1Password for Windows new installation not finding existing Dropbox password list

Boxergal

I have a MAC and have been using 1Password since 2012. I purchased a new PC laptop and purchased 1Password for Windows. I installed it the new program on my PC but it won't let me open the 1Password Vault and I can't access my existing 1Password file in my DropBox. Can someone please help me troubleshoot this problem. My goal is to access my passwords no matter which computer I am at. right now I can't use 1Password at all on my windows laptop. It is still working fine on my MAC

RichardPayne

Stupid question but you did setup Dropbox sync on the Mac didn't you?
Assuming that that is the case, what does "I can't access my existing 1Password in my DropBox" mean? If you open the DropBox folder in Windows Explorer, is the vault there? If so, what error message are you receiving when you try to open it from 1Password?

Boxergal

When I try to open 1Password in my Dropbox folder it says
"1Password Anywhere experienced an error. Error occurred in undefined on line #undefined:
Access is denied. You are running 1PasswordAnywhere version #001. Please report this error so Agile can investigate."

I went on my MAC and tried to open 1Password from my DropBox folder and it opened OK, but then took me to "Create New Vault". Not sure what that means. Is it related to my installation of 1Password on my Windows laptop?

Boxergal

Just a clarification - I get the error message when I try to open 1Password in my Dropbox on my PC.

LauraR

@Boxergal - Could you email us at support+forum@agilebits.com and we can help you better with this. Please can you also include a link back to this discussion. Once you've sent the Report a post here with the ticket ID will help us to keep an eye out for it. Thanks!

ref: SZA-83211-967

Boxergal

Here's the support # [#SZA-83211-967

LauraR

Thanks @Boxergirl, I found your ticket and I will be sending you an email reply very shortly.

RichardPayne

For the benefit of anyone else reading this later, the problem is that @boxergal is try to use 1PasswordAnywhere by directly opening the 1Password.html file from the Dropbox folder on the PC. This does not work due to browser restrictions on executing local JavaScript files.

This can be resolved by:

1) download and install 1Password for Windows (https://agilebits.com/downloads).
2) running a small webserver on your PC (eg: https://code.google.com/p/mongoose/)
3) access 1Password.html directly from the Dropbox website.

#1 is the preferable option as #2 and #3 are readonly access only and #3 has some security risks if someone breaks into your Dropbox account.

LauraR

Thanks for following up here, Richard. You’re right, installing 1Password for Windows is a much better idea than relying on 1PasswordAnywhere as a long-term solution. As browsers work to increase their security, it is a bit more complicated to access 1PasswordAnywhere using a file on the local drive instead of via the Dropbox website.

With respect to the security of Dropbox though, I just want to mention that the security of your 1Password data never relies on the security of Dropbox itself.
We are very confident about storing 1Password data in the cloud, as your data file is encrypted with an exceedingly secure encryption algorithm called AES. Even if someone were to acquire a copy of your 1Password data file, it would be extremely difficult (approaching impossible in a human lifetime) for them to actually gain access to your passwords without your Master Password. In short, we believe it is just as secure as having the data on your laptop. To learn more about cloud data security, have a read through our Knowledgebase article on Cloud Security.

And you can see the thoughts behind our data format's design here.

Also, you can check out our blog for many more articles that go into the nitty gritty math behind what makes 1Password so secure.

AGAlumB

1 is the preferable option as #2 and #3 are readonly access only and #3 has some security risks if someone breaks into your Dropbox account.

@RichardPayne: Certainly it would be bad news if your Dropbox account itself is compromised, but not from a 1Password perspective.

As LauraR points out. 1Password encrypts your data even before it is written to in the 1Password vault in the Dropbox folder on your computer; and similarly when the 1Password vault is sync'd to the Dropbox serve,r it remains secured using your Master Password -- which Dropbox of course won't have; so a compromised Dropbox account doesn't mean a compromised 1Password vault. :+1:

AGAlumB

@RichardPayne: My apologies if I missed your original point.

Since it is conceivable that 1Password.html could be altered by someone malicious who gained write access to your Dropbox account, this could allow the attacker to capture your Master Password along with the data.

RichardPayne

Precisely that @brenty

AGAlumB

:) :+1: