support desk can restore it, because nobody else ever had the key.

Expense Categories​

Settings › Expense Categories edits your personal default category list. It is copied into each new group you create; editing it later doesn't disturb groups that already exist. Per-group changes live in that group's ⋮ › Categories.

Notifications​

Settings › Notifications has a master switch plus three kinds:

  • New expenses
  • Group invitations
  • Group closed

These are generated on your device when it syncs and finds something new. FEN has no push server, so nothing about them travels over the network and nothing arrives while the app is closed and idle.

Help & Support​

Settings › Help & Support shows the app version and links to this documentation and to support.

Settings › Show Log opens the app's local log, with a level selector. It's the useful thing to look at when sync isn't doing what you expect, and the useful thing to quote when reporting a problem — but read it before sharing, as entries can mention group and member names.