Migration from v6.8.8 (macOS) and v7.3.6 (iOS) to 1Password Families

jms_1p

I have four family members that have been using the above combination of 1Password for their Macs and iPhones. Each user has maintained their own vault and synced between their own Mac and iPhone using Dropbox. On my Mac/iPhone combination, I created a second vault named "Family" for the few items that needed to be shared.

What advantages would there be to migrate to 1Password Families? I don't need 1Password on any of the other platforms.

Are there step-by-step instructions for this migration? Note that if I become the Family Organizer each invited user would need to import their vault entries.

Thanks in advance!

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1Password Version: v6.8.8 (macOS); v7.3.6 (iOS)
Extension Version: Not Provided
OS Version: macOS 10.14.6; iOS 12.4
Sync Type: Dropbox

AGAlumB

@jms_1p: Thanks for getting in touch. You're on the right track! :)

Indeed, it will vary depending on the use case (and, frankly, even between family members!), but my family enjoys a number of things particularly:

• All apps included — so we're not paying for licenses for various platforms, and, to be honest, they don't want to deal with that stuff anyway; this allows them to just sign into their account on any of their devices at any time and use 1Password there, now or in the future.
• All updates included — no additional purchase for a new major version, such as 7.0; and no one has to worry about whether they can/should upgrade.
• The whole family — no separate purchases for family members, as everything is included for up to 5 at the base price.
• Time is money — whether family members setting things up themselves or me helping them, there's just a lot less friction involved.
• Share vaults securely, with everyone getting access to vault you share with them automatically: nothing to configure on their devices; they just show up there.
• Help family members recover their accounts if they get locked out
• Automatic offsite backup and item history are included, so anyone losing their devices doesn't mean losing their data.

As far as migration, we have a great guide that will take you through signing up, transferring your data, and setting up the rest of your devices:

Move your existing 1Password data to a 1Password account

You can start there, as that will allow you to prepare some things for others as well (if you have data you want to add to the default Shared vault for everyone else you invite). Then you can invite your family members to create accounts under your membership:

Share passwords in 1Password Families

They'll each have their own account with a Master Password they choose and Private vault of their own, and can similarly follow the migration guide above to move their own data to it. And if any of you have questions along the way, we're here to help. :)

jms_1p

@brenty, thanks for all of the information.

With respect to shared items, how much flexibility is provided? For example, I'd like to share most of my items with my wife and fewer with the kids.

AGAlumB

@jms_1p: You're very welcome! :) And likewise, thanks for the question and example. Sharing is managed using vaults. In that case, I'd recommend creating a separate vault and granting access to only you and your wife:

Create and share vaults

Any new vaults created can be shared with one, all, or none of your family members. The default Shared vault is always accessible to everyone you invite to the family membership (with the exception of guests).

You may also want to consider making your wife a family Organizer as well, as that would allow her to manage sharing and help other family members recover their accounts if needed:

About family organizers in 1Password Families

jms_1p

@brenty, thanks for the quick reply and great information.

I need to be careful because my current setup with my family (described above) works well, even though it took a little time to originally configure.

I just thought of one possible snafu with my upgrade plan. I have one (perfectly good!) Mac that cannot be upgraded beyond High Sierra. What's the anticipated support of 1Password Families on High Sierra?* 1Password v6.8.8 seems to work very well.

*For example, if two years from now 1Password Families was no longer supported on High Sierra (but the version I moved from, 1Password v6.8.8, was still a viable option) I'd certainly second guess my migration to 1Password Families.

AGAlumB

I need to be careful because my current setup with my family (described above) works well, even though it took a little time to originally configure.

@jms_1p: I understand completely! I was sharing vaults with my own family via Dropbox for years, and was hesitant to give that up. Technically, I still use Dropbox for some things, but my family is happier not having to use it, and frankly I get fewer "support calls". ;)

I just thought of one possible snafu with my upgrade plan. I have one (perfectly good!) Mac that cannot be upgraded beyond High Sierra. What's the anticipated support of 1Password Families on High Sierra?* 1Password v6.8.8 seems to work very well.
*For example, if two years from now 1Password Families was no longer supported on High Sierra (but the version I moved from, 1Password v6.8.8, was still a viable option) I'd certainly second guess my migration to 1Password Families.

Indeed, that's a really good point. At present 1Password for Mac version 6 works just fine with a 1Password membership (as long as you don't enable two-factor authentication for the account, which version 6 knows nothing about). We don't have plans specifically to make outdated versions of 1Password incompatible with 1Password accounts in the future, but the reality is that as we continue to improve the 1Password membership service for everyone that may necessitate making some changes that are incompatible with old versions. It's something we try to avoid, but, for example, if a security issue were found that required us to change how client and server communicate (or, even more likely, internet technologies just evolve over time), we're not going to hold back making those kinds of changes which are critical to all our customers for the benefit of only a few running old software. Or it could be something less extreme, like adding a feature that you simply can't take advantage of without being up to date -- like two-factor authentication. But even in the worst case scenario, as long as you're able to run a current web browser, you'd still be able to access your data using the 1Password web interface.

jms_1p

@brenty, thanks for the reply. You've given me a lot of information to consider before migrating to 1Password Families.

On a related note, before 1Password went to the subscription model, I purchased the full versions on the (macOS) App Store and the (iOS) App Store. With the latter, I think the premium payment was via an in-app purchase. The iOS version has since updated to v7.3.6, but the macOS version stands at v6.8.8. I see that v6.8.9 is now available, so I assume there would be no (purchase or technical) issues upgrading to it. Is that correct?

Can I also download macOS v7x from the 1Password website and use it with my current license? Or is an upgrade fee or subscription required?

Ben

The only difference between v6.8.8 and v6.8.9 is support for Opera. If you aren't using the Opera web browser there is no need to update.

Updated 1Password browser code signature checks to support the latest Opera updates. {apple-issues#12}

But you are correct you can update to that version if you'd like. :)

Can I also download macOS v7x from the 1Password website and use it with my current license? Or is an upgrade fee or subscription required?

1Password 7 requires a separate license but is included with membership (such as 1Password Families).

Ben

jms_1p

@Ben, thanks for the reply.

Okay, I installed v6.8.9 and everything went smoothly. There does appear to be one other minor difference: the app installed as 1Password 6.app, whereas v6.8.8 was simply 1Password.app.

AGAlumB

@jms_1p: That's not a 6.8.9 thing, but rather "1Password 6.app" is the version purchased from our website, whereas "1Password.app" would be from the Mac App Store. You'll want to use the one you paid for, as you can end up in "read only" mode otherwise. :)

jms_1p

@brenty, thanks for the additional information.

Ben

On behalf of brenty you're most welcome. :+1:

Ben