My favorite piece of software, together with KeePass. I have been relying on 'em for over a decade probably!
this post was submitted on 13 Apr 2024
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Been a big fan of it for a handful of years too now. Huge shame that it doesn’t work on iOS because of completely arbitrary limitations. One of my sync groups just handles my entire photo library
Huge shame that it doesn’t work on iOS because of completely arbitrary limitations
This may change soon... or I hope so.
I’m on iOS and use Syncthing as much as possible.
Genuinely curious what info you have behind “This may change soon”
What are you using for Syncthing on iOS?
Besides Apple’s current restrictions we don’t have a decent iOS Syncthing because there’s no financial initiative for anyone to build a good iOS App. For instance, the apps on the store seem to never have tried to properly implement background refresh. Yes it doesn’t solve all issues and it won’t be like an Android phone but it could allow for for full syncs when the phone is charging / at night and some sync time on battery.
Syncthing has saved me a few times from hardware failure and no important data was lost. I wish I knew about it far earlier. Awesome software!
Just add FileBrowser and gets even better.
Wow, I only discovered it 2 years ago but its indeed a great Software.
Is there a simple guide for setting it up for the first time to sync between an Android phone and a Windows laptop? I downloaded what I needed to but I'm kinda confused.
One thing is how do I change what folder it's synchronizing with on the laptop?
There should be an Add Folder option right?
You simply install it on each device, add some folders on each device, then pair a folder on one device with a folder on the other device and choose how the files should be copied (only one direction, the other direction, or both) and if you want to also sync deletions.
Syncthing is not actually the hard part, the hard part is how the two devices can talk to each other over the internet. I've set mine up to only talk over Tailscale (by using their Tailscale names in Syncthing).
I always wanted a file sync solution, but I used to think of it as a server for me to host, so it was always just a dream.... until I saw some creators I follow make videos about it and decided to give it a shot! It also made possible some amazing things, like having anything related to my Music directory all synced up so I don't have to use a USB cable to sync it all, all the time.
Edit: I was also considering creating an actual file sync server using Syncthing, where everything would be syncdd to the server, essentially creating an easy-to-set-up local cloud!
I used this for a while to keep certain things synced between my laptop and my desktop. Fortunately, I now have a laptop that can serve as my desktop daily driver so no need. It's still one of my favorite tools.
What confuses me about this software, that the developer states that is not a backup software. I get that kind of, but does that mean it's not as reliable?! :D
When syncthing is configured to go both ways (the default), it also syncs any deletions. You can somewhat get around this by something like one way sync, but it's not really a proper "backup" software.
Personally, I like to treat data synced by syncthing, even between multiple machines, as one copy of the data when I am following the 3-2-1 backup rule*, because syncthing won't save me from a buggy program deleting all my files or user error, or anything like that.
*See wikipedia for info about the 3-2-1 backup rule.
Makes sense. Thanks :)