I have had a Sonos system for nearly 10 years and it’s always been associated with the same email address. Recently one of my speakers needed to be factory reset and re-added to my system. In the process of doing this I realized that I am no longer considered the owner of my system and while my email and login info will log me into the Sonos app, it does not give me control over my system and won’t let me make any changes including adding speakers. I’ve called Sonos and they were very unhelpful and wouldn’t even verify what the email address is that’s associated with my system. I’ve had an iTunes account stolen from me in the past and Apple was able to give me back control of my iTunes account after removing the Russian email address the hacker attached to my account. Does anyone know how I can regain control of my system without starting over and factory resetting every speaker and adding them to a new account? I have 30+ speakers and this process would take the better part of an entire day.
Sonos Master Account Recovery
Best answer by Corry P
Hi
Welcome to the Sonos Community!
Sorry to hear of this issue you are having with your account, In the past, it was typically Sonos-owning visitors to a customer’s home that were responsible for reassigning systems to other accounts, so, if you don’t trust someone not to do this, do not let them on your WiFi - that is what Guest WiFis are for.
To resolve the issue,
I’d definitely try the Transfer System Ownership option in the app before completing any factory reset of the entire system.
However, to complete this, you must first Sign Out of the Sonos app.
So, the steps to perform are as follows:
- User icon » Sign Out
- System Icon » General Settings » Transfer System Ownership.
I hope this helps.
The best you’ll get from the community is likely someone like me pointing to the manage your account FAQ.
If it was me, and I had issues there, I’d probably just factory reset them all, and set them up as new, which means losing any data stored on them, such as playlists, streaming accounts, etc. But ultimately, they’d be associated with ‘my’ email account.
Sonos is fortunate that they can trace stolen devices by other methods than account association, otherwise doing this kind of thing would make stealing them extraordinarily possible.
Thanks. I don’t know if these speakers are worth the hassle they’ve been. This will be the 3-4th time I’ve had to start all over with them. The fact that Sonos can’t help me regain control over my account is infuriating, and the help desk seems to have been offshored so the language barrier is a real problem. I wouldn’t buy Sonos products if I were starting over which is a shame because when they work, they work great.
It’s really odd. I’ve had Sonos speakers for well over a decade, and never had a significant issue. Every call I’ve placed to CS, granted, it’s been very few, has been answered promptly, and with knowledge, whether it was offshore or not.
Just an observation….
How can you have 30+ speakers implying that your system is well beyond that number when the maximum is 32? Unless you have a very stable network which probably should be a mesh (main router and several satellites strategically placed) then you’ll portably continue to have problems. In case you don’t know...it’s possible to outgrow a basic network consisting of a router and modem.
Hahah. 32 is 30+ but I only ever had public school math so maybe you can correct me. And I’m no tech guru but I do have an Eero mesh network. Perhaps you have some constructive advice?
I’d definitely try the Transfer System Ownership option in the app before completing any factory reset of the entire system.
I tried that but since my account isn’t considered the system owner anymore for whatever reason, I can’t do anything like that. I can’t even update the software. All I can do is play music when the speakers are working.
Call back to support and try to get your ticket escalated to a higher support level.
+19Hi
Welcome to the Sonos Community!
Sorry to hear of this issue you are having with your account, In the past, it was typically Sonos-owning visitors to a customer’s home that were responsible for reassigning systems to other accounts, so, if you don’t trust someone not to do this, do not let them on your WiFi - that is what Guest WiFis are for.
To resolve the issue,
I’d definitely try the Transfer System Ownership option in the app before completing any factory reset of the entire system.
However, to complete this, you must first Sign Out of the Sonos app.
So, the steps to perform are as follows:
- User icon » Sign Out
- System Icon » General Settings » Transfer System Ownership.
I hope this helps.
Thanks for all the responses. I ended up factory resetting all my speakers and starting over. Everything is fully functional again.
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