Advanced Configuration

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Prerequisites

Share Distribution Modes

1 Overview

When creating or modifying a team, you choose how shares are distributed to devices. SplitSecure offers three modes:

Mode Description
Simple Each device gets 1 share
Weighted Dealer assigns how many shares each device receives
Bespoke Total control, including assigning the same share to multiple devices

2 Simple Mode

Each device receives exactly 1 share. This is the recommended mode for most teams where all members have equal authority.

3 Weighted Mode

The Dealer chooses how many shares each device receives. Use this when some members should have more voting power than others.

Example: In a 3-person team, you might assign:

  • Alice: 2 shares
  • Bob: 1 share
  • Carol: 1 share

Alice’s vote counts twice as much toward reaching the threshold.

4 Bespoke Mode

Bespoke mode provides total control over share distribution. The key difference from Weighted mode is that Bespoke allows assigning the same share to multiple devices.

Use case: You want any 2 of 3 specific people to be able to approve, but you also want a backup device that can substitute for any of them. With Bespoke, you can assign shares so the backup device holds copies of shares held by other devices.

Threshold Configuration

1 What is the Threshold?

The threshold determines how many shares must be submitted for a proposal to pass. This is configured independently of the share distribution mode.

When a proposal requires approval:

  1. Team members vote by submitting their shares
  2. The system counts the total shares submitted
  3. If total shares ≥ threshold, the proposal passes

2 Choosing a Threshold

Threshold Level Effect
Low Fewer shares needed, easier approval
High More shares needed, stronger security
Equal to total All shares must be submitted (unanimous)

3 Example Configurations

Two-of-Three:

  • 3 devices, each with 1 share
  • Threshold: 2
  • Any two members can approve

Veto Power:

  • CEO: 3 shares, CFO: 1 share, CTO: 1 share
  • Total: 5 shares, Threshold: 4
  • CEO alone cannot approve (only 3 shares), but nothing passes without CEO (CFO + CTO only have 2)

High Security:

  • 5 devices, each with 1 share
  • Threshold: 4
  • Requires strong consensus, but tolerates 1 unavailable member

Best Practices

1 Planning

Before configuring your team:

  1. Document requirements — What approval rules do you need?
  2. Model scenarios — What happens if specific members are unavailable?
  3. Consider growth — How will adding/removing members affect operations?

2 Common Pitfalls

Pitfall Problem Solution
Threshold too high Approval becomes impossible if members leave Leave margin for member unavailability
Single point of failure One member’s absence blocks all operations Distribute shares so no single member is critical
Unclear governance Team members don’t understand approval rules Document and communicate the configuration