Now that DEVONThink Pro 1.2 is out, DevonSync 1.0 has been released publicly!
The main download URL is:
woodenbrain.com/sw/DevonSync/DevonSync.dmg
Download mirror:
homepage.mac.com/loren_ryter/.Pu … onSync.dmg
Product info:
Hello, the last post on this thread was so long ago, I don’t know if the information is still current.
I have an iMac and a MacBook that I use at different times. How can I keep exactly the same information - database and user preferences - synced between the two computers? I have and use ChronoSync for keeping my personal files in sync on the two machines.
Thanks very much in advance for any suggestions.
If everything is imported into the DEVONThink database (i.e., no indexed files), syncing the database file should keep things in sync. However, as has been stated in this thread before, you need to make sure you’ve quit DEVONThink before you sync. I haven’t tried to sync user preferences, but I suspect that syncing the Application Support directory and any preferences in the Preferences directory should work.
I’m using Dropbox to sync my DEVONThink database since it automatically syncs when changes happen. They have a 2GB free account or a 50GB paid account. Another possibility which I’ve been looking at is SugarSync which has a variety of paid accounts starting at 10GB. Both of these options have the advantage of giving an off-site backup and also don’t require that the computers be accessible via the Internet, only that they can access it. Since my home computer lies behind a wireless router, this is an advantage.
It’s DEVONthink, not DevonTHINK (or DevonThink or Devon Think or DEVON think, etc… ad nauseam).
Nothing personal. It’s just that after seeing its name being incorrectly capitalized and mis-spaced so often in so many places for so long I finally couldn’t resist correcting it anywhere and this thread is the recipient. 
DevonSync 1.3 Released
DevonSync adds compatibility with, and requires, DEVONThink Pro 2.x, including recent public betas. It now requires OS X Leopard also. The last version compatible with Tiger (1.2.4) is also available for separate download. (However that version is only compatible with DEVONThink Pro 1.x).
http://www.woodenbrain.com/products/devonsync/devonsync.html
I can vouch for DevonSync. It works as described, and is an excellent solution - though it isn’t the same as a pure MobileMe kind of sync, as one might find in Yojimbo or Soho Notes.
I copying my database between machines each night automatically via ChronoSync. So every morning, both machines have the freshest database, and I can work on either my laptop or desktop.
During the day, if I need to, I use DevonSync to keep the other file up to date.
I do think that lack of sync is a real flaw in DevonThink - probably the biggest flaw. I’ve demo’d it a bunch of times and not bought for that reason. I finally did buy, and I am 100% glad I did, meaning that I think the program’s other features outweigh the sync features on the otherwise less-capable competition.
But still, in this day and age, the ability to sync is more than important. As we move into the so-called “cloud,” it is going to become essential for programs like Devon, which use relatively huge datafiles that are somewhat incompatible with offline storage, to use sync services to remain competitive.
Anyway, this thread started in 2005, for corn’s sake! Let’s get sync going here!
Still: never giving up Devon now that I’ve truly discovered its power - despite its Achilles heel.
I’ve been using an rsync script to sync my database. The trick is to quit DevonTHINK before syncing (on both machines). Then, I either pull down the up-to-date database onto my laptop or push up the version on my laptop. Since rsync sends differences rather than the complete database, the network transfer is not so bit (except the first time). I did the first sync by copying onto a portable drive and then used rsync thereafter.
I’m not sure about this but I would think rsync would not be a good idea because it would be liable to corrupt some indexing metadata that may be different on each computer. This is just a guess however and the DEVONtech folks would have to address that possibility.
Using rsync (and other copying methods) the way colliand described can work unless a future destination database is modified before being updated from the corresponding source database. For instance, if you rsync from A to B then you can’t modify A again if the intention is to rsync modifications in B back to A. If you work with both A and B after an rsync then any changes made to one will be lost of you rsync to it from the other.
In other words, you can only modify one database at a time with that method. It’s not “true” multi-directional synching (or, in soulbarn’s words, not “a pure MobileMe kind of sync”). Attempting to use rsync that way would be tricky or impossible, especially with the “liable to corrupt some indexing metadata” issue that Wooden Brain mentioned.
Since “synching” is one of those ambiguous technical terms it’s helpful to clarify some of these details so everyone can better understand what it means/does in the context it’s being used.
With rsync, it may be worthwhile to enable this option:
-E, --extended-attributes copy extended attributes, resource forks
Extended attributes can exist on DT database files; maybe resource forks, too, but I haven’t checked. There’s a possibility certain EAs (at least) won’t be applicable on every system, e.g.:
% ls -@kl ~/Documents/DEVONthink/Test.dtBase2/Files.noindex/fw/4
total 44
-rw-rw-r--@ 1 sjk staff 44206 Aug 20 1997 Rez2.FW
com.macromates.caret 24
That EA was originally created and is used by TextMate, which isn’t necessarily installed on every system I’d access the DT database on. This is a relatively benign example since the EA will be ignored by non-TM apps and its loss (however it may happen) wouldn’t be crucial. Relying on EAs in general still has risks, but that’s another topic …
First, I must confess that I’m a complete beginner in both DEVONthink and ChronoSync. That said, I have a question:
I have two Macs, a MacBook (my main work computer) and an iMac. I’d like to be able to sync the DEVONthink databases both for backup purposes and to be able work with a little more horsepower and bigger screen).
From various forums I’ve found that Chronosync can do the job. However, when I sync a test database, I get a bunch of “DEVONthink-X.dtmeta”-files, and DT on the iMac doesn’t recognize these files.
Now to my question: how do I do this? What must I do to keep the database together on the target Mac?
Any hints, anyone?
Please give DevonSync a try and see if it works for you.
Thanks Wooden,
Yesterday I tried DEVONSync, but couldn’t mount the iMac for the sync. Thing is it WAS mounted, but DS wouldn’t “see” that. I guess I’ll give it a few more tries then…
Another “pro” for using Chronosync, is that I also want to sync my Sente libraries, and DS won’t do that…
Regards
/doc
I’ve been using Chronosync with no problems for the past year and a half. Just set it up, save the sync, and then you can use it whenever you want. You can also schedule it to sync automtically. I have an iMac and a Macbook and I switch back and forth between them a lot. I try to always sync when I finish with one, since the sync seems to only go one way. (I’m almost totally ignorant of tech things, so I can’t be more specific.)
I tried DropBox for about 6 months. It worked great until it didn’t. I upgraded builds on both DropBox and DT and then DropBox started repeatedly corrupting my database and causing it to flop over and die.
I got help from the DT people and finally figured out that it was Dropbox causing the problem. I emailed Dropbox with my story, and hope they eventually fix this problem, whatever it is. If they do, I’ll go back to syncing with DB.
You can also use thumb drives to sync your database, if you want, but based on my experience Chronosync is a better choice.
Just FYI, while we wait for the official sync solution to be finalized, which Wooden Brain Concepts warmly welcomes, Wooden Brain Concepts has updated DevonSync to support Lion and Mountain Lion’s Gatekeeper. We have removed MobileMe support due to its closure, but direct network synching via LAN or internet is still supported. We are aware that DevonSync has never been an ideal sync solution, but hopefully it can still fill a gap while we all wait.
http://www.woodenbrain.com/products/devonsync/devonsync.html