How to Access, Sync, and Secure Shared KeePass Password Vaults with Your Team

KeePass is the password application that Barry-Wehmiller has selected to ensure team member credentials are stored and managed safely and in alignment with industry best practices and BW’s IT Acceptable Use Policy.

KeePass can also be used as a shared credential vault for groups or teams that need to maintain secure access to critical credentials. This document will describe how to create, deploy and access shared KeePass credential vaults.

Receiving the credential vault with other team members

Once the credential file database is created and stored in a shared location, you will be notified that it is available for use. You will need to know where the file is stored and what the master passphrase is to access the encrypted file. 

You will receive an email or Teams with a link to the location of the shared credential database. You will need to click on the provided link and select the “Sync” to configure file syncing of this directory to your PC. The “Sync” menu may be visible in the menu bar at the top of the page, or it may be hidden in the “…” menu, depending on your screen resolution. Access the Sync menu as seen here –  

Once complete, you will receive a confirmation – 

After a few seconds the directory will synchronize to your computer’s local storage drive, and you will be able to access it in the File Manager as seen here –

To ensure that you will always have access to the shared KeePass Credential database file, even if your computer is disconnected from the internet set the file to “Always keep on this device” by right-clicking on the file name – 

You will notice that the cloud status icon changes from a blue cloud to a solid green circle with a white check mark-

Before selecting “Always keep on this device,” notice the status symbol is a small blue cloud

After setting the file to “Always keep on this device” - notice the status is a green circle with a white check-

This means that the cloud hosted copy of the file is synchronized with a local copy held on your computer’s storage drive. If you are disconnected from a network with internet access, you’ll still have access to the file on this PC. 

Important Note - If you make any changes to credentials stored within the vault while you are offline, the next time you access KeePass you’ll be asked to synchronize your changes with the current version of the file, discard your file or overwrite the existing file with your changes. When prompted with this dialogue it is important to always choose to synchronize the credential database.

Receiving Master Passphrase
 

You will also need to know the master password to access and make changes to the shared password database. The master password should be communicated separately. Doing so by voice in an MS Teams meeting or phone call is a more secure way to share a KeePass database passphrase than emailing or sending an MS Teams chat message with the password in plain text. 

For all team members accessing shared KeePass databases – it is a very good idea to save the Master Passphrase of any shared KeePass database files that you have access to in your individual KeePass credential database. Some team members may have a need to access multiple shared credential databases, and creating a group to store these in your individual password database is good practice.