Help me understand how vaults sync

How I understand it (and please correct me if I'm wrong) is that only the 'Primary' vault will sync to iCloud? This is apparently only really useful if someone was using iOS and only iOS across all devices? In my situation where I'm trying to keep my passwords synced across iOS and Windows 7 I should probably be using Dropbox for the best experience? I'm I understanding this correctly?

@wlrider: Correct. iCloud sync only works with the Primary vault, and only on Apple devices (so, iPads, iPhones, Macs, etc.) It can be used in conjunction with Dropbox (to sync additional vaults) or Dropbox can be used instead to sync any vaults across all platforms. I'd argue that iCloud is a better experience overall (since it requires less configuration), but you're right that this won't work for you on Windows (or Android), as Apple doesn't offer their frameworks there.

What I'm having difficulty understanding is now after setting up Dropbox I have 3 vaults: 'Primary', 'Personal', and now '1Password'. I can only see the 'Personal' and '1Password' vaults on my PC. The 'Primary' vault doesn't show at all. From what I understand the 'Primary' vault is saved locally on my iPhone and can be synced with iCloud if I choose (but why would I my situation).

It sounds like what is setup on your other devices as the Primary vault is named "1Password" on your PC, and then you also have a 1Password.com Account setup there (which is where the Personal vault is stored).

So, should I be saving my passwords in the '1Password' vault since it's the one that seems to be connected through Dropbox? I guess I don't understand the point of the other vaults if this is the case. It appears I can only sync one vault with Dropbox. Should I accidentally save passwords in the other vaults they would not be synced. The 'Personal' vault would be saved and available through the website, but the 'Primary' vault would be lost forever should I lose me phone (assuming I'm not using iCloud).

You're right on. Honestly, it's better to use only local vaults (which you sync yourself) or 1Password.com to avoid this kind of confusion. I'll go into that more later.

I'm loving the app, I think I'm just struggling on how to figure out how to properly use it. Going from chaos to an organized system can be an undertaking, and I'm deathly afraid of losing all my information.

I understand completely! When I first started using 1Password, I was a bit overwhelmed...and that was long ago, when there were less sync options (and no multiple vaults!) I'll be happy to guide you through this!

Honestly, I just want a solution so that when I lose or upgrade my phone I retain all my passwords when I reinstall the app and that all my passwords are available when I'm using both my iPhone and my PC. Please help me understand how to make that possible so I don't mess up and lose all my info when I inevitably switch phones. Sorry, if I'm a little dense on this subject, but poking around the forums didn't really produce anything I could immediately understand and left me more confused. Thanks for the help!

No need to apologize! It's more confusing at first than we'd like, because there are some choices to be made by you. But once you have things setup its much easier. It's like moving into a great new home: that initial phase of getting everything organized the way you want it is pretty rough, but once you settle in you're glad you made the move. :)

While we're happy to offer standalone licenses to those who want to use local vaults and sync the data themselves, I really think that a 1Password.com account is a better option for most people, and it sounds like for you as well, since it will give you access to all of the apps, the web interface, and does away with license management and sync configuration altogether — you simply login to your account to authorize a device and access your data.

And my favourite part about 1Password.com is something that most people don't give much though, but that you touched on: since your encrypted data is stored on 1Password.com, it's automatically backed up and available to you any time you setup a new device. If only everything we're that easy. ;)

Also, If I opt for the 1Password Families subscription can you sync multiple vaults?

Yep! With 1Password Families (or Teams), you can create as many vaults as you want, and they can be accessible only to you, to the whole family, or only to certain family members. To be clear, with an individual plan, you can also create vaults, but there is no one to share them with.

Anyway, I hope this helps. Be sure to let me know if you have any other questions! :)

Any time! And thank you for your support! We're here if you need anything else. :)