Northsky Migration FAQ

Please see if your question is answered in the responses below.

Q: If I migrate to Northsky, will I keep my followers, posts, lists, etc... from my Bluesky account?

A: Yes. When you migrate to Northsky, you will keep your posts, media blobs, follows, followers, lists, feeds, likes, and account preferences (mute words, etc...)

Your Direct Messages will be accessible, but will remain hosted on Bluesky’s servers. Northsky plans to implement a more secure E2EE direct messaging system in the future, so stay tuned on that front.

Q: Do I need an Invite to migrate to Northsky?

A: Yes. You need an invite code that will look something like: northsky-social-xxxxx-xxxxx. You can get one my signing up for our invite queue at https://northskysocial.com/join

Q: When and where will I receive my invite?

A: You will receive your invite via the e-mail you signed up with on our website.

You will get your invite code based on how early you signed up for our waitlist, and how quickly we are able to scale up migrations. We will be starting slowly with small batches, and then ramping up faster once we have full confidence in our infrastructure's scaling capabilities.

We cannot give an estimate of when you'll get your invite at this time, but we may be able to after we figure out our pace. Stay tuned on that front.

Q: Can I create a brand new account?

A: Yes. You will still need an invite code, but once you have that you can create an account via https://migrate.northsky.social .

Q: What are the benefits of being hosted on Northsky?

A: There are many benefits to being hosted on Northsky:

You keep all your following, posts, media blobs, list subscriptions, etc...

You can get a .northsky.social handle, or keep your current custom domain handle.

Your data is hosted in Canada and subject to Canadian laws.

Our moderation team is made up of members from marginalized groups, especially the 2SLGBTQIA community, and make decisions based on OUR Terms of Service and Community Guidelines (not Bluesky’s)

Protection from account-level takedowns by Bluesky Moderation at the PDS level (locking you out of your account). Please note, Bluesky can still hide your content with an appview-level ban. Releasing our own apps and appview is part of Northsky’s next phase of work, alongside scaling up our own moderation capabilities, and further decoupling from Bluesky Moderation.

We generate you a “Rotation Key” that lets you migrate your account to another PDS, even in a “hostile exit scenario”, in the unlikely event your account is banned on our server.

You can migrate back to Bluesky’s servers, even after joining Northsky, as long as your account originated there.

Q: What are the drawbacks of being hosted on Northsky?

A: The main drawback is our financial stability as your host. Northsky is not as well resourced as Bluesky and relies on donations and grants for its continued operations. We currently have substantial financial runway due to the generosity of our userbase, however if Northsky runs out of funding we could be forced to shut down. However, we would ensure adequate time to migrate off our servers. Finally, thanks to rotation keys, you’ll even be able to recover your account in the event of a sudden unexpected shutdown scenario.

Q: Will my posts on Northsky still be visible on Bluesky?

A: Yes. All posts on AT protocol are currently public by design, and are thus visibile by anyone on the AT protocol network (Bluesky, Blacksky, Northsky, etc...)

Q: Will I be able to post Northsky-only content?

A: Not yet. But we plan to implement this in the near future when we have our own App and appview implemented. This is coming in “Phase 2” of our development roadmap.

Q: I'm being unfairly targeted by Bluesky moderation, can I move earlier?

A: If you think you're in immediate danger of losing access to your account due to Bluesky Moderation action, you can fill out this form to request an accelerated migration.

While you wait for us to get back to you, we recommend using PDSMoover's Backup Account Tool to generate a Rotation Key and save a backup of your posts and media.

We cannot guarantee an escalation in all cases, and please only ask if you're really in danger of being taken down based on your content.

Q: If I’m banned on Bluesky, can I migrate to Northsky?

A: It depends. You cannot move a deactivated account from Bluesky to Northsky without a pre-existing backup of your account and a rotation key (which Bluesky does not generate for you like Northsky does). If you have a rotation key you can reclaim your account identity, and if you have a backup you can restore your posts and media. If you don't, your best option is to appeal to Bluesky moderation to unban your account so you can migrate it. (Note: any content migrated to Northsky's servers needs to abide by our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines )

Q: Will migrating remove me from another user’s blocklist?

A: No. Due to how AT Protocol is designed, each user stores the data for who they follow and block. So moving your data from one PDS to another will not unblock you, because their blocklist is canonical to their account and your DID (unique account identifier) does not change when you migrate.

Q: Can I make a new Northsky account and then merge it with my old Bluesky account?

A: No. Each AT protocol account has a unique DID, and you cannot merge them together at a later date. You’ll want to either migrate now, or maintain two different accounts across servers.

Q: What do I do if I never got my PLC token during migration?

A: Try these steps to help troubleshoot:

Check your Spam folder in your e-mail client.

Ensure your Bluesky e-mail address is “verified” in the app, and try again.

If neither of these help, contact support@northskysocial.com for help.

later date. You’ll want to either migrate now, or maintain two different accounts across servers.

Q: What do I do if I lost my rotation key?

A: Don’t do that. Your rotation key is powerful and allows someone to redirect the official “you” to an account hosted on another PDS. It could hijack your account in the wrong hands.

Keep your rotation key secure and backed up somewhere only accessible to you. Like a password manager, or a physical binder in a fireproof safe.

If you need to generate another rotation key because you lost yours, you can do so using our downloadable tool: https://github.com/NorthskySocial/pds-migration/releases

Q: How do I migrate AWAY from Northsky?

A: If your account is in good standing (not suspended), you can use our Downloadable Migration Tool to migrate to any PDS of your choice, or you can use other web-hosted PDS migration tools like: https://pdsmoover.com/ . If your account is suspended, you can use your Rotation Key to move your account elsewhere.

Q: How do I use my Rotation Key?

A: If you find yourself in a situation where your account has been banned from Northsky, you can still recover your account by using your Rotation Key. As of right now, we are still building out tooling for this in our Downloadable Migration Tool , but you can read this article for more information on how to use your recovery key in the meantime: https://marvins-guide.leaflet.pub/3m4qzoj6ubc2h

If none of these answered your question, please get in touch with us at support@northskysocial.com , or @transrights.northsky.social on ATproto