Our browsers are full of sites, online services and forums that are added to favorites and for each of them often registration with a username and password is required . If we register to many sites and use a different password for each of them, it will be tremendously difficult to remember them all, falling into the bad habit of always and only using our usual passwords for two or more sites (compromising the safety of all, since that's enough a simple hacker who violates one of the sites to compromise the others too). Since not all of us are equipped with an iron memory, we can get help from a free program like KeePass, excellent for storing all our access passwords in a secure database, so that we can recover them in a flash by entering simply the Master password (which will become the only password to always remember by heart). Let's see together how to install the program, how to add an entry to the database, how to take advantage of automatic filling in browsers and finally how to synchronize the database to access it on the move from Android and iPhone.
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Download and Install KeePass on PC
To download the program, simply connect to the official KeePass website, click Download Now under the KeePass 2.xx section and proceed with the download. Keepass has a portable version, which requires no installation and can be copied to a USB stick to be carried around.
The installation of the program (if you choose the version with installer), is as simple as any other Windows program, just follow the steps indicated until the installation is complete.
Unfortunately KeePass is originally in English, but we can immediately add the Italian language by downloading the right package from here, extracting the compressed archive, and copying the Italian.lngx file in the main Keepass folder (the complete path, on a computer with Windows 64 bit, it's C: \ Program Files (x86) \ KeePass Password Safe 2 ).
To set the Italian language in the program, open now Keepass, go to the menu at the top View and select the Change Language item .
From this menu we click on Italian and restart the program: now all menus and items will be translated into our language, so that we can make the best use of it without having to translate strange items into English.
Create a new database
When Keepass is first opened, we will have to create a new password database by clicking on File -> New at the top left.We choose the path where to save the database file, give it a name as we like and, in the next screen, we set the Master password, trying to choose a very secure one (as indicated by the quality bar).
This password is used to access all the others, so it must never be forgotten . After creating the database, we can move on to adding all the various items with which to keep the site passwords. We remind you that KeePass always stores the path of the last database used, asking for the Master password at every start.
Add entries to the database
As we have noticed, inside the database there is a folder structure, so that we can organize the data according to the type or type of service saved. For example, to memorize the Yahoo mail email password, we can go to the " Email " folder, right click on the white space and press the Add an entry button.
In the window that will appear we can write the login data of the email service, inserting the username and password of the mail account and finally clicking on OK .
If we are about to sign up for a new service, we can get "help" from KeePass to choose the new password to use, opening the window to add a new item, clicking on the small key icon (present next to the fields of password entry) and finally clicking on the item Password automatically generated for the new items .
In this way we will have the security of using very secure passwords for all the Web services to which we will subscribe from now on.
If we want to edit the various folders on the left side of the program (called Groups ), we right click inside the area and use one of the items in the context menu to edit, delete and create a new folder / group.
Automatic filling of sites
One of the most comfortable features of KeePass is certainly the auto-compilation of the access fields within the browser, which will allow you to immediately enter your username and password without having to copy it by hand each time (the program will simulate two copy and paste and will press Enter for us).
To take advantage of this interesting function, we open the website on which we want to log in, click on the Username or Username field of the site (make sure the text cursor flashes) then open KeePass, enter the Master password, right-click on the specific entry for that site so we use the Execute autocompletion item.
Immediately the login credentials will be entered in the text field previously selected in the browser, without having to do anything. This way we won't have to worry about copying and pasting very long passwords, since KeePass can do the job for us. You can also use a combination of keys to automatically enter when needed, username and password or just password. the default shortcut is Ctrl-Alt-A or Ctrl-Alt-Shift-A (password only) and you can change it in Tools> Options> Integration .
If we want to integrate KeePass into the most used browsers, we can also use the KeePass Tusk extension, available for both Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.
Password synchronization between PC and smartphone
One of the limitations of KeePass is related to the nature of the database itself: since it is a local file, we will not be able to keep the passwords synchronized between multiple devices (and thus replace a service like LastPass). But with a little ingenuity we can activate a personalized synchronization and carry all our passwords with us without any problem! First we download the Google Drive client, the cloud service offered by Google, to our computer (where KeePass is present). After downloading and installing it on the computer, we open the Backup and Sync from Google program and enter the login credentials for Google, so that we can create a synchronized Google Drive folder on our PC (the files saved on the cloud will be synchronized locally and conversely, each file added to the folder will also be saved on the cloud).
After carrying out the initial configuration, we move the KeePass database file inside the Drive folder (by default the folder path is C: \ Users \ USER \ Google Drive ) and wait for the synchronization to end (we can check the progress from the Drive icon at the bottom right, among the system icons). Once the KeePass file is synchronized with the Google cloud, let's go to our smartphone and install the specific app based on our device; for Android devices we can install Keepass2Android Password Safe, while if we have an iPhone, just install the Google Drive and MiniKeePass apps (it no longer exists).
If we use the app for Android, all we have to do is indicate Google Drive as the path from which to take the database (authorizing access to the cloud space) and, once the database is loaded, enter the same Master password used by the PC. In this way, we will have all our passwords at hand (even offline, since it creates a local copy that is always available), add new items and take advantage of automatic completion within apps or mobile browsers.
If instead we use an iPhone, we will first have to access the Google Drive app, enter Google's credentials, then tap on the database file and select Open with -> MiniKeePass .
Also in this case we will be able to manage all our passwords, synchronizing any changes and copying the access data to use them on sites and apps.
To learn more, read our guide to KeePass on Android and iPhone: how to save passwords on a personal cloud .
If, on the other hand, KeePass has not convinced you or its use seems too cumbersome, we can discover the alternatives in our guide to programs and extensions to save passwords .
