Everything here is written for a busy Tuesday: numbered steps, no jargon, and honest notes about what each feature does — and doesn't do.
Put ManagedFamily on your home screen
Installed, ManagedFamily opens full-screen with one tap — no browser bars, no hunting through tabs. On iPhone it's also what makes notifications possible.
iPhone or iPad (Safari)
Open ManagedFamily in Safari and sign in.
Tap the Share button (the square with an arrow, bottom of the screen).
Scroll down and tap “Add to Home Screen”, then “Add”.
From now on, open ManagedFamily from the new icon — not from Safari.
Android (Chrome)
Open ManagedFamily in Chrome and sign in.
If an “Install” card appears, tap Install — done.
Otherwise: tap the ⋮ menu → “Add to Home screen” (or “Install app”).
Turn on notifications
ManagedFamily taps you on the shoulder before a document expires and when a check-in needs you — instead of waiting in an inbox.
iPhone first: install ManagedFamily to your Home Screen (above) and open it from the icon — Apple only allows notifications for installed apps.
Go to Settings (the More tab on your phone) → Notifications → “Turn on notifications”.
Allow the permission your phone asks for.
Tap “Send a test” — you should feel the buzz within a few seconds.
Keep your emergency card on your phone — works with no signal
Your vault deliberately requires a connection. The one exception is the emergency card: the handful of starred documents you'd need in an ER waiting room with one bar of signal.
Open a document you'd need in an emergency and tap “☆ Pin to Emergency card”. Repeat for the few that matter (insurance cards, medication list, directives).
Go to the Emergency tab and tap “Keep my emergency card on this phone”.
That's it. Try it: turn on airplane mode and open Emergency — your documents are still there.
The honest trade: this stores decrypted copies of those specific documents on this phone, protected by your phone's lock. They're removed when you sign out, unstar a document, or tap “Remove from this phone”. Everything else in your vault stays online-only, on purpose.
Check-ins: one tap that says “I'm OK”
For a parent who lives alone — or for yourself. A daily nudge; one tap tells your family you're OK. If the check-in is missed, the people you chose get a message asking someone to reach out.
A family admin sets it up under Admin → Check-ins (who checks in, by when, who gets told about a miss).
Nothing starts until the person being checked on accepts — it's their choice, always. They can pause or stop it anytime in Settings.
Checking in is one tap: open the notification and press the big “I'm OK” button.
If it's missed, watchers get a notification (and an email, and — on paid plans — a text) asking someone to reach out.
What watchers see is exactly one thing: whether the check-in happened. Never location, never documents. And plainly: ManagedFamily notifies your family — it does not call emergency services.
Scan a document with your camera
The insurance card in your hand can be in the vault in under a minute.
On your phone, open the Vault tab and tap “Scan”.
Take the photo, give it a name, and save — it uploads straight into the family vault.
Share a document with someone outside the family
The nanny needs the pediatric consent form; the bank needs the POA. Sharing sends a private link that only the person you named can open.
Open the document and tap “Share”.
Enter the person's email — they get a link by email.
When they open it, we email them a 6-digit code to prove it's really them. A forwarded link is useless without their inbox.
See who's opened what — and cut off access instantly — under the Shared tab.
Still stuck — or wondering if it's safe?
The Security page explains, in plain language, exactly how your documents are protected. If you like to know what a product is built on, the Open source page lists every third-party package and its license. For anything else, reply to any ManagedFamily email and a human reads it.