Can't change master password

Hi @JohnAtkinson

Here is how 1Password handles unlocking:

• If a Primary vault (standalone vault) exists the Master Password for the Primary vault will unlock 1Password. Changing your membership password will have no effect. You can read about how Master Password changes are synced across Primary vaults here: https://blog.1password.com/how-1password-syncs-changes-to-your-master-password/
• If a single 1Password membership has been added (with no Primary vault) then 1Password unlocks using the Master Password associated with that membership account
• When multiple 1Password memberships have been added (with no Primary vault) 1Password unlocks using the Master Password of the first added membership

1Password only ever acccepts one Master Password. All memberships / vaults are unlocked when 1Password unlocks. In general we do not recommend having a Primary vault when using 1Password.com. You can learn about how to delete any Primary vaults here:

https://support.1password.com/migrate-1password-account/#set-up-your-other-devices

Assuming you've already added your 1Password membership account on these devices you can skip the first step. I'd also strongly encourage you to consider a better Master Password:

Toward better Master Passwords | 1Password

I hope that helps!

Ben

@JohnAtkinson: Sorry, no, we don’t have a call center. And, frankly, chatting in the phone wouldn’t have any effect on how you have things setup, and it’s not feasible to transmit detailed information that way anyway — whether that be instructions with screenshots or diagnostic information. Ultimately the problem you’re describing isn’t something we can give you the answer to either, since we never know the Master Password, cannot “reset” it, and do not have any control over how you set things up on the computer.

We can, however, answer questions and give you guidance on how to set it up the way you want. We do not “manage the master password” and you are not “forced to use” 1Password a certain way. Those are choices you make, are completely within your control, and are only known by you. But it sounds like the problem you’re having is due to having chosen multiple Master Passwords for different things. The app unlocks using the Master Password of the first vault/account you have setup there. So, based on what you’ve described, having a Primary local vault setup in the app, you'd need to enter the Master Password for that vault to unlock it. Changing that Master Password will have no impact on the 1Password.com membership account, which it sounds like you've setup with an entirely different Master Password.

I believe that sums up where we are now, and in order to move forward it sounds like you'll probably want to 1) figure out the Master Password for the account, 2) make sure you have all of the 1Password data there, and 3) setup all of the apps to use only the account in order to use its Master Password to unlock, and avoid causing confusion like this in the future. As a starting point, please try signing into the account in your web browser, at https://start.1password.com -- it sounds like you may not be able to though. If you do not know the credentials for that account, you cannot access it; there's no way around that. But since you mentioned having access to 1Password on another device, if you have that account setup there too and can unlock the app using other means ("Primary" vault Master Password, Touch ID), you may be able to find your 1Password.com account credentials saved in your vault there. Please check for that. If you're able to sign into 1Password.com, verify that you have all of the data there already and we'll go from there.

If you're still having trouble though, the best thing to do will be to generate a diagnostic report on each device so we can look at exactly how you have things setup. That way we're not making guesses based just on what you say here, and can get to the bottom of it more efficiently:

https://support.1password.com/diagnostics/

Please send it to support@1password.com and add the following Support ID (including the square brackets) to the subject of your diagnostics email before sending:

[#ITL-13762-914]

If you’re reading this and you are not JohnAtkinson, this Support ID is for JohnAtkinson only. Please ask us for your own if you also need help.

This will link them to our current conversation. Once we see it we should be able to better assist you. Thanks in advance!

ref: ITL-13762-914

Thanks for getting back to me! I have no doubt that you're right as far as my perspective being different than yours. I'm just not sure it's beneficial to have a philosophical discussion about that if what you really want is to "get on with your life". Providing the information I requested would be much more productive in that regard. Happy to address your specific comments/questions though:

Believe me when I say, I'm not trying to be nit-picky. I'm trying to understand, and so I ask, is a vault an account?

No. An account can (and usually does) have many vaults in it. For example, I've got an account with one vault just for me, one for my whole family, and others shared with specific family members.

You seem to present them in parallel here, but, semantically, that doesn't parse.

I have to disagree. "Account" and "vault" are totally different words with very different meanings, both with regard to 1Password, and as far as the dictionary is concerned. They do not even show up as synonyms in a thesaurus. If they did, we'd probably not use those terms.

1) Do I choose a Master Password for my account?

Yes, when you setup the account you selected a Master Password. It is not possible to proceed without doing so.

2) Is there a difference between an account, and a membership account?

The account is the thing you sign into, using your account credentials (e.g. email address, password, etc.) The membership is the thing you pay for, which has the account associated with it. You're paying for a service, and you login to the associated account to use it.

3) Do I choose a Master Password for a vault?

For a local vault stored only on your device, yes. For a vault in a 1Password.com account, no -- you already have a Master Password for the account, which gives you access to all the vaults therein.

4) In the 1Password ecosystem, what are the non-ambiguous terms you use for any passwords that are not the Master Password?

Passwords. For example, Apple ID password, Google password, computer password, phone password, etc.

5) Can I have more than one account?

Yes, but most people don't need more than one. They each costs money, so more than one are generally not used unless absolutely necessary.

If I can, what is a use case that calls for having more than one account?

One for the company, one for personal/family use, etc.

6. What is a Primary vault?

It's a local vault stored only on the device. It is completely separate from 1Password.com, not associated with any account.

7. If a vault is not a Primary vault, what other types of vaults could it be?

Some folks not using a 1Password.com account have secondary local vaults in addition to the Primary. There are really only two types of vaults though: local, and those belonging to an account.

Does each vault have an independent password?

Local vaults can each have their own password. A 1Password.com account has its own Master Password though, which grants access to any vaults contained in it.

8. What is a use case satisfied by having more than one vault?

Organization and sharing. Almost no one wants to share all of their data with someone else, so organizing it into separate vaults allows sharing only some of it. For example, I have my own Private vault, but also another I share with my partner, to keep things separated/compartmentalized.

You wrote: ...sounds like you'll probably want to 1) figure out the Master Password for the account, By account, do you mean what I log into at the my.1password.com web page? If not, then what?

Exactly that.

You wrote: 3) setup all of the apps to use only the account in order to use its Master Password to unlock, and avoid causing confusion like this in the future. This seems to imply that the apps can be configured either to use an account, or not to use an account. If this is so, why would someone not have an account? If someone does not have an account, then how do they make use of 1Password?

For the first decade of 1Password's existence, there were no accounts. The only way to use 1Password was by purchasing a license for each app separately, using local vaults to store data, and then optionally using some external method to sync the data between devices. Some people still use it that way, either due to a specific preference, or inertia -- someone may be happy with the specific version they have already purchased, or just aren't motivated to change their existing setup.

More recently, we introduced 1Password memberships, where you have an account to sign into in each of the apps (or website) to access your data -- no separate purchases for each version or license management, and no sync configuration required.

So there are now two ways to use 1Password. The apps are the same; it's just a matter of how you pay, and the level of integration (memberships enable additional features that aren't possible with the old way of doing things).

Thanks for your help.

You're very welcome. Happy to assist any way I can. :)

Glad to hear that helped. :+1:

Ben