1Password appears to launch default browser rather than letting OS open URL with default browser

deke

Hi,

I've used 1Password on the Mac for years. I also use BrowserFairy in order to control which browser opens any particular URL.

When I originally installed BrowserFairy, any time I opened a URL from within 1Password then BrowserFairy would pop up. I'd choose the browser, and off I'd go. There would be no delay from BrowserFairy and only the appropriate browser selection popup would appear.

I'm not sure if this changed recently (a few months ago?), but I now notice that BrowserFairy is launched first, then approximately one second later, the URL is opened. This causes a difference in behavior of BrowserFairy in that the launch opens BrowserFairy to show its settings panel, then the subsequent URL open causes the browser selection popup to appear. This extra window and delay is aggravating.

After poking about in the console log, I believe I see what is happening.

Prior to this change, I suspect 1Password simply opened the URL (eg. NSWorkspace.shared.open). This is exactly the expected behavior from any application opening a URL.

After this change, it appears from the console log (eg. "Waiting for Browser Fairy to finishing launching") that 1Password now determines the default browser, launches it, waits 2-3 seconds, and then finally opens the URL. This is not SOP for opening URLs in MacOS. I can only imagine that this extra step and delay were added because some browser didn't properly respond to the open URL if the browser wasn't already running and this was 1Password's attempt at a solution.

First, I'd like to confirm this is what is actually happening.

Second, I'd like to request that 1Password revert to the standard open URL without the extra steps. This extra launch and delay is unnecessary and aggravating.

I verified that there has been no change in BrowserFairy over this time period nor have I made any significant OS updates (just minor patches). I also verified the opening a URL from any other source does not cause the extra launch and delay, so this issue is specific to 1Password. Other applications open URLs using the expected and standard mechanism. Why can't 1Password?

(BTW, I am an experienced software dev so I completely understand having to "hack" solutions to fix problems with 3rd party products, but I'd say this hack causes some additional problems.)

Thanks,
-Darin

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1Password Version: 7.1.2
Extension Version: 4.7.3
OS Version: 10.13.6
Sync Type: iCloud

littlebobbytables

Hi @deke,

I'm not sure about some of the working specific to the likes of Choosy or Browser Fairy (which I use myself) but open-and-fill did undergo a significant change in 1Password 7 for Mac. We used to send a modified URL to macOS and left macOS to do its thing. We're replacing all of that with direct communication with the extension to avoid sending a modified URL that may or may not be correctly intercepted by the extension before the browser loads it. So in the more standard setup there should be no passing of a URL at all. We don't have a good solution for Choosy or Browser Fairy at the moment and there are plenty of us here at 1Password who really would like to see something in place as we also use one of those two.

Oddly I think I've always had the Browser Fairy settings panel appear even before 1Password 7, I just grew used to its presence as the overall gain was worth the weirdness.