Setting up Your Device for iMessage Archiving

Your organisation uses MirrorWeb to ensure your iMessage and SMS activity complies with regulatory requirements and company policies. This guide walks you through everything you need to get set up.

Before you start, check that you meet the prerequisites for your account type. If you're not sure which type you have, ask your IT admin.

Note: If you're unsure about any of the above, contact your IT admin before proceeding.

Before you click Register in the activation email, you need to make sure a few settings are correctly configured on your iPhone. These apply to both Personal and Managed Apple Accounts unless noted otherwise.

Make sure iMessage is turned on and set to use your corporate number and Apple Account. Apple's guide on setting up iMessage covers this in full if you need a reference.

Note: If the Start New Conversations From option doesn't appear, tap Use your Apple Account for iMessage to complete setup first.

Make sure your device is set to keep messages and audio messages indefinitely. Apple's guide on keeping messages and audio messages cover these settings if you need a reference.

Make sure your messages are syncing to iCloud so they can be captured. Apple's guide on setting up Messages in iCloud has full details.

Make sure iCloud Backup is enabled and run a fresh backup before you begin. Apple's guide on iCloud Backup walks through this in detail.

If you have a Managed Apple Account, verify that the correct phone number is registered before you begin. This is the number that will receive identity verification codes during setup.

If it doesn't match, contact your IT admin before proceeding.

iMessage archiving works by syncing your messages through iCloud. If your iCloud storage is full, that sync stops, which means your messages won't reach the archive. This is one of the most common causes of capture gaps, so it's worth checking before you start.

How to check your iCloud storage:

On your iPhone, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud. The bar at the top shows how much storage you're using. You can also check online at icloud.com/storage.

If you're running low or already full, you have two options:

Once your storage is in a healthy state, come back here and continue with the setup.

You'll receive an email from MirrorWeb inviting you to activate Mobile Capture.

Open the email on your desktop or laptop, keep your mobile device nearby, and click the activation link. This will take you to the MirrorWeb onboarding site to complete your setup.

Note: If you haven't received this email, check your spam or junk folder. If it's not there, contact your IT admin or MirrorWeb support at support@mirrorweb.com.

Once you're on the MirrorWeb onboarding site, you'll be asked to verify your identity before anything else.

A 6-digit verification code will be sent to the same email address your activation email was sent to. Enter that code on the onboarding site when prompted to continue.

Note: If you don't receive the code within a few minutes, check your spam or junk folder. If it's still not there, go back to the activation email and tap Register again to restart the process.

After verifying your identity, you'll be prompted to sign into your iCloud account on the onboarding site.

Enter your Apple ID and password. If you've forgotten your password, you can reset it here. Bear in mind that resetting your Apple ID password will cause a disconnection once you're set up, so ideally resolve this before you begin.

Depending on how your organisation manages identity, you may be prompted to complete an extra authentication step after entering your password. This is normal and expected. Your IT admin will have set up the MFA method your organisation uses, so just follow the prompt when it appears.

You'll be redirected to a Microsoft sign-in page. After entering your credentials, you'll be prompted to verify using one of the following depending on how your organisation has configured it:

You'll be redirected to an Okta sign-in page. After entering your credentials, Okta Verify will prompt you to verify using one of the following:

You'll be redirected to an Okta sign-in page. After entering your credentials, Duo will prompt you to verify using one of the following:

Not sure which MFA method you have? Check with your IT admin. They'll be able to confirm what to expect and help if the authentication step fails.

After signing into iCloud, Apple will send a sign-in request to your iPhone to confirm it's really you. This appears as a notification on your device saying "Apple ID Sign In Requested", letting you know your Apple ID is being used to sign in to a Mac mini.

Note: This code is time-limited. If it expires before you enter it, go back to the onboarding site and restart the sign-in step to generate a new one. And as Apple's prompt says - don't share this code with anyone outside of entering it on the MirrorWeb onboarding site.

Once you've signed into iCloud and completed MFA, you'll be asked to enter your iPhone passcode to complete activation. This is your standard unlock code, the same one you use to unlock your phone.

Once your passcode is accepted, the MirrorWeb onboarding site will confirm that your iMessage connection is active. Your iMessages will now be captured automatically.

The next step sets up SMS forwarding so your regular text messages are captured too. This is required, so don't skip it.

As part of the onboarding journey, you'll be taken through the steps to enable SMS forwarding. This allows MirrorWeb to capture your SMS messages as well as iMessages, and is required. Without it, your SMS messages won't be archived.

The onboarding site will guide you through the steps. Here's what to expect:

Either way, the onboarding site will let you know what's happening and what to do next.

Important: SMS forwarding is required for SMS messages to be archived. If this step is skipped or not completed, only iMessages will be captured. Your SMS messages will be missing from the archive.

Once your device is successfully linked and SMS forwarding is enabled, the MirrorWeb onboarding site will confirm that your connection is active. From this point, your iMessages and SMS messages will be automatically archived. There's nothing else you need to do.

You'll also be able to see the MirrorWeb Mac in your Apple Account under your list of devices. It will appear as MirrorWeb-XXXXXXXXX with the label Mac mini underneath it. If you can see it there, you're all set.

Important: Do not sign out of your iCloud account or remove the MirrorWeb Mac from your device list. Doing so will disconnect archiving and your messages will no longer be captured.

Important: Do not sign out of your iCloud account or remove MirrorWeb’s Mac from your account. Doing so will disconnect archiving and your messages will no longer be captured.

Did you know? We have an interactive guide that walks you through the activation steps visually. Try it here.

An unlink happens when your device loses its connection to MirrorWeb's archiving system. When this happens, your iMessages and SMS messages can't be captured until you reconnect. Any messages sent during that period won't be archived, but once you reconnect we'll backdate capture to the point your last message was captured, so there won't be any gaps in your history.

When we detect a disconnect, you and your admin will both receive an email notification. Your connection will show as disconnected in your company's archive portal.

See our MirrorWeb Mobile Capture: Device Unlinking Management article for more information on this.

Most disconnections are caused by one of the following:

You can't eliminate disconnections entirely, but these will help:

When we detect a disconnection, you'll receive an email from MirrorWeb with a link to reconnect. The reconnection process is exactly the same as your initial setup:

If you want to check everything is working, send a test message after reconnecting and ask your admin to confirm it appears in the archive within a couple of hours.

I didn't receive the activation email.

Check your spam or junk folder. If it's not there, contact your IT admin or MirrorWeb support at support@mirrorweb.com.

I've forgotten my Apple ID password.

You'll need to reset it before you can complete setup. Follow Apple's steps here. Note that resetting your password after you've connected will trigger a disconnection, so try to do this before starting the activation.

I've forgotten my iPhone passcode.

You'll need to reset your device passcode to continue. Follow Apple's steps here. Be aware that this process erases your device, so make sure you have a backup first.

The MFA step isn't working.

Make sure your authenticator app (Microsoft Authenticator, Okta Verify, or Duo Mobile) is installed and up to date. If you're not receiving push notifications, check your phone's notification settings for the relevant app. If the issue continues, contact your IT admin. They manage the MFA configuration.

I don't know what MFA method my organisation uses.

Contact your IT admin. They'll be able to confirm which method you should expect and help if authentication fails.

The SMS forwarding step says my device isn't ready.

This means the MirrorWeb Mac is still registering with Apple's servers and hasn't yet appeared as an available forwarding destination on your iPhone. It's not something you've done wrong. You'll receive an email from MirrorWeb once the device is ready, and you can return to the onboarding site to complete this step. Don't skip it. SMS archiving won't work without it.

My iCloud storage is full.

If iCloud is full, messages won't sync and won't be captured. You'll need to either free up space or upgrade your storage plan. See the iCloud Storage section above for guidance. Once resolved, contact support@mirrorweb.com if capture doesn't resume.

My messages aren't appearing in the archive.

It can take a short time for messages to begin appearing after first connection. If after 24 hours messages still aren't showing, check your iCloud storage isn't full, and if not, contact MirrorWeb support at support@mirrorweb.com.

I keep getting disconnected.

If you're experiencing repeated disconnections, contact MirrorWeb support at support@mirrorweb.com with details of when disconnections are occurring. Repeated disconnections on the same account may indicate an underlying issue that needs investigation.