Transfer Mode
Overview
Transfer Mode is a temporary feature designed to help team owners safely manage member limits during account migrations, particularly when users need to transfer from YouTube authentication to Google authentication.
Transfer Mode allows you to temporarily invite members beyond your plan limits.
What is Transfer Mode?
Transfer Mode temporarily increases your team's member capacity for a limited time period. Members added when the team exceeds normal capacity are marked as "Transfer Members" with restricted permissions until they can be properly integrated into your team structure.
Key Features:
- ⏰ Time-limited: Maximum 1 week duration
- 👥 Member-limited: Maximum 10 additional members
- 🔒 Role restrictions: Transfer members limited to Member role only
- 🛡️ Automatic cleanup: Expired modes remove over-limit members automatically
- 💳 Subscription required: Only available for teams with active subscriptions
When to Use Transfer Mode
Transfer Mode is ideal for:
- Account migrations (YouTube → Google authentication)
- Safe ownership transfers without losing team members
How to Enable Transfer Mode
Prerequisites:
- You must be a team owner
- Team must have an active subscription
- Team must be at or near member capacity
Steps:
- Go to Team Settings → Members
- Click the 🟣 "Enable Transfer Mode" button (purple, owner-only)
- Configure settings:
- Max Additional Members: 1-10 (how many extra members beyond your plan)
- Duration: 1-168 hours (maximum 1 week)
- Click "Enable Transfer Mode"
Visual Confirmation:
- 🟡 Yellow banner appears showing transfer mode is active
- Banner displays expiration time and current over-limit count
- Button changes to 🔴 "Disable Transfer Mode"
How Transfer Mode Works
Normal vs Transfer Members:
Member Type | Added When | Role Permissions | Channel Access |
|---|---|---|---|
Normal Member | Team within plan limits | Full role permissions per invite | Full access per role |
Transfer Member | Team exceeds plan limits | ⚠️ Member role only | ❌ No channel permissions |
Example Scenarios:
Scenario 1: Within Limits
- Plan: Allows 3 members
- Current: Team has 2 members
- Action: Invite 3rd member
- Result: ✅ Normal member with full permissions
Scenario 2: Over Limits (Transfer Mode)
- Plan: Allows 3 members
- Current: Team has 3 members
- Action: Invite 4th member
- Result: ⚠️ Transfer member with restricted permissions
Managing Transfer Members
Identifying Transfer Members:
- 🏷️ "Transfer Member" badge appears next to their role
- Listed in transfer mode status banner
- Restricted to Member role in role dropdown
Promoting Transfer Members:
When you have space in your team (someone leaves), you can promote transfer members:
- Create Space: Remove another team member first
- Access Actions: Click ⋮ (3 dots) next to transfer member
- Promote: Select "Promote to Regular Member"
- Confirmation: Member gains normal permissions for their role
Transfer Member Restrictions:
❌ Cannot be assigned:
- Admin role
- Editor role
- Super Admin role
- Channel permissions
✅ Can be assigned:
- Member role only
- Owner role (for ownership transfers)
Account Migration Process
For Team Owners (Different Email):
- Enable Transfer Mode:
Duration: 24-48 hours
Additional Members: 1
- Create Invite: Generate team invite link
- Join with New Account:
- Sign out of old account
- Sign in with Google account
- Use invite link (becomes transfer member)
- Transfer Ownership:
- Sign back in with old account
- Go to Members → ⋮ → Transfer Ownership
- Select your Google account
- Confirm transfer
- Clean Up:
- Sign in with Google account (now owner)
- Remove old YouTube account
- Disable transfer mode
Automatic Cleanup
When Transfer Mode Expires:
- Calculates over-limit: How many members exceed normal plan
- Removes transfer members: Starting with most recent additions
- Preserves regular members: Normal members are never auto-removed
- Disables transfer mode: Automatically turns off
Example:
- Plan: 3 members allowed
- Current: 5 total members (3 regular + 2 transfer)
- Expiry Action: Removes 2 transfer members, keeps 3 regular
Error Messages & Troubleshooting
Common Errors:
Error | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
"Transfer mode requires an active subscription" | No active subscription | Contact billing to activate subscription |
"Only team owners can enable transfer mode" | Not team owner | Ask team owner to enable, or transfer ownership |
"Team has reached transfer mode member limit" | Hit maximum (plan + transfer limit) | Remove members or increase transfer limit |
"Cannot promote transfer member - team is still at capacity" | No space for promotion | Remove another member first |
"Transfer mode is not enabled" | Trying to promote when mode disabled | Enable transfer mode first |
Troubleshooting Steps:
- Check Subscription Status: Ensure active billing
- Verify Permissions: Confirm you're the team owner
- Review Member Count: Check current vs allowed members
- Check Expiry: Verify transfer mode hasn't expired
FAQ
Q: Do transfer members count against my billing?
A: No, transfer members don't count toward your subscription limits during transfer mode.
Q: What happens if I forget to disable transfer mode?
A: It automatically expires and removes over-limit transfer members based on your duration setting.
Q: Can I extend transfer mode duration?
A: Yes, disable and re-enable with a new duration, or contact support.
Q: Can transfer members access any features?
A: Transfer members have view-only access - they can see tests but cannot create, edit, or manage anything.
Q: What's the maximum transfer mode duration?
A: 168 hours (1 week) to prevent abuse.
Q: Can I have multiple transfer members?
A: Yes, up to 10 additional members beyond your plan limit.
Q: What if my plan changes while transfer mode is active?
A: The system uses your current plan limits when calculating over-limit members.
Best Practices
✅ Do:
- Use for legitimate migrations only
- Set appropriate duration (24-48 hours for account transfers)
- Promote or remove transfer members promptly
- Communicate with your team about temporary restrictions
- Monitor expiration to avoid surprise removals
❌ Don't:
- Use as permanent solution for more members
- Set excessive duration (use minimum needed)
- Forget to clean up after migration complete
- Add unnecessary transfer members (stick to actual needs)
- Rely on auto-cleanup - manually manage when possible
Getting Help
Contact Support:
- Live Chat: Available in app (lower right corner)
- Email: support@thumbnailtest.com
- Response Time: Usually within 24 hours
Include When Contacting Support:
- Team ID
- Current member count vs plan limit
- Transfer mode settings (duration, additional members)
- Screenshots of error messages
- Description of what you're trying to accomplish
Need immediate help with Transfer Mode? Contact our support team - we're here to help make your account migration smooth and successful! 🚀
Updated on: 06/06/2025
Thank you!