Keep the goal narrow
Share one task-specific artifact: Move text between devices with automatic expiration.
Share temporary notes with an expiring link
A temporary note is useful when text needs to cross a short distance in time or between devices. Choose retention before sharing, keep the content non-sensitive, and move any lasting decision into the correct system of record.
Temporary notes at a glance
Use these three checks before you turn temporary notes into a link for another person.
Start with the least exposure
Recommended first step: Use plain text or Markdown
Remove risky details
Before upload: Review the temporary notes checklist below to replace live values while preserving the context a recipient needs.
Temporary notes tip: Paste expiration guide adds this format-specific context: Select a deadline that matches the actual conversation or task.
Temporary notes workflows
A well-scoped temporary notes artifact preserves the task-specific context below and can expire when that task ends.
Device handoffs
Move a command, address, or short block of prose between your own devices, then use a ten-minute or one-hour expiration.
Meeting scratchpads
Share a temporary agenda or raw notes, then promote agreed actions into the team’s governed documentation.
Short checklists
Use an unlisted link for a disposable sequence of non-sensitive steps that does not need comments or long-term history.
Recommended paste settings
- 1Use plain text or Markdown
- 2Start with unlisted visibility
- 3Choose 10 minutes, 1 hour, or 1 day
- 4Use burn-after-read only when recovery is unnecessary
What not to include
A paste is not a durable notebook, authoritative record, or password manager. Recipients can copy content before it expires, so deletion cannot recall information already seen.
For temporary notes, a made-up but representative example is safer than a production export. Expiration can end future access to the source link, but it cannot recall a recipient’s copy.
Compare privacy controls →Use encryption when temporary notes must not be readable in storage
For a private temporary notes artifact, encrypted mode applies AES-GCM in the browser before upload. Its key stays after # in the share URL and outside the normal server request.
Understand client-side encryption →BEFORE UPLOADReadable content
→AES-GCM
IN STORAGEEncrypted bytes
Temporary notes questions
Practical answers about the access, retention, and context choices for temporary notes.
Does expiration delete every copy?+
No. It stops future access at the original URL but cannot remove downloads, screenshots, caches, or recipient copies.
Can I recover an expired note?+
No recovery is promised. Keep an authoritative copy of anything you may need later.