# Cryptor (AES-256) — Examples

> Concrete Cryptor walkthroughs: encrypt and decrypt text, wrong password, loading and saving a file, the legacy format, and drag and drop.

Source: https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/tools/cryptor/examples/

Back to overview: [Cryptor (AES-256)](https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/tools/cryptor/) · Open the live tool: [www.jpkc.com/tools/cryptor/](https://www.jpkc.com/tools/cryptor/)

This page shows **Cryptor (AES-256)** through concrete walkthroughs. The texts and passwords used are examples — for real secrets, use your own strong passwords, of course. How the individual functions work in detail is covered in the [manual](https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/tools/cryptor/manual/).

## Example 1: Encrypt a text

Goal: turn a short confidential note into a ciphertext block.

1. **Generate a password** — click the key icon next to the password field. Cryptor fills in a 64-character random password (e.g. `r7$K2m...=`).
2. **Enter text** — type the plaintext into the **Message** field, e.g. `Meeting Friday 6 pm, back courtyard.`.
3. Click **Encrypt**.

**Result:** the Message field now holds a long Base64 block, and a notice confirms "Message encrypted with AES-256-GCM.". You can safely send this block by email or chat. **Important:** you must hand over the password separately, through a different channel — copy it out beforehand, because you'll need it again to decrypt.

## Example 2: Decrypt a text

Goal: make a received ciphertext block readable again.

1. **Enter the password** — type or paste exactly the password that was used to encrypt.
2. **Paste the ciphertext** — put the Base64 block into the **Message** field.
3. Click **Decrypt**.

**Result:** Cryptor recognizes the modern format, verifies the authentication tag, and returns the plaintext if the password is correct ("Message decrypted successfully."). If everything matches, you read `Meeting Friday 6 pm, back courtyard.` again.

## Example 3: Wrong password

Goal: understand what happens on a typo or a wrong password.

1. Paste a valid ciphertext into the Message field.
2. Enter a **wrong** password.
3. Click **Decrypt**.

**Result:** decryption fails and "Decryption failed. Check your password." appears. The field content stays unchanged — so you don't lose the ciphertext. This is down to GCM mode: if the derived key is wrong, the authentication tag doesn't match, and Cryptor rejects the decryption instead of producing meaningless plaintext. Incidentally, the same message appears if the ciphertext itself was corrupted or copied incompletely.

## Example 4: Load, encrypt, and save a file

Goal: encrypt the content of a text file and save the result as a file.

1. Click **Open** and pick a text file (`.txt`, `.enc`, or `.aes`). Its content lands in the Message field. *(Alternatively, drag the file straight onto the field — see Example 6.)*
2. Enter or generate a **password**.
3. Click **Encrypt** — the plaintext is replaced by the ciphertext.
4. Click **Save** — Cryptor downloads the content as `encrypted.txt`.

**Result:** you have an encrypted file to archive or send. To restore it, load it later with **Open**, enter the password, and click **Decrypt**. Don't forget to use **Save** afterwards to store the decrypted content if you need it as a file.

## Example 5: Read an old (legacy) message

Goal: decrypt a ciphertext from an earlier version of the tool.

1. Paste the old ciphertext into the Message field — it begins with `U2FsdGVkX1…`.
2. Enter the password from back then.
3. Click **Decrypt**.

**Result:** Cryptor recognizes the legacy format by its prefix and decrypts it with the bundled legacy library. The hint "Legacy message decrypted. Re-encrypt for better security." appears. Follow it: click **Encrypt** right after to re-secure the now-visible plaintext in the modern AES-256-GCM format. The legacy format can no longer be produced — only read.

## Example 6: Load a file via drag and drop

Goal: work without the file dialog.

1. **Drag a text file** from your file manager onto the Message field. While you hold it over the field, it highlights.
2. Drop the file — its text content is loaded as UTF-8, and a notice names the file.
3. Continue as usual: enter a password, click **Encrypt** or **Decrypt**.

**Result:** the file content sits in the field, ready to encrypt or decrypt — a quick path when you're already in the file manager.

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More on the individual functions is in the [manual](https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/tools/cryptor/manual/); strategic notes and pitfalls are in the [tips & tricks](https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/tools/cryptor/tips/). To dive straight in, open the [tool](https://www.jpkc.com/tools/cryptor/).