Connecting your Mastodon account¶

Finding your instance URL¶

Your instance URL is the base URL of the Mastodon server your account is on. You can find it in the address bar when you log in via a web browser. Examples:

Server	Instance URL
Mastodon (flagship)	https://mastodon.social
Fosstodon	https://fosstodon.org
Mastodon Online	https://mastodon.online
Your own server	https://yourserver.example.com

First-time setup¶

1. Launch Lights Off. The accounts dialog opens automatically if no account is saved.

2. Enter your instance URL when prompted. Include the https:// prefix; omit any trailing slash.

3. Authorise in the browser. A browser window opens to your instance's OAuth consent page. Log in if needed, then click Authorise.

4. Copy the code. After authorisation the browser shows a short code. Copy it.

5. Paste the code into the dialog in Lights Off and press Enter.

Lights Off stores the access token in your user config directory. On Windows this is %APPDATA%\lights-off\; on macOS it is ~/Library/Application Support/lights-off/.

Adding a second account¶

You can add accounts on additional instances via Application menu → Accounts (shortcut: Ctrl+A). Each instance gets its own OAuth registration stored separately.

Removing an account¶

Delete the account's config folder from the platform config directory listed above, then restart Lights Off.

OAuth scopes requested¶

Lights Off requests the following Mastodon OAuth scopes:

Scope	Used for
read	Reading timelines, notifications, DMs, profile
write	Posting, boosting, favouriting, following, blocking
follow	Managing follow/block/mute lists

The app does not request admin scopes and cannot perform moderation actions.