Locked out of admin

You can't sign in to admin. Maybe you forgot the password, maybe the account is locked from too many failed attempts, maybe you also lost the recovery PIN. This article walks through every recovery path from cheapest to most-expensive.

Symptom: Can't reach the admin dashboard from the kiosk.

Step 1: Confirm you're using the right username

The default accounts that ship with BoothIQ:

• admin (Master access)
• user (User access)

If you've created additional accounts, the username is whatever you set it to. The username field is case-sensitive but BoothIQ usually accepts lowercase.

Common typos:

• Admin (capital A) → use admin
• Administrator → use admin
• Trailing space (from the virtual keyboard) → tap into the field and check

Step 2: Wait out the rate limit

If you got an "Account locked" message after several failed attempts, the booth has temporarily locked the account to prevent brute-force attacks. The lockout window is typically a few minutes (the screen tells you exactly how long).

Wait the number of minutes shown, then try again with the correct password.

Step 3: Use the Recovery PIN

If you set up a Recovery PIN during first-time setup (which you should have), use it now:

1. On the admin login screen, tap Forgot Password?.
2. The booth shows the PIN recovery flow.
3. Enter your username.
4. Enter the 4-6 digit PIN you set up earlier.
5. The booth lets you set a new password.
6. Sign in with the new password.

If the PIN is correct but the booth doesn't accept it, try once more carefully. Make sure the on-screen keyboard is in numeric mode and you're entering the right digits.

If the PIN is wrong (you forgot it), see Step 4.

Step 4: Use a Master Password (single-use emergency access)

BoothIQ has a master password system for emergency access. A master password is a single-use emergency code (format: EMR-*) that BoothIQ can validate against a per-kiosk secret. The booth will not give you a master password. You have to obtain one from a trusted source.

There are two ways to get one:

A. Cloud-issued emergency password (EMR-*)

If your booth is registered to the cloud, your BoothIQ support contact can issue an emergency password from the cloud dashboard. The format is EMR- followed by some characters.

1. Contact BoothIQ support.
2. Provide your Booth ID (you may need to look at the booth's chassis or your purchase records since you can't get into admin to read it).
3. Support issues an EMR-* password and tells you what it is.
4. On the admin login screen, type the EMR-* password into the password field.
5. Sign in.
6. Immediately change your real password and reset your recovery PIN.

The cloud-issued password is single-use and expires after a short window. Use it immediately.

B. HMAC-derived master password

For advanced/offline scenarios, BoothIQ has a deeper master password mechanism described in the developer docs (docs/MASTER_PASSWORD.md). If support tells you to use this path, follow their instructions exactly.

Step 5: When all else fails

If the recovery PIN doesn't work, the cloud-issued password doesn't work, and you can't reach support:

1. Don't power-cycle the kiosk repeatedly hoping it'll reset. Admin credentials are persistent.
2. Don't try to access the file system directly. The kiosk is locked down and you can't reach Windows.
3. Contact BoothIQ support and explain the situation. They have additional recovery options for fully locked-out booths but may need to schedule a remote session.

After you recover access

Once you can sign in to admin again, do these things immediately before exiting:

1. Change your password to something strong that you'll remember (or store in a password manager).
2. Set up a fresh Recovery PIN. Don't reuse the lost PIN. Pick a new one.
3. Write down both in a safe place outside the booth (a password manager is ideal).
4. Verify you can sign back in with the new credentials before exiting admin.

Preventing future lockouts

• Use a password manager. This is the single best thing you can do.
• Set up a recovery PIN immediately after changing the default password. Don't put it off.
• Don't share admin accounts between staff. When one staff member changes the password, the other one is locked out.
• Keep your Booth ID written down somewhere outside the kiosk. You'll need it for support contacts.
• If you have multiple admin users, test each one's recovery PIN periodically.

What about the user account?

If you're locked out of admin but the user account still works, sign in as user to take the booth out of service or run sales reports while you're recovering admin. But you cannot change the admin account's password from the user account. User access doesn't include user management.

Common questions

Can I just reinstall BoothIQ to reset the password?

No. The booth is locked down. You can't reach Windows to run an installer, and even support can't easily wipe the local database without losing all your sales data. Recovery PINs and master passwords are the supported paths.

Can I bypass the password by power-cycling at the right moment?

No. There is no boot-time bypass.

Can I delete the password file directly?

No. The kiosk is locked down. Even if you could reach the file system, the credentials are stored hashed and can't be edited by hand.

My recovery PIN is wrong but I'm sure it's right.

Each admin user has their own PIN. If you're trying to recover the admin user, use the PIN you set when you signed in as admin, not the one you set when signed in as user. PINs are not shared across accounts.

Verify it worked

You've recovered access when:

• You can sign in to admin with a password you know
• You've changed the password to something you'll remember
• You've set up a fresh Recovery PIN
• You can sign out and sign back in without issues

Next steps

• Admin account best practices (coming soon). Avoid future lockouts.
• The master password system (coming soon). Operator-level explanation.
• First login and password. Setting up the recovery PIN correctly the first time.