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FAQ

Can this access other services in my Microsoft account?

No. The OAuth scope is limited to the Family Safety mobile service (service::familymobile.microsoft.com::MBI_SSL). Tokens generated through the documented login URL can only call Family Safety APIs — not OneDrive, Outlook, Xbox Live outside Family Safety, or other Microsoft APIs.

Do I need to store my Microsoft password?

No. Authentication uses the standard OAuth authorization-code flow. You sign in in a browser once (or provide a refresh token). The library never sees your password.

Why does login redirect to a blank page?

That is expected. After sign-in, Microsoft redirects to login.live.com/oauth20_desktop.srf with a code in the query string. Copy the full URL from the address bar.

Why is my access token expiring?

Access tokens are short-lived. The library refreshes them automatically using the refresh token. Ensure you persist auth.refresh_token for unattended use.

What is the experimental flag on FamilySafety?

Setting family_safety.experimental = True before update() enables polling of pending screen-time extension requests. See Pending requests.

Why does update() sometimes log a warning about AggregatorException?

Microsoft's aggregator occasionally returns HTTP 500 with a known error message. FamilySafety.update() catches AggregatorException and skips that refresh cycle rather than failing entirely.

Where does this library come from?

The API surface was reverse-engineered from the official Family Safety Android app. See the project README for attribution and tools used during discovery.

Is there a Home Assistant integration?

Yes — ha-familysafety builds on this library.