Changing the synchronisation folder

Screen: Sync Settings

Do not change the sync path unless absolutely necessary. Changing the sync path can require that you reset all synchronisation and database settings to get synchronisation working again.

Changing the synchronisation folder is not a simple task and should only be done if absolutely necessary.

Dropbox account replication is used to replicate a copy of a subset of the changes to files in your Dropbox account to the local device. The Dropbox delta process is used to avoid the time consuming, and data intensive, task of scanning the entire Dropbox account for changes. The delta process keeps a cursor on the local device that indicates which changes have been replicated from Dropbox to the local device. When the next inbound synchronisation event occurs the cursor is used to determine if any further changes to files have occurred since the last inbound synchronisation. At the end of the inbound synchronisation event the cursor on the local device is updated to ensure that the next time an inbound sync occurs it only looks for newer changes than those already processed. Each inbound synchronisation event uses the list of changes to find any changes in the sync folder, and sub folders, and applies those changes to the local device. Any changes made in other folders in your Dropbox account are ignored. This process ensures that after an inbound synchronisation the local folders are the same as the sync folder on Dropbox.

If you change the synchronisation folder then all inbound synchronisation activities that have occurred up until that point for that device become invalid. This is because the new synchronisation folder would have been ignored in all prior inbound synchronisation events to save bandwidth and time.

It is therefore necessary to reset the inbound synchronisation on the device if the synchronisation folder is changed.

However there is more that is required because the synchronisation folder contains a record of every change made to the database on each device. If the synchronisation folder is changed after changes have been replicated to a different folder on Dropbox then the Dropbox sync folder and the actual changes to the database on each device no longer match.

Therefore it is also necessary to move all synchronisation files on Dropbox from the old sync folder to the new sync folder before resetting the inbound synchronisation on the devices.

The recommended procedure for changing the synchronisation folder on all devices is as follows:

1. Take a full backup of each book on one of the devices that is up to date and store the backup in a safe place that is not on the device itself.
2. Return to the books list screen on all devices.
3. Press the "Sync Now" button on each device to ensure that synchronisation to Dropbox has completed; so that Dropbox contains a complete record of all changes on all devices
4. Change the synchronisation folder on all devices to the same matching folder.
   You will need to create the new folder on Dropbox first
5. Using the Dropbox app, or the Dropbox website, move the transaction logs from the old sync folder to the new sync folder
6. On each device open the App Settings screen on Bookkeeping, select Advanced, turn ON "Reset Inbound Sync", turn ON "Close Program"
7. Open Bookkeeping on each device, open the Sync Settings screen on Bookkeeping, turn ON "Sync with Dropbox", press the "Sync Now" button
8. Ensure that all Synchronisation activity has completed by pressing the "Sync Now" button again.

Be aware that resetting the inbound sync will result in all of the transaction log files being downloaded from Dropbox again to each device. Therefore it is highly recommended that you perform this process using a WiFi connection.