1Password Help

  1. What is 1Password?
  2. Installation and Setup
  3. Requirements
  4. Registering 1Password
  5. How to Contact Us

3-Minute Expert Guide

    Features

    1. Data Protection
    2. Web Forms and Logins
    3. Wallet
    4. Secure Notes
    5. Identities
    6. Password History
    7. Strong Password Generator
    8. Access Your Data Anywhere
    9. Keeping Your Data in Sync

    Tutorials

    1. Changing Login Passwords
    2. Sync to Palm
    3. Using 1Password for Palm
    4. Syncing to iPhone/iPod touch

    Frequently Asked Questions

      Knowledge Base

Forgotten Password

What can I do if I forgot my password?

Master Password

1Password creates your keychain using the password you provided when you launched the application the first time. This password is not kept anywhere and it is never logged. Furthermore, there are no “back door” mechanisms to recover your data or password.

All of these points are very important for your data’s security. However, because of them, once your password is forgotten, there is nothing we can do to help you recover it.

Before Starting Over

Before deleting the keychain, you should verify that the problem is not related to one of the common problems below. Most of these are “shots in the dark”, but they might help you in your situation.

Check the caps lock key

Verify that the problem is not related to the caps lock key. When passwords stop working, it is usually the caps lock key that caused the damage. Try typing your password with it on and off (because it may have been on when you typed the original password).

Check the num lock key

Similar to the caps lock key suggestion, verify that the problem is not related to the num lock key being accidentally enabled.

Restart Your Mac

This is not a very scientific suggestion, but there have been instances where some installed software influences how keystrokes are processed and thereby affect the password entry. By restarting your Mac you will remove these applications and also restart any other “misbehaving” applications.

Restore From Backup

If you recently changed your password and then forgot the new one, this suggestion will help if you remember the old password. You can restore the keychain from one of the several automatically created backup files using File > Restore Keychain from Backup menu.

Starting Over

Once you have tried all your passwords you can think and tried the suggestions above, there is nothing you can do but start over.

In order to get 1Password working again, you need to remove the old 1Password keychain and start from scratch. We recommend that you rename your old keychain (instead of deleting it) just in case you recall your password in the future.

To recreate the 1Password keychain, follow these steps:

  1. Quit the 1Password and all your browsers.
  2. Open Finder and go to your home folder. Under ~/Library/Keychains you will find a file called 1Password.keychain.
  3. Rename 1Password.keychain to 1Passwd.keychain.forgotten_password
  4. Start the 1Password and you will be asked to create a new Keychain.

That’s it! 1Password will now prompt to create a new keychain file when you start it.