Syncer

[AutoItKing]

I made this nifty little syncer which can also be used as a backup tool! It's relativley fast, to my standards. Try it and tell me if you like it?

[Valuater]

maybe ... just a little more info on what it does???

thx

8)

[AutoItKing]

If a file doesn't exist in one place, it copies it into the other place. Better? Just try it!

[ptrex]

It's not real sync'ing but copying, isn't it .

[AutoItKing]

It's a basic one place to another. I could add a complete sync feature? I made it in about ten minutes.

[ptrex]

I could add a complete sync feature? I made it in about ten minutes.

OK.

If that takes practically no effort. I am interested to see what it is !!

[blindwig]

FYI - a decent, freely available file/folder synchronizer is RoboCopy - included in the Windows XP/2003 resource pack.

I use it for synching my laptop and for doing scheduled backups on the servers.

[nfwu]

A less commonly known application is SyncToy by Microsoft...

Free when I last checked it.

Much better that Windows Breifcase

#)

EDIT: found the dl: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/d...to/synctoy.mspx

NOTE: This application is for those people who need abosolute control over their synchornization.

According to Microsoft:

Now there is an easier way. SyncToy is a free PowerToy for Microsoft Windows XP that provides an easy to use, highly customizable program that helps users to do the heavy lifting involved with the copying, moving, and synchronization of different directories. Most common operations can be performed with just a few clicks of the mouse, and additional customization is available without added complexity. SyncToy can manage multiple sets of folders at the same time; it can combine files from two folders in one case, and mimic renames and deletes in another. Unlike other applications, SyncToy actually keeps track of renames to files and will make sure those changes get carried over to the synchronized folder.

Edited May 4, 2006 by nfwu

[ptrex]

Thanks all for tbe nice suggestions !!

But still these tools do a kind of copy and replace function.

These check the status of a file in a folder,

And than compare if the criteria matches, after that it will be overwritten by the copy function of the tool.

If it are large files like 500 Mb large, it will generate a lot of traffic on the network to copy the files accross.

What I am reffering to is as sync'ing is that the compare is done on the data in the file, rather the the on the complete file.

As a result the sync'ing is als done on the changed part of the data within the files.

(Like the Intellisync Software or for example the offline folders synchronisation of MS Outlook)

This is true sync'ing.

[blindwig]

What I am reffering to is as sync'ing is that the compare is done on the data in the file, rather the the on the complete file.

As a result the sync'ing is als done on the changed part of the data within the files.

(Like the Intellisync Software or for example the offline folders synchronisation of MS Outlook)

This is true sync'ing.

In order to sync this way, your program would need to be able to recognize every possible file format that you could be synchronizing. Since it's virtually impossible to have a single program know how to sync every possible file format, your end-result will always be a program that has a limited scope.

So yes, you could write a program to sync certain types of files, but a general "all-file sync" program would be virtually impossible to create.

[ptrex]

@blindwig

Is binary comparison not the universal way to go ?

I would have imagined that sync'ing based on that binary comparison, makes it format indipendent.

I am not the expert

[AutoItKing]

What, read the file contents to make sure that it's not the same file?

[ptrex]

Yes, indead I am talking about sync'ing the content !!

How are you ohterwise going to deal with sync'ing 500 Mb files !!

Unless you have Gigabit speed and lightning fast machines to work on, it will take you a wile

Sync'ing the content changes only the data in the files that have been modified.

This is quite different than copying files across.

[blindwig]

Yes, indead I am talking about sync'ing the content !!

How are you ohterwise going to deal with sync'ing 500 Mb files !!

Unless you have Gigabit speed and lightning fast machines to work on, it will take you a wile

Sync'ing the content changes only the data in the files that have been modified.

This is quite different than copying files across.

I sync 30-50GB of files every night (scheduled on Task Scheduler, using RoboCopy)

The thing with scanning for binary file changes is this:

Say you have a 500MB file in the original location, and the same file in the backup location. To find the difference(s), you would need to read both files, beginning to end. Let's just say that you found 100MB worth of changes. So you write those out to the backup file. So you have dealt with 1100MB - 500 MB read x 2 + 100 MB write.

Best case scenario is that you read both files and there are no changes (1000MB dealt with)

Worst case scenario is that you read both files and they are completely different, so you have to write 500MB out (total of 1500MB dealt with)

Now, what do you do if the files are different sizes?

Same situation, using a directory synchronization:

Read the time stamp and file size for both files (this should only take a few bytes to accomplish. Just for arguement's sake, let's say it take 1 whole MB) and compare them. If they are different, copy the original to the backup.

Best case scenario is that the files are the same, and all you had to read was the time and size info (1MB dealt with)

Worst case scenario is that the files are different and you have to copy (total 501MB dealt with)

So you see, the copy-method worst case scenario is still better than the compare-method best case scenario.

[ptrex]

@blindwig

If the copy method is the best method, how come that the real sync'ing programs don' t use it ?

They all use differential change sync'ing based upon logfiles used to keep track of the changes.

And let's say that the copy method is the way to go.

Then still it does not solve the bandwith problem in case someone wants to sync while logging off. This is what most people need with a laptop.

They might have files in the server and need to sync them when logging off to there local drive.

With the copy method they would have to stay overnight

[jzn2]

hey where is the Script? i would like to see it... sounds fairly handy for my usb drive!

[nfwu]

http://bendude.catch-free.com/autoit/upload/sync.zip

#)

[jzn2]

cool thanks

[SK1LLs]

yo, plz show the file....