# Using a download PIN

> Protect gallery downloads with a 4-digit PIN so anyone can view but only your client can save photos and videos. How to turn it on, share it, and change it.

Source: https://help.corehue.co/docs/gallery-downloads/download-pin/

A download PIN is a 4-digit code your client enters before they can save photos or videos. Viewing stays open to anyone with access to the gallery, but taking the files needs the PIN. It's ideal for a wedding gallery the couple will share with every guest.

## How the PIN works

Every new gallery has the PIN switched on, with a code already made for you. You'll find it under **Settings → Downloads → Download PIN**, described as "Require visitors to enter a pin for gallery downloads."

- Your client is asked for it once, before their first download.
- It covers everything: single photos, videos, and the whole-gallery download.
- Once entered, it's remembered on that device for 24 hours after their last download.
- After several wrong guesses, the gallery pauses PIN attempts for about 15 minutes. Your client sees "Too many attempts. Please wait a few minutes and try again."

A PIN is different from a [gallery password](/docs/gallery-sharing/password-protecting-a-gallery). A password decides who can **see** the gallery. The PIN decides who can **take** the files. You can use one, both or neither.

## Send the PIN to your client

This is the step people forget. Without the PIN, your client can't download anything.

The easiest way is to include it in your gallery email: in the **Share gallery** composer, tick **Download PIN** under **Include in email**. It also shows in the gallery's **Share** dialog, so you can copy it into a text or message. See [Sharing a gallery by email](/docs/gallery-sharing/sharing-a-gallery-by-email).

To copy it yourself, click the copy button beside the PIN in **Settings → Downloads**.

## Make a new PIN

1. Go to **Settings → Downloads**.
2. Click the wand button beside the PIN (its tooltip reads **Regenerate PIN**). You'll see "New PIN generated".
3. Click **Save**.

The old PIN stops working the moment you save, and everyone who'd already entered it is asked for the new one on their next download. It's the quickest way to cut off a PIN that's been passed around, so just send your client the new code afterwards.

You can't type your own PIN. CoreHue makes a random one each time.

## Turn the PIN off or on

Flip the **Download PIN** switch and click **Save**. With the PIN off, anyone who can open the gallery can download (they'll still be asked for their email first).

Turning it off doesn't throw the code away. Switch it back on and the same PIN works again, so the code you've already sent stays valid. If there's no PIN on file yet, CoreHue makes one when you switch it on.

## What your client sees

The first time your client downloads, a **Download photo** panel asks for "the download PIN your photographer shared" (and their email too, if they haven't given it). It appears for videos as well. A wrong code shows "That PIN didn't work. Check it and try again." Their typing is kept, so they only need to fix the PIN.

On the whole-gallery download page, the PIN box sits under the email box before they choose their chapters.

## Frequently asked questions

### My client says the gallery is broken because it asks for a PIN.

The gallery isn't broken: your client needs the download PIN. Copy it from **Settings → Downloads** or the **Share** dialog and send it, or turn the PIN off if you don't need it.

### Can my client reset the PIN themselves?

No. Only you can see or change a gallery's download PIN, so your client has to ask you.

### Does the PIN stop people viewing the gallery?

No. The download PIN only protects downloads. To control who can view, add a [gallery password](/docs/gallery-sharing/password-protecting-a-gallery) or [client access](/docs/gallery-sharing/client-access-and-private-passwords).

### Does each guest need their own PIN?

No. There's one download PIN per gallery. Everyone you give it to uses the same code.