> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.obsidianlog.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Testing as a Returning User

> What to check the second time around: config repair, key rotation, and adding Sia to an existing local setup.

The first two tutorials cover a brand new install. This one covers what
happens when you come back to an install you already have, since that's
a genuinely different code path, not just "run init again."

Do this after you've already completed
[Testing the Local Backend](/tutorials/local-backend) at least once, so
you have an existing setup to come back to.

## Scenario 1: you deleted config.toml by accident

This is a real thing that happens, and it used to be dangerous: an older
version of ObsidianLog would silently generate a brand new encryption
key in this situation, making everything you'd already archived
undecryptable. That's fixed now, and this scenario is here specifically
to prove it.

Find your config file (`init` printed its path when you ran it) and
delete it:

```sh theme={null}
rm ~/.config/obsidianlog/config.toml
./obsidianlog init
```

You'll be asked all the setup questions again, since there's no config
file left to read your old answers from. That part is expected. What
matters is what happens to your key. Answer the prompts the same way you
did the first time (local backend), and watch for this line before the
final summary:

```text theme={null}
Existing credentials preserved; rebuilding configuration.
```

That confirms your original encryption key survived. If you archived
anything in the local backend tutorial, you can prove it directly:

```sh theme={null}
./obsidianlog query --service tutorial --format human
```

If your original log line still comes back, the key really was
preserved, not silently reset.

## Scenario 2: rotating the key on purpose

Sometimes you do want a new key, for example if you think the old one
was exposed. That's what `--force` is for:

```sh theme={null}
./obsidianlog init --force
```

This time you'll see a warning that previously archived data will no
longer be decryptable, and (unless you're scripting with
`--non-interactive`) a confirmation prompt before it proceeds. After
confirming, a genuinely new key is generated. If you try the same
`query` command above afterward, it will no longer be able to read data
that was archived under the old key. That's expected here since it's the
whole point of rotation.

## Scenario 3: adding Sia to an existing local setup

If you completed the local backend tutorial and want to add Sia to that
same install, rather than starting a separate one:

```sh theme={null}
./obsidianlog init
```

When asked "Existing setup found... Reuse it?", answer **no**. You'll
then be asked to confirm reconfiguring, and can choose **sia** this time
instead of local. Your existing encryption key is preserved throughout,
only a new Sia app key gets added to it.

## Tell us how it went

As with the other tutorials, a
[feedback report](https://github.com/emmaglorypraise/ObsidianLog/issues/new?template=feedback.yml)
helps, especially if any of these three scenarios behaved differently
than described here. That's exactly the kind of thing worth catching
before a wider release.

## What's next

Haven't tried [Testing with Vector](/tutorials/vector-integration) yet?
That one proves a real log shipper can feed ObsidianLog, not just a
single `curl` request. Once you're done testing and want a real, ongoing
setup rather than a scratch folder, see the [Quickstart](/get-started/quickstart).