The advancements in digital storage technologies have made it possible to place digital storage into all kinds of devices. Digital Cameras, Mobile Phones and even video game systems are shipping with hard drives or flash drives and it’s virtually impossible to keep an overview of all the data stored on the devices.
Then there is the trend to use a desktop computer and laptop or netbook or mobile Internet device and the desire to have the same data available on all computers. Data like contacts, emails, photos and even bookmarks is something that the user who is working with multiple devices wants to have in sync.
Microsoft SyncToy is the second installment of the synchronization software by Microsoft which has the goal of delivering an easy to use data synchronization software for Windows users. SyncToy comes in a version for 32-bit and 64-bit Microsoft Windows XP or Windows Vista operating systems and requires the Microsoft .net Framework 2.0 or above.
Microsoft SyncToy works with so called folder pairs called the left and right folder. After selecting two folders from connected partitions or devices the user has to define the type of synchronization that should take place, he has the option to..
- Synchronize: New Files and Modifications are copied to the other folder. Renaming or deleting files will do so at the other folder as well.
- Echo: All modifications at the left folder are executed on the right folder as well. Changes on the right folder have no impact on the left folder.
- Contribute: All modifications at the left folder except deletions are executed on the right folder
After creating the folder pair and selecting the synchronization option custom options can be changed. Those custom options make it possible to exclude certain files and folders from the synchronization and to make file contents a criteria for checking if files are identical.
To be effective Microsoft SyncToy has to be added to the Windows Scheduler to be run regularly. This is done by creating a new task in the Windows Scheduler that makes use of SyncToyCmd.exe and the -R parameter which has the effect that all synchronizations that are set to Run are executed.
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Anyone know how well this compares against the freely available SyncBack from 2BrightSparks?
Previous version sucked but you had to use it a lot before you realised that. It wasn’t properly mirroring moving files between folders and was not cleaning up deleted empty folders. They overcomplicated sync algorithms and ended up bugging them.
I think I am not touching 2.0 :)
Rarst, you should try out the 2.0 version. You may be pleasantly surprised. The problems you mention have all been taken care of.
“Other Notes:
- SyncToy depends on components of the Microsoft Sync Framework which are included in SyncToy setup. Installing SyncToy along with these dependent components requires the use of an account with Administrator privileges on the target machine. If the Microsoft Sync Framework components are already installed on the target machine, SyncToy can be installed from a non-administrator user account.
- The SyncToy application will stop working if any of the dependent components are uninstalled, which can be fixed by re-running the full install package on the target machine.
- If SyncToy 2.0 is installed using an account which is different than the one that was used to install previous versions of SyncToy, then the previous version will not be uninstalled. In this case, it is recommended that users uninstall the previous version using the previously used user account before installing SyncToy 2.0.
- If uninstalling SyncToy 2.0, the same user account must be used which was used for installation.”
I was unpleasantly surprised when they bundled bunch of crap with 2.0 betas and reinforced theme in final release.
Moving on from SyncToy and FolderShare is best thing that ever happened to my folders. :)
Can’t compare to SyncBack SE. You invest just a little time customizing SyncBack to do what you need it to and you’ve got an automated backup system. It has saved my hide many times.