faqs.mdx (3785B)
1 --- 2 title: "Frequently Asked Questions" 3 --- 4 5 import Copyright from "/snippets/copyright.mdx"; 6 7 ## General 8 9 - **Is this really free?** 10 Yes. Render, Firebase, and UptimeRobot all have generous free tiers that are sufficient for personal use. You will typically never pay anything. 11 12 - **Is my data safe?** 13 Absolutely. The entire system is self-hosted. You own the database (Firebase) and the server (Render). The developers of this tool have zero access to your data. 14 15 - **Does the developer see my chats?** 16 No. The code connects directly from your Render server to your Firebase database using your personal API keys. There is no middleman server. 17 18 - **Is this legal?** 19 The tool uses standard WhatsApp Web protocols to function as a linked device. It is intended for personal archiving of your own conversations. 20 21 ## Features & Limitations 22 23 - **Does it save photos/videos?** 24 No. To keep the project free (Firebase offers limited storage), the logger only saves text content. Media files would fill up your free tier storage very quickly. 25 26 - **Does it save View Once messages?** 27 No. WhatsApp does not send the content of "View Once" media to linked devices/web clients, so the logger cannot see them. 28 29 - **Does it save WhatsApp Status?** 30 No, it cannot save WhatsApp statuses at this time. If you would like to add this feature to this project, please submit a pull request by uploading the updated code to [Github](https://github.com/notamitgamer/WhatsApp-Logger-Self-Hosted-/pulls). 31 32 - **Can I reply from the dashboard?** 33 No. This tool is designed strictly as a read-only archive to ensure maximum safety and simplicity. 34 35 - **Does it work with Group Chats?** 36 Yes! It automatically archives messages from any group you are part of, including messages sent by other participants. 37 38 - **Can I export my chats?** 39 Yes. Inside any chat on the dashboard, open the menu (three dots) and select "Download" to get a `.txt` file of the conversation. 40 41 ## Technical Setup 42 43 - **What is Render?** 44 Render is a cloud hosting platform. It provides the computer (server) that runs your logger 24/7 so your phone doesn't have to. 45 46 - **What is Firebase?** 47 Firebase is Google's database service. While Render processes the messages, Firebase acts as the permanent hard drive where logs are stored. 48 49 - **Do I need my phone on 24/7?** 50 No. Once you scan the QR code, the logger works independently via WhatsApp's Multi-Device feature. Your phone does not need to stay online continuously after linking. 51 52 - **What if Render sleeps?** 53 If the server sleeps, you will miss messages sent during that time. This is why setting up UptimeRobot (Step 5) is critical—it keeps the server awake. 54 55 - **How do I update the logger?** 56 In your Render dashboard, go to your service and click "Manual Deploy" -> "Deploy latest commit" to pull the newest code from GitHub. 57 58 - **Can I host this on a Raspberry Pi?** 59 Yes. The backend is standard Node.js. You can clone the repo and run `npm install && npm start`. You still need Firebase for the database. 60 61 - **How much storage do I have?** 62 The Firebase Free Tier (Spark Plan) gives you 1 GiB of storage. Since we only store text, this is enough for millions of messages. 63 64 ## Troubleshooting 65 66 - **Why is the QR code not loading?** 67 Your Render server might be starting up or deploying. Wait 30 seconds and refresh the page. Check Render logs if the issue persists. 68 69 - **Why does it say "No chats found"?** 70 The logger starts empty. It only records messages that arrive *after* you have linked it. Send a message to your phone to see it appear. 71 72 **I forgot my App PIN/Password** 73 On the lock screen, click "Forgot PIN". You can reset your local security using the server credentials (`AUTH_USER` and `AUTH_PASS`) you set in Render. 74 75 <Copyright />