WLAN Sync: Android 8.0.0 (Google Pixel 2 XL) - Can't find my Windows 1Password 4.6.2 WLAN Server

@Jassword: I'm wondering if you recently updated Windows. ;)

Please follow the steps here, as they will help you narrow down the problem:

If you’re having trouble using the WLAN server

You won't be able to sync unless the two devices are able to communicate with each other without interference. Let me know how it goes!

No, I did not recently update Windows. I keep auto-updates turned off in Windows 10 Pro and only update once a month, the last time a few weeks ago. There's a recent update pending right now, but I have not installed it.

@Jassword: Thanks for letting me know. Pretty much every Windows 10 update resets my network settings, so I thought I should mention it.

I won't be carrying out the generic troubleshooting steps you mentioned. Here's why:
I can successfully sync 1Password between my Samsung Galaxy 10.1 Note Tablet and my Windows computer, on the same WiFI network (same Android version). (Successfully, but in the usual unnecessarily cumbersome way requiring me to re-input the master key on both Android and Windows even though I am logged into both, and without being able to see the full character string I enter making simple typo fixes impossible -- 2 issues I have raised in this forum before and by email, but which you folks just won't fix.)

I don't see any emails from you, but I'd be happy to look at diagnostics to see if I can pinpoint the problem...

I installed a Network Discovery app on my Android 8 Pixel 2 XL and it sees all 4 devices on my network just fine -- my computer, Roku, printer, and router.
The logical conclusion is that 1Password 4.6.2.626 is not working properly with Android 8.0.

That isn't logical at all. The OS on your Android device has no bearing on the app on another.

The core problem is not that "the WLAN server in 1Password is complex and depends on many factors", as the troubleshooting page states, but that Agilebits is not sufficiently maintaining 1Password 4, if at all. And that's because Windows and Android are treated as 2nd class citizens in feature and support.

While I appreciate you're frustrated, that just doesn't make any sense. It sounds like you're saying that because we've not made changes to 1Password 4 that WLAN Server no longer works there. Quite the contrary: when we do make big changes it's more likely to break things; when we don't we can't break something that worked already, and WLAN Server hasn't changed substantially in years. Yet it still works for me and other 1Password users. It sounds like something is different about your setup, not about 1Password.

I am not upgrading to 1Password 6. It's been my intention to move to LastPass for some time now, but this problem now forces me to make that move now. Any software that is marketed as compatible on multiple platforms should be equally developed and supported on those platforms. Agilebits should stop selling their Windows product and just focus on Apple. I RECOMMEND TO ALL CURRENT WINDOWS/ANDROID USERS OF 1Password THAT YOU SWITCH TO LASTPASS & LEAVE THE FRUSTRATION BEHIND.

I suspect that might help because, unlike trying to sync via WLAN server over your local network, that won't depend on your network environment. I'm sorry but while we can offer information on troubleshooting your setup, we just can't fix any of that for you. And if you aren't willing to try any of the suggestions we give, we can't help you. There are multiple solutions to the problems you're having that have helped many others, but if you reject them out of hand there isn't much else to say. If you want to use a competitor's service that's fine. I'd rather you use something else than nothing at all. Stay safe out there.

@Jassword: I understand what you're saying, and I'd be frustrated too. But if your other device is able to connect just fine and sync then clearly 1Password 4 works, and we're likely dealing with something specific to that device...unless I've misunderstood.

The Samsung tablet with Android 4.1 and same 1Password app sees the WLAN server fine.

It sounds like you're able to sync these via WLAN Server. Is that correct? If so, which 1Password version are you using on the tablet? If it's the same, I'd be looking at the network settings on the Pixel. There's a lot of good stuff in the WLAN Server troubleshooting guide, but obviously it can't cover device-specific stuff, so that's another thing to take into account. Let me know what you find.

I'm saying that the manual local-vault syncing of 1Password 4 on Windows/Android is cumbersome and problematic (unnecessary reprompting of master password on both sides when logged in and no way to edit char typos in master password input + this latest Android 8 sync issue), and you folks are resistant to making those changes that should be made, IMO, for this kind of application.

What changes would you suggest? We haven't had any other reports of sync issues with Android 8, so that really seems premature and a way for us to cause problems for others where things are working. Unless there's a good reason (e.g. security), we try not to mess with stuff that's been rigorously tested over years.

You have a dedicated and helpful but verbose support team, but at the end of the day, the product is a pain to manually sync with via local vaults. My brother uses 1Password on iOS/Mac with local vault syncing and has none of the issues I have with Android/Windows.

We can agree on that point: manually syncing is a pain. That's why 1Password.com exists. I'm glad to hear your brother isn't having any trouble, but that isn't because he's using Apple devices: we're using the exact same protocols across all platforms. We have a wealth of troubleshooting information for technical users who enjoy the DIY thing, but most people don't want to deal with the idiosyncrasies of manual sync setups, so we've created alternatives.

@Jassword: I'm not sure I completely understand the last two questions, or their relevance to the problem you've been having, but

1. N/A: 1Password for Windows version 6 does not support local vaults; 1Password 7 will.
2. Correct: 1Password 4 supports local vaults, and has the WLAN Server feature for syncing them.
3. The app doesn't have to be "in focus" if that's what you mean, but yes the Master Password is needed to encrypt/decrypt the data.
4. There is no way to reveal the Master Password field in any of the apps, if that's what you're asking.

So the last 2 points are what make manual syncing a pain with 1Password, as far as I'm concerned. There is no reason that I can accept for #4 and no technical justification that I can accept for why #3 is necessary either since if you are already unlocked in the Android app and in the Windows application, you shouldn't have to be asked for the master password again on both sides just to carry out the sync -- if you need the master password to decrypt, then hold it in memory. And #3 is just made worse by #4. At the very least, both features should be an option for the user. That's the crux of my complaint with 1Password.

@Jassword: I hear you. That's sort of the definition of "manual syncing" though. We have other non-manual sync options. You just choose not to use them. WLAN Server (née Wi-Fi Sync) was designed a long time ago. Some people swear by it and it's been great for them for years, but the vast majority of people prefer more automatic sync methods, so that's where we focus our efforts.

I can deal with the occasional network problem (if that's in fact what I have right now with the 1Password 6 app not syncing on Android 8.0 and my Google Pixel 2 XL to 1Password 4 WLAN server). But these 2 issues with manual syncing on 1Password are a constant nuisance since my master password is a 63 character long sentence that is easy to fumble when typing, especially on Android.

Seriously, try another sync method. There are other, better options. We're not going to rearchitect WLAN Server. Some people depend on it, and if it ain't broke don't try to fix it. That's why it has barely changed at all since we re-added it in 2012: people asked us for this and we gave it to them. There's been very little interest since then, because the people who wanted this could use it, and everyone else didn't care.

The point about #1 and #2 is that since this was the same situation 10 months ago when I first started using 1Password, and still the case 10 months later -- it's the reason why I say that Windows/Android is clearly developed with a lower priority vs Apple, with respect to manual syncing.

I totally understand why you'd feel that way, and certainly there are things we're able to do on iOS and macOS first because they share code...but none of that has any relation to WLAN Server. All platforms have had that for years.

And I can't really put it any better than that. So if you folks will not remedy #3 and #4, even on an optional basis for the user to choose for his/herself, then I am done with 1Password. My current sync problem on Android 8 is just the nail in the coffin for me. And please don't say, this is something that will be passed on to developers. That was the answer 10 months ago.

We don't have any plans to change WLAN Server. Like I said, it works, and people use it, but most people just don't want to. There's just no way we can justify spending development resources on something given that.

That said, while what I can do is limited, I'm more than happy to help you troubleshoot the issue you're having with the Pixel if you'll follow the troubleshooting guide and let me know what you find. Otherwise I'd literally be cutting and pasting from that (which was made from my replies troubleshooting with users here for years). It's pretty much everything we know which can be applied generally to network setups (with regard to 1Password — I know a lot of other stuff that's pretty useless in this context).

Certainly there may be specific things you can try with your own equipment that aren't covered there, but that's really far outside the scope of 1Password, and you'd know more about the specifics of your setup than we ever could. But knowing the results of your troubleshooting and looking at some diagnostics will allow us to at least point you in the right direction, if not suggest a solution.

@untoldone: Thanks for reaching out! That's an interesting data point, as we have seen some odd issues with the newer Pixels, both with Wi-Fi and fingerprint. Given that it seems to be device and/or OS dependent (seems to work on the same network and 1Password version on other devices), I'm not sure this is something we can resolve, but some diagnostic information might help us get a better sense of the problem.

If you're still having trouble, the best thing to do will be to restart your devices, reproduce the same issue, and then generate a diagnostic report on each so we can look at the logs to determine exactly what is happening:

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

Please send them to support@agilebits.com
Let me know once you've sent it. Hopefully there's some clue there that can point to the problem. Thanks in advance!

ref: GJT-81836-761

I can send the diagnostics for the desktop but not for the mobile as I can only get to the first setup screen and not to the settings screen as per the instructions. Any thoughts on this?

@untoldone: I was afraid of that, but figured it was worth a try. Diagnostics from the computer are still appreciated, but that will only give us information from that end, not from your (arguably more interesting) Android device. :(

I currently do not have a 1password.com account as I purchased the desktop software before the subscription model was available and I don't have a dropbox-based store. If need be I can try to create a store on a dropbox account but was wondering if you had a workaround for this.

While both Dropbox and 1Password.com are good options (and more convenient, without sacrificing security, to be honest), we'd really like to understand what the problem is here with WLAN Server on certain devices.

I can also follow-up with the support email and reference this thread to try to get you the debugging information from the mobile app if needed.

I would appreciate that. If you'll send diagnostics from the computer, we'l see if there's an alternative method for you to send us some logs from Android that might help shed some light on things. Thank you!

Thanks! We'll continue the conversation via email. :)

@kwik_kiwi: Unfortunately we're not aware of a workaround or fix for this. We're not able to reproduce it here, and it seems to work fine with other devices using the same network and server. Did you only recently start having this problem?

@kwik_kiwi: Definitely let me know how it goes. I'm not aware of any fixes related to networking in 8.1, but Google also isn't known for their release notes. :)

@kwik_kiwi: If you're not even able to sync even using a direct ad hoc connection, then it's a device issue. I just don't have a solution for that. We've been investigating this, but 1Password is doing everything it is supposed to. We don't know why it works on other devices fine but has this problem on the new Pixels, as whatever is preventing the connection being established is outside of 1Password. I'm sorry I don't have better news for you there. :(