Dropbox sync
I have not had any success getting this to work. Either the app returns constantly to the sync options screen to select dropbox or wifi, or it will try to connect, tell me its connected and then tell me there are no moneydance files configured to use dropbox sync on my computer and invites me to try again.
Some advice on this would be useful
iPhone4s
Michael Bond
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1 Posted by Alex Gilbert on 29 Jun, 2012 04:48 PM
Michael -
What operating system are you using (Mac OSX, Windows 7/Vista/XP)?
2 Posted by Scott Meehan on 29 Jun, 2012 05:33 PM
Hi Michael,
Is your Dropbox folder in its default location (varies depending on your operating system)? If not, please reconfigure it to be in the default location (which may be easiest done by uninstalling and reinstalling Dropbox). If this doesn't fix the problem, please let us know and we'll continue to diagnose the issue!
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
3 Posted by Michael Bond on 29 Jun, 2012 08:42 PM
Windows 7
Scott, I've re-installed Dropbox and made sure it was in it's default folder. Unfortunately this has not resolved the issue
Michael
4 Posted by iona64 on 29 Jun, 2012 09:53 PM
In a perverse way I am glad to see this as I thought I was the only one having the problem. Working with support but unresolved to this point.
5 Posted by Guy Teague on 30 Jun, 2012 12:36 AM
i scanned through some other threads here and my conclusion is that your solution to the problem of your app not properly syncing is for me to move folders around on my mac? also, my mondeydance data file is not in the root directory of dropbox, it is inside a folder where it is working fine with windows and mac and i'm not willing to change that location either.
are you working on a proper fix instead of making the users jump through hoops? there also needs to be feedback to the user when things fail as the new iphone app just fails without giving the user a clue as to why although it seemed pretty obvious to me that the app wasn't finding files in the places it expected them. i am much more willing to wait for you to get it right than to disrupt my entire file organization or to risk data loss by re-installing apps.
also, why is the network sync extension needed at all? i already point moneydance to its data file on dropbox and the windows and mac apps work perfectly. why can't the iphone/ipad apps just let me input the dropbox file path instead of having to install an extension on the desktop which doesn't even make logical sense to me.
thanks,
/guy
6 Posted by Michael bond on 30 Jun, 2012 09:05 AM
Scott
It's now working! The steps I followed were:
Yesterday
Made backup of my dropbox folder
Uninstalled dropbox ver 1.4
Installed dropbox ver 1.7
Placed my Moneydance file in rout of new dropbox installation.
Result : nothing, same problem
This morning
Restored my dropbox backup to the new dropbox location
so the old dropbox/moneydance folder was not in the new dropbox/moneydance folder location. Copied moneydance file to that folder
Result : working
Don't know if that helps others but I'm now up and running with no loss of data, because I went to the trouble of backing it up first.
Thanks
Michael
7 Posted by Scott Meehan on 01 Jul, 2012 08:01 PM
Hi Guy,
We are currently working on an update to the Network Sync extension that will allow your Dropbox folder to be anywhere you'd like, though I'm not sure of a release time frame for it. Currently, for the extension to be able to synchronize with the iOS app, the Dropbox folder has to be in its default install location, but no other folders or files have to move.
I agree that the app should give feedback upon errors and I am going to file a ticket with our ticketing system regarding this issue.
The Network Sync extension is necessary because the iOS apps aren't able to manage an entire Moneydance data file. So they generate the transaction changes and then the Moneydance desktop application does the leg work to integrate the changes into the .md data file.
Please let us know if we can be of further assistance!
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
8 Posted by Scott Meehan on 01 Jul, 2012 08:05 PM
Hi Michael,
Glad to hear that it's working for you and thanks for posting the steps that fixed it, should others find themselves in the same position as you!
Please let us know if we can be of further assistance!
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
9 Posted by Guy Teague on 01 Jul, 2012 11:09 PM
hi scott, tks for your reply. do you mean that the dropbox folder has to be in the default locations on the mac and windows systems? or do you mean that the moneydance .dat file has to be in the default location in dropbox? because i'm pretty certain the moneydance.dat file is the only thing i've moved, but i've forgotten what its default location was--whether it was at the root level of the dropbox hierarchy or inside a folder.
/guy
10 Posted by Angie Rauscher on 02 Jul, 2012 01:39 AM
Guy,
The Dropbox folder location is the thing that is important- it needs to be in it's default location (for the OS you're running). The location of your Moneydance data file SHOULD be irrelevant, but some people do seem to fix things by putting their data file in Dropbox (and I have no idea why).
Good luck, and let us know how it goes!
Angie Rauscher
Moneydance Support
11 Posted by hoovmoss on 04 Jul, 2012 06:07 PM
I was having trouble with this, too, even after I had moved Dropbox to the right place. What finally seemed to clear the problem was completely quitting the Moneydance app on my iOS device, then restarting it. (i.e. Double-clicking on the home button, touching the Moneydance app in the app-switcher until it jiggles, then touching the "x" on the app).
I do think the knowledge base article should specify where the Dropbox folder needs to be.
12 Posted by Michael on 04 Jul, 2012 06:14 PM
Hoovmoss
that would have the effect of c losing down the app. When you re-opened it you would then have seen the effect of the move of the dropbox folder. I guess the support team can't give specifics on the location of the dropbox folder because dropbox defaults to different locations depending on the operating system you are on.
Michael Bond
13 Posted by Angie Rauscher on 05 Jul, 2012 05:04 AM
Hi all,
Yes, the default location differs by OS (and even between versions of Windows). We are, however, working on an update to the app which will resolve the issue, most likely by letting the user "tell" Moneydance where to look for Dropbox. The ticket is attached to this thread, so we'll update you when that's available.
Angie Rauscher
Moneydance Support
14 Posted by roblarsen on 10 Jul, 2012 01:50 AM
i was having the same problem and discovered my dropbox folder was not in the default location and to make matters worse, there was a folder named dropbox in the default location but it wasn't my dropbox folder and it was empty.
i unlinked my computer from dropbox, deleted the empty dropbox folder and copied my actual dropbox folder to the default location (which is ~/ on a Mac) then i relinked my dropbox had it use the default location.
after allowing dropbox to complete a full synchronization, i force quit the moneydance app on the iPhone (see previous post for description of how to do that) and when i relaunched the app i was able to enter my encryption code and everything was there.
15 Posted by Mary on 16 Jul, 2012 07:06 PM
I have followed the instructions for syncing Moneydance on my Mac (OS Lion) with my ipad. When I get to the "sync with" screen on my iPad, I choose "dropbox", but then get the message that there are no moneydance files in my dropbox. However, when I go online to the dropbox site and log in, my moneydance files are right there. So, I'm stumped. Any suggestions? I deleted and re-loaded moneydance and dropbox on my iPad, but that didn't fix the problem.
16 Posted by Scott Meehan on 17 Jul, 2012 12:04 AM
Hi Mary,
When you browse your Dropbox folder through the Dropbox website, is there a folder called .moneydancesync on it?
If your Dropbox folder on your computer isn't located in your home directory and named "Dropbox" (it should have a green checkmark on the icon if it's correct), it needs to be for the application to sync with your iPad. If you have a Dropbox folder in your home directory that isn't your actual Dropbox folder, delete the "Dropbox" folder in your home directory and move your actual Dropbox folder to your home directory. Here are instructions for changing the location of your Dropbox folder:
https://www.dropbox.com/help/89/en
After moving it, be sure to close and re-open Moneydance and do the same for the iPad app.
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
17 Posted by Guy Teague on 17 Jul, 2012 12:52 AM
that last tip about moving the dropbox folder finally got it to work (*) for me. there was an empty dropbox folder in my ~/home directory while the folder with dropbox contents was in ~/home/Documents.
but, even after syncing the iphone app, it does not treat future transactions the same as the desktop app does. for example, i have a credit card balance of $1000 and have posted a future transaction of $1000 from checking to that account. the desktop shows the future transaction in color and does not deduct the payment from the cc account because the date of the transaction hasn't arrived yet. the iphone app goes ahead and deducts that payment without regards for the date.
not a dealbreaker, but unless the iphone app works the same as the desktop app i can't trust the figures it shows me.
/guy
18 Posted by Scott Meehan on 17 Jul, 2012 12:57 AM
Hi Guy,
Glad to hear that it's syncing for you now!
As for the future dates issue, I've filed a ticket in our ticketing system to correct this issue and attached it to this discussion. Thanks for letting us know about it!
Please let us know if we can be of further assistance!
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
19 Posted by Guy Teague on 17 Jul, 2012 01:04 AM
thanks scott, that'll be great!
/guy
20 Posted by Mary Hughes on 17 Jul, 2012 03:34 AM
I have finally gotten my ipad to recognize that my moneydance files are indeed in dropbox, but now I can't remember my encryption key. How do I retrieve it?
Thanks,
Mary
Sent from my iPad
21 Posted by Guy Teague on 17 Jul, 2012 04:31 AM
hi mary: hope you don't mind me answering, but you can can get it from the
desktop application network synchronization extension. there is a button
that shows up when you 'run' that extension called 'show encryption' or
something like that.
/guy
22 Posted by Mary Hughes on 17 Jul, 2012 01:11 PM
Many thanks! I should have been able to figure that one out, but by then was too flummoxed to think clearly...
Sent from my iPad
23 Posted by Simon on 18 Jul, 2012 04:45 PM
Erm, I'd just like to add one more little thing that there to trip you (me) up...
When configuring the network sync it shows a button with Disable/Enable as the choices. I realised that I had left mine showing Enable which looked ok (as opposed to Disable which didn't). But it meant that the extension was.... Disabled. In all likelihood I'm possibly the only one that stupid but I thought I'd 'fess up in case it helps.
24 Posted by Mary Hughes on 18 Jul, 2012 05:33 PM
Don't feel too stupid...I puzzled over that for a long time. I'm betting we're not the only ones!
Thanks,
m
Sent from my iPad
25 Posted by Michael Bond on 18 Jul, 2012 05:44 PM
Sent from my iPhone
26 Posted by Scott Meehan on 18 Jul, 2012 11:53 PM
Hi Simon,
I can see how the button would be confusing, so I've filed a ticket in our ticketing system to address that interface issue to clarify it and attached it to this discussion on the right.
Please let us know if we can be of further assistance!
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
27 Posted by Mary on 19 Jul, 2012 01:46 AM
Hurray! It's working! Just one more question...In Moneydance on my Mac I have two different files set up, one for my mother's finances and one for mine. They are totally separate. I had to choose one file to sync with my iPad. Is there anyway to sync each, still keeping them as two separate entities? Thanks.
28 Posted by Scott Meehan on 19 Jul, 2012 03:21 PM
Hi Mary,
This is possible, but there is currently an issue where if you switch between files before syncing online, you will lose the data from the first one. This won't cause data loss on your main .md Moneydance data file, but you will lose the transactions you entered on your iPad without syncing online before changing files.
Keeping the above in mind, to be able to sync to your second file you first have to open your second file and enable Dropbox syncing on it through the Network Sync extension. Once you've done that, you can use the following directions:
1) First, make sure that you are connected to the internet and have synced your current data.
2) Tap the gear icon in the lower left corner of the app.
3) Tap the Sync option, then tap Disconnect
4) Re-connect using Dropbox again.
5) When prompted, select your second file.
This will allow you to sync to the second file. You'll need to do this process each time you want to switch between files.
We do have a ticket open to improve this process and allow official syncing with two files in a future release, but until then you have to take precautions to avoid losing your sync data.
Please let us know if we can be of further assistance!
Scott Meehan
Moneydance Support
System closed this discussion on 31 Mar, 2015 03:59 PM.