For me (on macOS 15.1, Premium subscription) the biometric unlock works only with Safari. With Chrome I get the error message “Biometric unlock is currently unavailable. Please try again later.” With Firefox there is no error but it just keeps on spinning and waiting with the message “Awaiting confirmation from desktop”.
I really hope these get sorted out. The UX is severely hit with these issues.
Hello,
I’ve just enabled the biometric unlock feature on the Bitwarden Windows 10 app, and tried to unlock the Bitwarden Chrome addon with biometrics. The extra biometric option is now available in the unlock dialog, but I also get the error
Is this feature implemented/available?
Many thanks,
Paul
@polomora Welcome to the forum!
Have you enabled any “Windows Hello” options in the Windows Settings, under Accounts > Sign-in options? Are you able to use biometrics to sign in to your PC?
Many thanks for the warm welcome!
Yes, I have enabled “Windows Hello” in my account. I’m able to log onto Windows with the fingerprint reader. (Sorry I forgot to mention that I was using a fingerprint reader)
Im aware of them, but I thought they are automated and only notifing real-human when they spot malicious content (app)
@polomora Have you enabled the following option in the Desktop app, and is the Desktop app still running when you’re trying to unlock the Chrome browser extension?
Just as an update on this general issue, [PM-10741] Refactor biometrics interface & add dynamic status by quexten · Pull Request #10973 · bitwarden/clients · GitHub will (besides internal code improvements) give a specific, UI-visible reason as to why biometric unlock is unavailable.
From there, we can figure out why it unavailable for specific cases.
Is this feature implemented/available?
Chrome on windows is expected to work, if it does not that is likely a bug.
Version 2024.11.2 is now available; let is now if anything changes after you have updated.
… and what is the version of your Bitwarden desktop app?
@Nail8257
Here is the Bitwarden version (Windows 10)
@grb
I see that the Chrome extension version has been updated. Problem is still unsolved
I noticed that the app version has now been updated to 2024.12.0
The Crome browser extension is unchanged, at 2024.11.2
When I try to logon using the Chrome app, I now get the following menu
I’m not sure what is added benefit on this option? I either have to login into the Chrome app (using my password), or into the desktop app (using my fingerprint).
I guess you mean the desktop app?!
Nope, it is on 2024.12.0 now.
Yes. First difference:
“Login with device” = a login option
“biometric unlock” = an unlocking option (and not a login option)
That is not available on this screen as you first have to login (and therefore you see the three login-methods for the browser extension) - and then you can set up an unlocking option. And that still can be “biometric unlock”.
I would recommend, to make sure understanding the difference between login and unlocking. See here: https://bitwarden.com/help/biometrics/#understanding-unlock-vs-log-in
Short explanation for unlocking: you can only unlock an app, when you are still logged in there. If you are not logged in, you have to log in first.
In short: The “login with device” option makes possible to use another Bitwarden app to log you in, without the need to type in the master password.
Login into the desktop app with your fingerprint/biometrics is not possible with Bitwarden, so I guess you’re talking about unlocking your desktop app with your fingerprint/biometrics - you’re still mixing something up here…
That is exactly it. Login and Unlock are not the same thing. Biometrics only work with unlock and your vault is logged out.
Log in first (using your master password, then go to the settings to enable Biometric Unlock again. Ensure that your Vault Timeout Action is set to “Lock” (not “Log Out”). Then lock your vault and try to unlock it wit biometrics.
Many thanks Nail1684, DenBesten and grb for your patient replies.
Note: As a new user, I can only embed one image in this post, so I have to use text descriptions instead of images. I can also only reference two users…
I’ve just updated the Chrome extension, it’s now at v2024.12.2, server version v2024.12.0. The Windows app is at v2024.10. To try to avoid any confusion, I first restarted Windows to start afresh.
Here are the steps I followed.
Without the Windows app running
When I startup the Chrome browser, the extension icon has the Unlock overlay, which I think means that I am already auto-logged in, but am currently locked out. When I click on the extension icon, I see the “Verify Identity” pop-up ( I can’t embed the image).
When I click on “Unlock with biometrics”, I get the following pop-up
With the Windows app running
When I start the Windows app, the app displays “Your vault is locked”, and
the “Making sure it’s you” pop-up is displayed, together with “Scan your finger on the fingerprint reader” ( I can’t embed the image).
So this means that I am already auto-logged in, but am current locked out.
I unlock the Windows app with my fingerprint.
When I again try to unlock the Chrome extension, the same pop-up is immediately displayed, and this time I can unlock the extension with my fingerprint.
Des this mean that the Windows app has to be running before the Chrome extension can be unlocked using Biometrics?
Yes, you correctly figured it out. The desktop needs to be running and it needs to be logged into your vault. It can, however, be locked. This is because Chrome does not allow extensions to access the Biometrics API, so the desktop app must intervene on behalf of the extension.
Many thanks. Now I get it!
Thanks for your help
Yes, it should be running and logged in, but you don’t have to unlock it. In the Desktop app settings, you can also configure the Desktop app so that it starts automatically when you start you computer, and runs in the background (minimized to the system tray).
