Unlocking and Decrypting

There are two different things you can do with an encrypted .talenc file: unlock it (open it while it stays encrypted on disk) or decrypt it (permanently turn it back into a normal file).

Unlocking to view or edit

When you open a .talenc file, you see a locked screen — 🔐 Locked, This file is encrypted. — with a Password field and an Unlock button. Enter the password and click Unlock. Forgot the password? Click Use recovery key instead and enter your recovery key.

Once unlocked, the file opens in the normal editor. Any edits you make are automatically re-encrypted and saved back into the .talenc file — it never gets written to disk as plaintext.

Decrypting to a normal file

To remove encryption entirely, open the file, unlock it, then choose File → Decrypt File…. A Decrypt File? dialog warns you:

This replaces your-file on disk with its unencrypted contents. Anyone with access to the machine will be able to read the plaintext file.

Enter your password to confirm and click Decrypt to file. The file returns to its original format, no longer encrypted.