I’ve seen similar issues posted but not the resolution or explanation:
If I AFK and get disconnected, in response to the WOW51900319 message, I click ‘Okay’ and ‘Reconnect’. I then receive “Unable to reconnect (WOW51900308)”. I enter my credentials on the presented log in screen, and then receive: “Authenticator code
Enter the generated digital code”
Opening the authenticator apps shows “No Login requests”. I must click “Enter code manually” and type in the displayed 8 digit security code.
However, if I simply exit WoW (back to battle.net launcher) and relaunch WoW, it logs me right back in.
The requirement of an authenticator code after simply being logged off seems superfluous since no code is required from the launcher. If there is a valid security reason to re-authenticate after a WOW51900319 message, why does it not send a formal request to the authenticator app?
Assuming I know very little, I suspect that even though you e been disconnected the game may not completely recognize you are gone. I’ve been disconnected I. Game and my friends still see my character for several seconds.
By closing and reopening I g the game, your character has a chance to be completely gone so you can log back in.
This issue can be caused by a number of different things - but at a high level, the Battle.net client is what handles your authentication, so messing with it while the game is open can cause the game to re-prompt you for your authenticator code.
A short list of things that can disrupt your auth state includes (but is not limited to):
Switching the game version dropdown to a PTR product
Logging out of Battle.net
Switching the selected game account
Being disconnected from Battle.net
Cosmic radiation
If this is something that occurs consistently, there’s probably a deeper issue somewhere that I am woefully unqualified to diagnose. The most consistent way to ensure you don’t need to manually type in the number is to just relaunch the game (as you have discovered).
This is just a protected layer to make sure it is actually you logging in at your computer, and not someone else. It is not uncommon, it is just a layer of protected security in helping keep your account safe.
Thanks so much for the replies and suggestions. This happens 100% of the time when I AFK and get logged off. I assumed this was normal behavior since it has been happening since I’ve been playing WoW (and had an authenticator). Being easily circumvented, it’s really just an annoyance rather than a problem. However it has always felt a little ‘clunky’ or incomplete in its implementation.
As far as it being a security precaution, there are so many ways the client could validate it’s ‘me’ that’s reconnecting… same IP, same credentials, a long history of this IP used for this client, cookies or other persistent data logged by battle.net client, etc. Clearly the battle.net client is satisfied of my identity as it instantly logs me back in if I quit WoW and relaunch without needing to re-authenticate.
If it really must re-authenticate for whatever reason, why doesn’t it send a formal request to the authenticator? Having to go through all the extra “Enter code manually” steps gets tiresome pretty quickly as does quitting WoW and incurring the relaunch time.
Yeah cosmic particles(muons I think?) are surprisingly notorious for switching a voltage level low to a voltage level high in memory. That’s why aerospace circuits cost 10s-100s of thousands of times the amount of consumer level equivalents.
Another big one that might trip the authentication system is if you play using a VPN, even if it’s a fixed IP. Also, non-windows defender based firewall/security suites can trigger it as well. Some system cleaners can also cause issues if they mess with the NTFS logs(partition logs that keep track of every file change on a system. Blank log=Suspected virtual machine for most anti-cheat engines).