Considerations
Users who log into Windows or macOS using third-party credentials (e.g., GSuite login) may lose access to saved connections stored in Personal Connection Storage after a password change in the third-party system.
Why This Happens
- Personal Connection Storage relies on OS provided encryption algorithms tied to your system login credentials.
- When using third-party authentication, a password change outside the OS environment breaks the OS decryption algorithms, making saved connections inaccessible.
- This is a limitation of how Windows and macOS manage credential-based encryption, and affects both Web and Database connections stored under Personal Storage.
How to Resolve It
To avoid this issue, we recommend migrating your connections to be shared connections saved using Shared Connection Storage:
1. Export Connections from Personal Storage
- Go to Tools > FME Options > Web Connections
- If you are on 2025.1, go to Utilities > FME Options > Web Connections
- Select all connections, right click, and choose Export
- Choose a destination to save all the connections as an .xml file
- Repeat these steps under Database Connections
2. Switch to Shared Connection Storage
- Go to Tools > FME Options > Default Paths > Manage > Change Connection Storage
- If you are on 2025.1, go to Utilities > FME Options > Default Paths > Manage > Change Connection Storage
- Under Connection Storage, select Shared Database
- Choose destinations for your Database Folder and Key Folder
- Leave the password field blank and ensure your file system permissions restrict access to your user account only.
- If you are using 2025.1, choose Shared as the Default Connection Storage
3. Import Connections and Mark Them as Shared
- Return to Tools > FME Options > Web Connections
- If you are on 2025.1, go to Utilities > FME Options > Web Connections
- Right click and choose Import
- Select the .xml file you exported earlier
- Check the boxes in the Shared column next to each connection. If not marked as Shared, they will still be treated as Personal connections.
- Repeat for Database Connections
If connections are not marked as Shared, they will still be treated as Personal connections.
4. Going forward, use Shared Storage for all new connections
Optional Workaround
If storing a key file on disk poses a security concern on your environment, here’s an alternative:
- Before your password is changed or expires, export your connections from Personal Storage (refer to previous steps)
- After your password is updated, re-import the connections into the same environment
- This does require proactive management. You must export your connections before being forced to change your password, as you will be unable to access Personal Storage afterward
For New Users
- If you're using G Suite or other third-party login services, we recommend using Shared Storage.
Support
If you have any questions or need help with the export/import process, please contact support.