Improve password generation parameters

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Is there a way to bring back the password generation parameters from prior versions of 1Password? Instead of "allow symbols" or "allow digits", actually be able to enter how many of each are allowed?


1Password Version: 6.8.496
Extension Version: Not Provided
OS Version: Windows 10
Sync Type: Not Provided
Referrer: forum-search:password generation instructions

Comments

  • MikeT
    edited January 2018
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    Hi @f1_fanatic,

    Thanks for writing in.

    No, we have no plans to expand this, this is actually intentional. 1Password will adjust the parameters automatically based on the length to find the strongest passwords it can generate. 1Password 6 for Windows is the first to switch to this new style and at the moment, the rest of 1Password apps are planning to adopt this simplified method as well.

    We may change our minds but for now, this is intentional.

    You can edit the password directly to modify as you see fit.

  • Backspaze
    Backspaze
    Community Member
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    I was just about to create a new thread about this when I found this thread.

    I thought that it was the Windows version that was lagging behind and would get an update to get the same password generation options available on the other platforms. I always open up 1PW on my iPhone when I want to create a PIN code for example. Being able to set the password to only consist of digits makes it easy to then just click regenerate until I'm satisfied with the result.

    I just tried creating a 8-digit PIN on Windows and chose the longest password length (64). I rarely, if ever, got 8 digits within the password in the password field and on top of that I would have to edit out all the other letters to get a clear view of it. And as some combinations are more memorable than others (not necessarily less secure, I'm not talking about 11112222 here) I might want to try and regenerate a couple of times which means more waiting to get 8 digits and deleting even more letters.

    I could generate a password, take whatever digits available in that password copy/enter them in Notepad or just write them down on a piece of paper and then rinse and repeat until I have my 8 digits. But that's quite cumbersome instead of just being able to generate them according to my spec directly within the app.

    As I consider the "Characters" and "Words" options to be good enough; if the site complains that the password is lacking a letter, digit or symbol you just add an !, 1, a or A and you're done. The only other recurring password type that's lacking in 1PW generation options is the PIN code as described above. Would it be possible to create a third alternative next to "Characters" and "Words" along the lines of my mock up below?

    As I know you're aiming for simplicity and don't want to add complexity with "advanced/expert/pro" features for "pro" users even as an option, at least not at this stage, the above suggestion seems simple enough to implement without adding much complexity.

  • @Backspaze: Generally speaking PINs are meant to be memorable which is one reason they aren't particularly secure. For that reason, I'd suspect most wouldn't generate a PIN and would instead come upwith a memorable one in its own right. That said, not everyone is exactly the same and we'll certainly keep your feedback in mind as we continue to improve 1Password. Thanks for sharing, particularly for taking the time to make a mock-up (it looks super nice, by the way -- mine would have probably been made in Paint) and I'll be sure to pass it along to the team. :chuffed:

  • tealduck
    tealduck
    Community Member
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    I can certainly see that feature being a nice option as well. Yes, PIN numbers are supposed to be memorable and I would memorize the generated PIN but it would be nice if I could get it randomly generated the first time. Not to mention this would be such a small story on your Agile board since this user already created the mock-up and design for you. :)

  • @tealduck: I learned long ago not to tell the development team things are easy. I'm usually wrong and only win myself a lengthy explanation of exactly why I'm wrong. That's not to say that this would be hard at all (I honestly don't know), only that I'm well-trained to leave that sort of stuff to the experts. :wink:

This discussion has been closed.