How are conflicts handled?
I am looking at the Sync feature and cannot find much documentation. I am only interested in Desktop, so will not be using Dropbox. If two users both open the application to make changes, what type of locking or conflict handling is performed?
With Quicken, I wrote my own sync script that copies the quicken files from a shared server to the local desktop before running and back when completed. In my script, I created a lock file to prevent this. How does the built in sync work in this regard?
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1 Posted by dwg on 04 Jan, 2021 08:11 PM
I'm a fellow user.
No locking is used, the design implemented does not require it. As an aside I have never seen any record level locking that can be implemented across 5 different operating system most systems therefore take a client/server approach instead. I see you have used a lock file with Quicken, this is something that Moneydance could have done with versions prior to 2017 when the syncing engine was introduced but they took a different path instead
With Moneydance each system keeps its own copy of the data local to the machine and this is what you use. There is a shared location that all machines have access and the Moneydance software copies the updates between your local machine and the shared location in both directions and updates your copy as needed. Internal timestamps ensure that the data is applied in order.
With Moneydance multiple users can be using the data at the same time with the way it is designed.
2 Posted by derekkent23 on 04 Jan, 2021 09:15 PM
I am not support staff, just a user.
Hi kbass
To add to the information provided by dwg.
Don't use an external sync method as data can be corrupted.
Moneydance has its own sync engine embedded.
Moneydance, syncing to another computer using the Sync Method, Shared Folder.
With "Shared Folder" Moneydance syncs using a folder that is shared across computers. To be used with Shared Folder a cloud service must provide a method to install a Cloud Folder or Virtual Drive on your computers. I have tested Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, Box.com and pCloud and they all work.
Remember you can only sync to mobile devices, phones, etc. instead of or as well as other computers using Dropbox (Syncing Method Dropbox Folder and Dropbox Connection). The Moneydance mobile APP uses an embedded Dropbox API to sync with Dropbox. Note: if you have Dropbox Client installed in a location other than the standard location on your C drive e.g. another drive you can sync to Dropbox using Shared Folder and syncing to mobile devices will still work. The syncing method Dropbox Folder only works when Dropbox client is installed in the standard location.
Moneydance Sync method Shared Folder setup.
Download and install l the cloud server app of you chose. See General information, Test results and Conclusion sections below.
1. Use your file browser to create a new folder in the cloud server folder. Name this folder for example “Moneydance Shared Folder”.
2. In this step it’s important to set your passphrase before changing the sync method. Open Moneydance on your primary computer under FILE (MONEYDANCE on Mac) - SYNCING, click “Change Passphrase”. Then type in a passphrase and enter it by clicking OK. Then set “Sync Method” to “Shared Folder” using the dropdown.
3. A new box appears “Select Shared Folder”, click on this box.
4. A file browser screen will appear. Navigate to the shared folder you created. In this example “Moneydance Shared Folder” and click “Open”, then click OK. Moneydance will create an alphanumeric folder in your selected folder to hold your syncing data. Allow time for this folder and its contents to be synced to your second computer.
5. On your second computer starting Moneydance should open it in the welcome window, click on “Create a new account set”. Or if it opens in to an existing account click FILE (MONEYDANCE on Mac) - NEW
6. Select “Open Synced File” and use dropdown to select “Shared Folder” then click NEXT.
7. Click “Select Shared Folder”. A file browser screen will appear. Navigate to the folder you have designated as a shared syncing folder. In this example highlight “Moneydance Shared Folder” and click “Open”. Don’t select the alphanumeric folder that was created in the shared folder or enter this folder, just select the shared folder itself, in this example “Moneydance Shared Folder”.
8. The screen should now show you are connected to your designated shared folder “Connected: Select Shared Folder”, click “NEXT”.
9. You may see a search screen headed “Finding synced files” which will be followed by “Select a synced document to open”
10. Highlight the data set name you want to sync with and click NEXT.
11. Enter the encryption password, the “Encryption Passphrase” you set on your primary computer under FILE – SYNCING. When entered correctly the FINISH button is ungreyed.
12. Then click on FINISH. You should see the message “Performing initial sync this may take a while”.
Wait to syncing is complete.
You may find a lot of old, maybe closed accounts or other accounts you have removed from the side bar reappearing in the second computers side bar. Use the “+” sign at bottom of side bar then ADVANCED to tidy up the side bar.
Also see https://infinitekind.tenderapp.com/kb/syncing-and-sharing-data
A bit more on time stamps
When syncing the time zone should have no effect, assuming the two devices have an accurate GMT/UTC time.
The time stamp is crated using a Unix Time stamp base on Greenwich Mean Time/ Coordinated Universal Time (GMT/UTC).
The unix time stamp is a way to track time as a running total of seconds. This count starts at the Unix Epoch on January 1st, 1970 at GMT/UTC. Therefore, the unix time stamp is merely the number of seconds between a particular date/time and the Unix Epoch. This point in time technically does not change no matter where you are located on the globe. This is very useful to computer systems for tracking and sorting dated information in dynamic and distributed applications both online and client side.
If you look at the only sync file you can read in a text editor, “tiksync_info.txt” in the “.moneydancesync” folder you would see a time stamp, for example, timestamp=1576768291625 The time that sync was first set up.
If you then go to a conversion site say https://www.epochconverter.com/ and enter the time stamp it will convert to Thursday, 19 December 2019 15:11:31.625
So, you can see the time stamp goes down to milliseconds.
Hope this helps
3 Posted by kbass on 04 Jan, 2021 11:11 PM
Thanks for the info. I think I will stick with my own sync scheme for
now. I use an 'application' level lock, rather than record locking.
Not sure if anyone can chime in, but in proof of concepting this, I am
syncing everything EXCEPT the config.dict. Are there any other files
that are local to a computer / user?
And maybe I shouldn't use the term 'sync' because what I am really doing
is allowing just one user at a time to use it. The files are stored
remotely and get copied locally while the user works exclusively with MD
and when they exit MD, the file are copied back and local copies
deleted. Unless config.dict or some other file is an issue, I cannot
imagine this could cause corruption. It is like restoring from a
backup/known state every time you launch MD.
4 Posted by dwg on 05 Jan, 2021 12:34 AM
Yes what you are doing is somewhat along the lines of a system level backup and restore of the data folder. User specific files are in the .moneydance folder. Extensions are also user specific and are stored in a separate folder (fmodules)
The bottom line is that it is up to you to the manage the system.
5 Posted by derekkent23 on 05 Jan, 2021 09:05 AM
I am not support staff, just a user.
Hi kbass
I guess it’s a case of you have been warned, so if your data is corrupted at some point and you can’t open your data set it want be a surprise.
To me its not worth the risk when Moneydance provides an approved way to share data between computers.
Have Fun, Stay Safe.
Melissa closed this discussion on 24 Feb, 2021 01:07 PM.