GoodSync-Manual-9 3 6 6
GoodSync-Manual-9 3 6 6
GoodSync-Manual-9 3 6 6
Using GoodSync
Synchronization Step By Step
Jobs
Synchronization Algorithm
Backup Files Incrementally: One Way Sync
Select Multiple Folders to Backup
Mini Window vs Main Window
Actions
Copy File Action
Copy Time Action
Copy State Action
Sync State Action
No Copy Action
Error Action
Conflict Action
Types of Conflicts
Managing Time Shifts
Icon Descriptions
File Actions
Folder Actions
Special Actions
Central Column
Job Icons
Job Direction
Advanced Topics
Portable Paths
Environment Variables in Paths
Case Sensitivity
Job Templates
Job Options
General Tab
Filters Tab
Auto Tab
Scripts Tab
Advanced Tab
Command Line
Global Options
Commands
Job Options
Installer Options and Activation of Pro Version
Return Codes
Policies
Syncing Specific Applications
Introduction
GoodSync synchronizes two or more folders with files, that is, GoodSync makes sure that
folders and all files in them are the same by copying the new or updated files from the folder
where they appeared to the folder where they are old or not present and by propagating
deletions.
In this Section we discuss challenges that synchronization programs face and that GoodSync
successfully addresses.
Backup vs Synchronization
Synchronization ensures that two folders remain in sync while user may change files on
both sides. This is achieved by copying changes that have been made on the left side to
the right side and changes that have been made on the right side are copied to the left
side.
Backup is one-way synchronization, that is, the changes that have been made on the left
side are propagated to the right side but changes that have been made on the right side
are not propagated to the left side.
GoodSync One-Way Forced jobs enforce the backup scenario. One-Way Verified jobs
actually make sure that no changes were made on the right (backup) side, as one does not
expect backup side to change.
Synchronization task would appear to be trivial (compare file modification files and let the
newer file win) if it was not for deletions that need to be propagated. If you delete file on one
side, GoodSync will propagate this deletion to the other side of sync job by deleting this file on
the other side. The sophistication of GoodSync algorithm allows us to propagate deletions
correctly through multiple chained folders.
Another complication is that user may decide to replace newer version of the file with its older
version. GoodSync can handle this situation correctly too, it will propagate the older file version,
if it detects that user made such replacement.
Chained Synchronization
Chained syncing is a process when the contents of several folders (e.g., A, B, C and D) are
synchronized by performing synchronization of pairs in sequence that results in propagation
of changes (e.g., sync A and B, then B and C, then C and D results in changes in A propagating
to folder B, then C, then D). GoodSync can perform Chained Syncing correctly.
You can use GoodSync chains to synchronize files between Computers that are not connected
to each other.
For instance, you can synchronize files between Work and Home computer using USB disk as
an intermediary:
Insert USB Disk (or any portable disk) into Work Computer.
Start GoodSync on Work Computer and Sync between Work folder and USB disk.
Pull out USB disk from Work Computer and insert it into Home Computer.
Start GoodSync on Home Computer and Sync between USB disk and Home folder.
Embedded Jobs
Several jobs can synchronize one folder to many other folders. In addition to that, you can have
yet more jobs that synchronize sub-folders or super-folders of this folder. GoodSync will
correctly record file changes in states of all folders in which the changes occurred.
For example, you can have a folder C:\work\project that contains project whose files change
often. Folder c:\work contains other projects that are changes less often.
You have a job 'Project to Server' which synchronizes project files to an SFTP server once a day
and from this server the files are synchronized by other members of the team.
You also have a job 'Work to PortHD' which synchronizes (backs up) all contents of the C:\work
files folder to a portable hard drive once a week.
GoodSync will make sure that all changes performed by the 'Project to Server' job are visible to
the 'Work to PortHD' job and vice versa.
Using GoodSync
Jobs
Synchronization Algorithm
This is a general outline of the synchronization algorithm (the actual algorithm is rather
complex, it contains several important inventions and trade secrets that cannot be disclosed
here):
Compute difference between current file state and stored file state for the left folder,
Compute difference between current file state and stored file state for the right folder,
Propagate changes that appeared on the left to the right side,
Propagate changes that appeared on the right to the left.
If change happened to same file on both sides, declare a Conflict.
For GoodSync, backup is a regular synchronization that happens to be one-way. Only changed
files and file deletions are propagated to backup folder. This is how you setup a backup:
Create an empty backup destination folder. Backup destination folder must not be located
on the same disk as source folder. It can be on removable disk (USB disk or portable hard
drive) or another computer.
Let GoodSync do the first backup by synchronizing backup source folder to backup
destination folder.
After that, whenever you want to backup, just sync backup source folder to backup
destination folder.
When you need to restore, backup destination folder contains exact copy of the backup
source folder, as of last backup.
To make sure that backup always goes one way (from original folder to backup folder and
never in the other direction), go into Jobs -> Options and select One Way Job Type.
You can select multiple folders to backup, starting with GoodSync ver 9. Here are the rules:
File Tree: this is where modified files and their sync directions are shown.
Log Window (bottom of the screen): log of job actions.
Job List pane (hidden by default): displays status of all jobs. To show, go to View -> Job
List.
Filters tab (hidden by default): displays Exclude/Include filter. To show, go to View -
>Filters.
Actions
Action is a file/folder operation that is:
See the next Chapter for the detailed list of actions' icons.
If file has the same length on the left and right side of the sync but modification time is not
the same then you can turn Copy File action offered by GoodSync into a Copy Time action.
Copy Time action copies file modification time from Left to Right or from Right to Left, but not
file contents.
A recommended way of applying it is to select View -> Other -> SameLength DiffTime. This will
show you all files that have the same length but different file time. If you think that these files
are really the same, right-click any of the files and select Copy Time L to R or R to L. You can
also right-click the folder and change Copy File into Copy Time for all eligible files in the folder.
If file is present on the left side and absent on the right side of the sync (or vice versa) or if file
is deleted on both side and this is not yet recorded in the state then GoodSync would
recommend a special Copy State L to R or R to L action for such files.
The results of the Analyze step will inform you that Copy State will be done, if this is necessary.
You can change direction of Copy State action if you know which side is preferred.
You can see specific Copy State action using View -> Other -> Copy State L to R or R to L.
The following are the potential causes of the CopyState situation described above:
If file is the same on the left and right side of the sync but the stored state of the file is not the
same then GoodSync would recommend a special Sync State action for such files.
The results of the Analyze step will inform you that Sync State will be done, if this is necessary.
You cannot change direction of Sync State action, as it is not directional action.
The following are the potential causes of the CopyState situation described above:
No Copy action
This action tells GoodSync not to do anything for this pair of files, because files are the same
on both sides.
Error action
The file or folder cannot be read, see status area for details.
Conflict action
If you changed the file on both sides of the synchronized folder pair then GoodSync cannot
determine which version is preferred (because it does not know which set of changes should
win and which should be dropped) and GoodSync then declares a conflict.
By default, conflict is a no-copy action. But you can change conflict into LeftToRight or
RightToLeft Copy, thus declaring one side a winner.
Types of Conflicts
FAT file system still used in Windows and some FTP servers have these problems:
Local file modification time is stored, so moving between time zones makes your file
modification shift.
Modification time is stored with only 2 sec precision in FAT, so copying a file to FAT may
give it a slightly different modification time. GoodSync ignores differences of +- 2 sec in
modification time.
Old-New Time Shift : Current file modification time differs from stored modification time
by whole number of hours for a considerable number of files. Corrected by storing new
modification time on the next Sync.
Left-Right Time Shift : File on the Left and Right have a whole hour difference in
modification time for a considerable number of files. This time shift is turned into Copy
Time action.
Icon Descriptions
File Actions
System action: file will be copied to the right side.
User override: file will be copied to the right side.
System action: file will be deleted on the right side.
User override: file will be deleted from the right side.
System action: file will be copied to the left side.
User override: file will be copied to the left side.
System action: file will be deleted from the left side.
User override: file will be deleted from the left side.
Folder Actions
A folder will be created on the right side.
A folder will be deleted on the right side.
A folder will be created on the left side.
A folder will be deleted on the left side.
Special Actions
Copy time stamp but not the file itself from the left to the right side.
Copy time stamp but not the file itself from the right to the left side.
Copy internal GoodSync "file state" from the left to the right side.
Copy internal GoodSync "file state" from the right to the left side.
Central Column
Item is in sync.
User set this item action to No Copy.
Item is excluded. See the status column for exclude reason.
Conflict. GoodSync can not decide how to sync this item, likely because item was
modified on both sides. See the status column for details.
Error. GoodSync can not sync this item. See the status column for explanation.
Item is currently synchronizing.
Job Icons
Job is not analyzed.
Job is waiting to start.
Job has been paused during analysis or sync.
Job is being analyzed.
Job analysis has been completed, GoodSync is now ready to synchronize.
Specified job is in the process of being synchronized.
Specified job has been synchronized.
User attention is required after analysis or synchronization has been completed.
Error starting a job.
Job Direction
Two-way job.
One-way "Left" to "Right" Job.
One-way "Right" to "Left" Job.
Portable Paths
You can specify a portable path in the left or right sync folder like so:
=VolumeName:\folder1\folder2
Here VolumeName is volume label that you can set in volume properties in the Windows
Explorer.
If path is specified in the portable format, GoodSync will look for a volume named
VolumeName in all portable (removable) drives attached to this computer.
So if this volume gets a different drive letter next time you insert it, GoodSync will still be able
to find it.
When you select a folder on GoodSync2Go folder from which you started GoodSync2Go,
drive letter will be automatically replaced with %GSDISK%.
So no matter what computer plug in your removable drive into and no matter what letter you
drive gets, GoodSync2Go will find its sync folders, as they will be on %GSDISK% drive.
Related topics:
* Computer Specific Paths are used to refer to a path that is valid only for one computer.
* %GSDISK% can be used in Scripts tab program, then the program is run from the GS2Go disk.
You can use any Windows environment variable in folder paths, inserted like so: %VARIABLE%
Environment variable can be put in only by directly editing the folder path, not via Browse
dialog.
Case Sensitivity
GoodSync file and folder tree is case-insensitive , that is,
for GoodSync path Folder\File.txt points to the same item as path FOLDER\file.TXT.
Job Templates
Job Template is an incomplete Job, usually with right folder not set. It is used to save your
favorite set of Job options as a Template, so that other Jobs can be easily created from it.
To create a Template from a Job, go to this Jobs and select Job -> Save as Template.
To create a new job from a saved template, select Job -> New.
In the New Job dialog, select From Template option. Then select the template from which Job
should be created.
By default GoodSync synchronizes all files and folders that are not hidden and not system.
Hidden and system files can be synchronized too, if option to exclude them is turned off.
Exclude Filter
You may want to exclude some files and folders from synchronization by using Exclude filter.
For instance, object files *.OBJ and editor backup files *.BAK are usually excluded.
The easiest way to exclude the file or group of files is to perform Analyze and then right-click
the file or folder and select one of the Exclusion commands:
Exclusion command adds a line to the list of exclusions in Jobs -> Options -> Filters ->
Excluded.
This tab is the only place where you can modify or delete exclusions.
For details see this tab description in Job -> Options -> Filters.
Global exclusions that apply to all jobs can be set in Tools -> Program Options -> Filters.
(1) Line that starts with "/" matches file or folder path (which is relative to the sync folder).
Exact match is required, no '*' or '/' expansion characters are allowed.
Addition of '/' or '/*' to the string does not change the match results.
Examples:
/folder1/file2.ext -- matches file2.ext in folder /folder1,
/folder1 -- matches folder /folder1 and all files and folder contained in it.
/folder1/ or /folder1/* -- still matches folder /folder1 and all files and folder in it.
(2) Line that starts with "path " matches file or folder path (relative to sync folder)
to wildcard match string in which:
* means any sequence of characters except /
? means an arbitrary single character
/ separates folders
Examples:
path /folder1/file2.ext -- matches file by its path,
path /Al* -- matches top level folders that start with Al
(3) Line that starts with "name " matches file or folder name (last member of the path)
to wildcard match string in which:
* means any sequence of characters except /
? means an arbitrary single character
/ is not allowed
Examples:
name *.xls -- Excel files,
name *.bak -- backup files of text editor,
name *kiss* -- files that contain "kiss" in their name
(4) Lines that start with "any size" or "all size" allow exclusion of files by file size:
any size<N
means size.left<N OR size.right<N
all size<N
means size.left<N AND size.right<N
any size>N
means size.left>N OR size.right>N
all size>N
means size.left>N AND size.right>N
any size=N
means size.left=N OR size.right=N
all size=N
means size.left=N AND size.right=N
any size!=N
means size.left!=N OR size.right!=N
all size!=N
means size.left!=N AND size.right!=N
any size>=N
means size.left>=N OR size.right>=N
all size>=N
means size.left>=N AND size.right>=N
any size<=N
means size.left<=N OR size.right<=N
all size<=N
means size.left<=N AND size.right<=N
any size[S1,S2]
means S1 <= size.left < S2 OR S1 <= size.right < S2
all size[S1,S2]
means S1 <= size.left < S2 AND S1 <= size.right < S2
where N is a number, possibly with K (Kilo) or M (Mega) suffix.
No spaces is allowed in the "size" match line.
Examples:
all size>=100 -- files on both sides contain 100 bytes or more
any size<2K -- files that contain less than 2,048 (1K = 1024) bytes on either left or right side
all size=3M -- files that contain exactly 3,145,728 bytes (1M = 1024 * 1024) bytes on both sides
(5) Lines that start with "any time" or "all time" allow exclusion of files by modification date:
any time<T
means time.left<T OR time.right<T
all time<T
means time.left<T AND time.right<T
any time>T
means time.left>T OR time.right>T
all time>T
means time.left>T AND time.right>T
any time=T
means time.left=T OR time.right=T
all time=T
means time.left=T AND time.right=T
any time!=T
means time.left!=T OR time.right!=T
all time!=T
means time.left!=T AND time.right!=T
any time>=T
means time.left>=T OR time.right>=T
all time>=T
means time.left>=T AND time.right>=T
any time<=T
means time.left<=T OR time.right<=T
all time<=T
means time.left<=T AND time.right<=T
any time[S1,S2]
means S1 <= time.left < S2 OR S1 <= time.right < S2
all time[S1,S2]
means S1 <= time.left < S2 AND S1 <= time.right < S2
Where T is date in one of these formats:
YYYY/MM/DD -- year/month/day
-Nd -- N days ago
+Nd -- N days in the future
No spaces is allowed in the "time" match line.
Examples:
any time>=2008/7/4 -- files modified at 00:00 on July 4, 2008 or later on either side
all time<-5d -- files older than 5 days ago on both sides
time>=+7d -- files modified 7 days in the future or later on either side
(6) Lines that start with "is" match file and folder attributes:
isfolder or <subfolder>
matches a folder
isfile
matches a file
issymlink
matches symbolic link or junction
ishidden
matches files and folders with hidden attribute
issystem
matches files and folders with system attribute (Windows only)
isarchive
matches files and folders with archive attribute (Windows only)
isreadonly
matches files and folders with readonly attribute (Windows only)
isoffline
matches files and folders with offline attribute (Windows only)
iscompressed
matches files and folders with compressed attribute (Windows only)
isencrypted
matches files and folders with encrypted attribute (Windows only)
By default GoodSync excludes hidden and system files and folders, because these files are not
user files and usually they are not worth backing up or syncing. If you want GoodSync to see
these files, uncheck "Exclude Hidden Files" and "Exclude System Files" in Job -> Options ->
Filters.
(7) Lines that start with "exist" match facts of presence and absence of file and folders.
existboth
file or folder exists both on left and right side
existone
file or folder exists only on one side
(8) Lines that do not have any of the above prefixes are interpreted as file names if they do not
contain '/' and as file paths if they contain '/'.
Each line can contain more than one clause separated by semicolon ";".
There is an implicit AND between clauses in the exclude line.
Example: filter
ishidden; name *.bak; all time <-60d
all size<1k
matches hidden files that have .bak extension that are older than 60 days on both sides or files
whose size on both sides is less than 1024 bytes.
Any and All qualifiers. File modification times may be different on Left and Right, then
you have to use "any" or "all" qualifier to get the desired result.
Example: exclude filter 'time<-30d' is true for all files
where 'left time < tNow - 30d OR right time < tNow - 30d'.
So if you want to exclude all files older than 30 days (on both sides that is),
you should use exclude line 'all time<-30d' which is
the same as 'left time < tNow - 30d AND right time < tNow - 30d'.
Include Filter
Include Filter includes only files and folders specified in it and it excludes everything else.
Include Filter is applied before the Exclude Filter.
Include Filter is set in Jobs -> Options -> Filters -> Include.
These are the popular Include filters and context menu items that add them:
Special "size" and "time" matches work in the Include filters too.
Each line can contain more than one clause separated by semicolon ";".
There is an implicit AND between clauses in the line.
If both Exclude and Include filters are specified then the Include filter is used first, then
Exclude filter is applied to the Include results.
GSTP File Server is the main component of GoodSync Server that serves files to GSTP clients.
It usually runs on TCP port 33333, but you can change it.
Impersonation
If you specify the Windows/Mac System account ID and password for a GoodSync server user,
the GoodSync Server will impersonate this Windows user,
enabling you to access all SMB shares and other resources, that would be available to you when
logged in on that computer.
Home Folder
If a non-empty Home Folder is specified for GoodSync server user,
then its path is always prepended to all URLs received by this user.
Naturally, the user cannot access any resources that are above the Home Folder.
The Home Folder is a complete URL, relative to the server, so you can access local files, SMB
files, and even other servers.
Global Discovery
Global Discovery Service registers this GoodSync Server with the GoodSync Mediator, so that
this server may be located by GoodSync clients, if it does not have a static IP address.
GoodSync Server will use the UPNP service of your router or DSL/cable modem to create a
tunnel from the external port of the router to the internal TCP port 33333 of your computer.
You can create this tunnel yourself if UPNP is turned off or not available, and then notify
GoodSync server about its external port using its Web UI at http://localhost:4444.
Local Discovery
The Local Discovery service makes a GS server discoverable on a local network, enabling the
GoodSync client to find a GS Server on a local network even without a Mediator.
It answers to GS client broadcast UDP packets on port 33338 and sends replies on port 33339.
So GoodSync client can find GS server on local network even without Mediator.
WebDAV Server
GoodSync Server can also serve any file system available in GoodSync via its WebDAV Server.
You can mount a GoodSync URL to a folder in the DAV server, and therefore as a Windows
Networks Disk by right-clicking it in GoodSync Explorer and selecting 'Mount'.
GoodSync WebDAV server runs on port 22222 on Windows 7 and Vista, or port 80 on Windows
XP.
When you setup GoodSync Server, as a part of GoodSync or GoodSync Explorer installation.
you will be requested to setup GoodSync Connect Account.
This account will also be the Primary (Admin) user on your GoodSync Server.
Only the Windows Administrator or Mac SuperUser can install GoodSync Server and create or
change the UserID and Password for the main user, for security purposes.
The Primary (Admin) user may create Secondary (Limited) users by:
- Connecting to the Web User Interface of GS Server at http://localhost:4444 and adding new
users from the Users tab there.
- Connecting to the Manage API of GS server at http://localhost:22222 and issuing a AddUser
transaction. This is for programmatic user creation.
- Adding a user directly to GS server with SQL database user storage.
A Secondary (Limited) user typically is limited to accessing only one folder and its subfolders,
which is called the Home Folder of this user.
Any attempt to go above the Home Folder will be rejected by the GS server.
URL of file in Home Folder of Secondary user looks like:
gstp://server.user.goodsync/home:///main/folder1/folder2
Here home:// is a prefix of Home File System that translates accesses from its root folder and
subfolders to Home Folder of the secondary user.
For security reasons, the Primary (Admin) user cannot be changed, created or deleted via
Manage API.
But you can create, modify or delete Secondary (Limited) users.
Job commands
Job Selection
Click Tab Alt+1 to Alt+9
Select another job, make it current (referred to as This Job). Most commands in Job and Tree
menu apply to the current job.
Other -> Left to Right or View -> Other -> Left to Right
Show files that will be copied from Left to Right by Copy File action.
Other -> Right to Left or View -> Other -> Right to Left
Show files that will be copied from Right to Left by Copy File action.
Other -> Copy Time L to R or View -> Other -> Copy Time L to R
Show files that whose modification time will be copied from Left to Right by Copy Time action.
Other -> Copy Time R to L or View -> Other -> Copy Time R to L
Show files that whose modification time will be copied from Right to Left by Copy Time action.
Other -> Copy State L to R or View -> Other -> Copy State L to R
Show files that whose state will be copied from Left to Right by Copy State action.
Other -> Copy State R to L or View -> Other -> Copy State R to L
Show files that whose state will be copied from Right to Left by Copy State action.
Other -> Sync State or View -> Other -> Sync State
Show files that whose states will be synced without copying files themselves.
Other -> SameLength DiffTime or View -> Other -> SameLength DiffTime
Show files that exist on both sides, have the same length but different modification time.
These are candidates for Copy Time action, if you believe that files are actually the same.
Other -> All Live + Dead or View -> Other -> AllLive + Dead
Show both existing files and files that were previously deleted.
These commands are available through keyboard shortcuts and are standard for Windows trees.
Gray '+' means '+' key on the numeric side keyboard.
Gray +
Open one level of the tree. Focus must be on the node to open.
Gray -
Close one level of the tree. Focus must be on the node to close.
Gray *
Open all levels of the tree starting from here. Focus must be on the node to open.
Action commands
All Action commands are also available from file or folder context menu.
Tools commands
Help commands
To select or change your sync folder, click Browse button on the left or right side of Sync.
The Browse File System dialog appears.
File System Type appears in the left navigation pane of the Browse dialog.
To change File System Type, click on different file systems on the left.
Then enter or edit your Remote Server Address in Address field (Remote FS only).
Then enter UserID, Password and maybe other connection data (Remote FS only).
Then click Go button to connect to the server and test whether the data you entered is correct.
If connection is successful, the Home Folder of UserID you used is shown and all folders above
it.
If folder you want to sync with does not exist, create it:
navigate to its parent folder and click Make New Folder button.
Below we provide detailed description of Local and Remote File Systems that GoodSync
supports.
Since no authentication is required and disks are always connected, the folder tree is shown
right away (clicking Go button is not needed).
User Folder
You can specify a user folder as part of folder path like so:
~UserName\folder1
Here UserName is name of Windows User, it is translated to full path of this user profile.
Example: on Windows-7 '~John Smith' is translated to 'C:\Users\John Smith'.
Hidden and System folders are not shown when you Browse inside '~John Smith' folder,
but they are shown if you drill from the root folder to 'C:\Users\John Smith'.
Portable Path
You can specify the disk by its volume name, like so:
=VolumeName:\folder1\folder2
Here VolumeName is volume name that you can set in volume properties in the Windows
Explorer.
Use it to designate removable volumes that can be mounted to different disk letters.
Windows Net Shares (remotely mounted disk volumes on SMB server) available through
Microsoft networking.
Official URL: smb://server/share/folder1 example: smb://server/share/folder1/file.ext
Display URL = Windows UNC path \\server\share\folder1 , example:
\\server\share\folder1\file.ext
List of available network shares is shown, then you can drill down to the sync folder.
Enter UserID and Password if your share is password-protected by UserID and Password that
is different from UserID and Password of the Windows account you are logged in to.
You can mount shares both from Local Network (LAN) and from remote computers (WAN), see
Synchronizing Via Network section below.
Note that once you logged in to Share, Windows will cache authentication data. So if
authentication data changes on server, you must Logout and then Login to you account on the
client to make Windows use new authentication data.
Remote GoodSync server, accessed via GoodSync Connect, using GSTP protocol.
Naming convention: URL with gstp:// or gstps:// prefix, example:
gstp://server.domain.com/folder1/folder2/file.ext
Extended naming convention adds port, auth data:
http://userid:[email protected]:port/folder/file
FTP
Implicit FTPS.
See Secure Mode explanation.
Note that newer MFMT is used instead of MDTM set command, if available on server.
WebDAV
Some folders on the server may be HTTP only and some folders will allow DAV uploads. This
means that you must type the full path to your DAV folder, you cannot type in just server name,
click Go and drill down to the DAV folder. This happens because top folder of the HTTP server
is usually not DAV enabled and it will not list folders inside it for security reasons.
If you are given only HTTP read access to folder and no DAV access then you can see this folder
in a browser, but you cannot see or modify it in GoodSync DAV.
Amazon S3
Amazon S3 server.
Naming convention: URL with s3:// or s3s:// prefix,
example: s3://s3.amazonaws.com/bucket/folder/file.ext
AWS Access Key ID and AWS Secret Access Key are always required.
Put your AWS Bucket Name into the top folder of the URL, like so:
s3://s3.amazonaws.com/bucket/folder/file.ext
S3 hosts
S3 used to have one main host: s3.amazonaws.com.
Not anymore. Now Amazon has several 'super-hosts' based on the region:
* US Standard = s3.amazonaws.com
* Ireland = s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com
* Northern CA = s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com
* Singapore = s3-ap-southeast-1.amazonaws.com
* Tokyo = s3-ap-northeast-1.amazonaws.com
You can specify any of these hosts in the URL.
GoodSync offers s3.amazonaws.com host by default.
If you use host-based addressing then Amazon figures out the region based on your bucket
name and
you do not need to specify the super-host, instead using the default s3.amazonaws.com.
Using host-based addressing is a better way, because one bucket exists in exactly one region
and Amazon knows which one and you do not need to specify the region to GoodSync.
* UserID + Password.
Just like in FTP, UserID and Password are required to log in.
You can also specify 'PuTTY Session' in GoodSync ver 7.7.0 or later.
Then GoodSync takes settings from PuTTY session you specified and
applies to them all other settings the from Browse dialog.
This way you can specify SFTP proxy and more connection options.
Private Key format: we use PuTTY private key format that looks something like this:
PuTTY-User-Key-File-2: ssh-rsa
Encryption: aes256-cbc
Comment: [1024-bit rsa, First Last@computer, Wed Jun 04 2003 23:28:59]
Public-Lines: 4
encodedpublickeyencodedpublickeyencodedpublickeyencodedpublickey
encodedpublickeyencodedpublickeyencodedpublickeyencodedpublickey
encodedpublickeyencodedpublickeyencodedpublickeyencodedpublickey
encodedpub==
Private-Lines: 8
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivatekeyencodedprivat
encodedprivatekeyxxxxx==
Private-MAC: abxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxb3a
PuTTY session.
GoodSync SFTP implementation is based on PuTTY code.
PuTTY has a plenty of connection options, especially for proxies.
You can use all these options by specifying PuTTY session name.
Please note that PuTTY itself does not have to be installed, GoodSync will just use PuTTY
session settings from registry.
Private Key.
See explanation above.
This is a single-server file system, click Servers to see the name of this server.
This is a single-server file system, click Servers to see the name of this server.
SkyDrive by Microsoft.
Naming convention: URL with prefix sds:// -- only secure option.
Example: sds://docs.live.net/3f6xxxxx730a/^.Documents
Note: do not try to type URL by yourself, click Browse button, enter your MS
Live/Passport/Hotmail UserID and Password, click GO and GoodSync will construct URL for
your account at SkyDrive.
This is a single-server file system, click Servers to see the name of this server.
Enabling Send Cookies as strongly recommended, as SkyDrive server may be using them to
ensure that you use it on not too many devices.
Device should be physically connected to the computer, usually it is plugged into USB port.
ActiveSync or Windows Mobile Device Center (WMDC) must be installed on the desktop.
Device is not required to have a partnership with desktop on which GoodSync runs.
So you can sync phone files with more than two desktops.
To sync with the phone that has no "relationship" with your desktop: when ActiveSync tells you
to create a new relationship upon connecting your phone to the desktop, select Guest
Relationship or just press Cancel.
Job Options
Each Job has a set of options that modify the behavior of synchronization algorithm for this
job.
General tab
Sync Direction
Synchronization direction can be one of the three choices below.
2-Way (default)
Propagate changes from Left to Right and propagate changes from Right to Left.
1-Way Left to Right
Propagate changes only from Left to Right.
1-Way Right to Left
Propagate changes only from Right to Left.
Never
Do not display balloon messages.
On Conflicts and Errors (default)
Display balloon messages only when Conflicts or Errors are detected during Analyze or
Sync.
On Changes and Sync
Display balloon messages when Analyze detects Changes, Conflicts or Errors.
Cleanup _saved_ folder after this many days (checked by default, 30 days)
If checked then remove files that were saved to _gsdata_\_saved_ folder, after they spent there
the specified number of days or more. Cleanup occurs immediately after Sync.
If not checked, then keep files in _gsdata_\_saved_ folder forever.
Cleanup _history_ folder after this many days (off by default, 30 days)
If checked then remove files that were saved to _gsdata_\_history_ folder, after they spent there
the specified number of days or more. Cleanup occurs immediately after Sync, every 5-7 days.
If not checked, then keep files in _gsdata_\_history_ folder forever.
Filters tab
It is recommended for the set of inclusions and exclusions to be the same for all jobs that sync
with one particular folder. Keeping them different is possible but it is likely to cause confusion
as some jobs will not sync files that other jobs would sync.
Auto tab
Analyze and Sync can be made to run automatically by using this tab.
One or more triggers may be checked to cause automatic Analyze and/or Sync:
On File Change
Analyze (and maybe Sync) this job when any file changes in left or right folder or its sub-folder.
Starting with GoodSync ver 9.1.4, we employ our new Real Time Sync mechanism that:
- Monitors file system for changes,
- Analyzes only files that were reported changed by file system, no full Analyze.
- Syncs files that have changed.
- Full Analyze is performed only on the 1st iteration of Real Time Sync.
These files systems can do file monitoring, so they can do On File Change Real Time Sync:
- Windows File System, local disks, except root folder.
- Windows shares, except some broken NAS shares that do not report changes.
- Mac file system, local disks.
- Any of the above file systems, remotely accessed via GSTP protocol used in GS Connect.
- None of traditional server file systems can be monitored: FTP, SFTP, S3, SkyDrive, etc.
- If only one side of the job can be monitored, then GS will get changes only from one side.
Things to know:
- If changes occur during Analyze/Sync, they are still detected and sent to the next Analyze.
- If these changes are result of our own sync, they will produce no new changes to be synced.
- On File Change initiates Analyze and Sync, which results in locking of sync folder by GS lock
files.
- GoodSync checks for new changes approximately every 10 seconds.
On GoodSync start
Analyze (and maybe Sync) this job when GoodSync starts.
You can also specify delay in seconds:
when GoodSync starts, it will wait this many seconds before starting this job.
Should not be used together with On File Change mode.
On Folders Connect
Analyze (and maybe Sync) this job when both folders of the job become connected, after they
were disconnected previously (that is, one of the folders must come from disconnected to
connected state).
GoodSync checks every 3 minutes for status of left and right folders for a job with this option.
The following events speed up checking of status, as they are likely to cause folder connect or
disconnect:
* Insertion or Ejection of Portable Volume: detachable folders may connect or disconnect.
* Network Connect or Disconnect: FTP, SFTP, DAV folders may connect or disconnect
* Windows Mobile device (phone) Connect or Disconnect: Windows Mobile device connected
or disconnected.
Should not be used together with On File Change mode.
On Logoff
Analyze and then Sync this job just before Logoff from Windows.
Note that Windows may try to kill GoodSync on Logoff. Normally Windows sees that GoodSync
is performing file operations and responds to messages and it would let GoodSync finish.
However this cannot be guaranteed.
You can also check GoodSync global log (in Applications Data\GoodSync) to see whether Task
Scheduler in fact started GoodSync, if you see that job does not run when it is supposed to
run.
Copy Locked Files in Unattended Mode: Since ver 9 executes all file operatioins (such as copy
locked file) in already elevated GoodSync server, even unattended mode can copy locked files.
Ver 8 requires user elevation to copy locked files, which is not possible in unattended mode.
On RoboForm Command
Analyze (and maybe Sync) this job when RoboForm calls for it.
To enable this option, in RoboForm select RoboForm -> Tools -> Sync RoboForm Data.
In general, triggers are checked in the order they appears in the Auto modes list:
- If On File Change runs then only On Timer, On Logoff and Scheduled modes are effective.
- All other triggers are not exclusive of each other.
- If one trigger has scheduled a job to start then the other triggers cannot schedule it.
- If a job is running already, then auto triggers cannot start it.
- Scheduled Unattended trigger is independent of all other triggers, as it runs a separate
unattbded GoodSync in a separate process.
Do Not Copy
(default value)
Leave Conflicts in unresolved (Do Not Copy) state.
Left to Right
Resolve to Left to Right propagation.
Right to Left
Resolve to Right to Left propagation.
Newer File Wins
File with the most recent modification date wins.
You must not use this option for backup jobs, use 1-way job instead.
Task Scheduler option does not require GoodSync to be running, because Windows Scheduler
starts GoodSync based on the Windows Task that GoodSync creates when you enable this
option.
Job Scheduling
Each event that has just occurred flags the job as ready-to-run.
Ready-to-run jobs are run from left to right, sequentially, until all ready-to-run jobs have been
run.
If job is already in the ready-to-run state and another even occurs that wants to run the job
then this 2nd event is ignored.
Scripts tab
Format 1: The Pre/Post-Analyze/Sync option value specifies the arguments passed to the
program:
program-name %ARG1% %ARG2% %ARG3% ...
where arguments can be one of the following (all variable names are case-sensitive):
%JOBNAME% job name
%RESULT% Result: "" for OK or "terminal error message"
%LOGPATH% Log file path in "..."
%LF% Left folder path in "..."
%LF_ACT% Resolved (=VolumeName\folder -> f:\folder) Left folder path in "..."
%RF% Right folder path in "..."
%RF_ACT% Resolved (=VolumeName\folder -> f:\folder) Right folder path in "..."
%STAGE% Sync stage: Pre-Analyze | Post-Analyze | Post-Sync
%CHANGED% Number of Changed Items in Post-Analyze
%ERRORS% Number of Errors in Post-Analyze or Post-Sync
%CONFLICTS% Number of Conflicts in Post-Analyze or Post-Sync
%SYNCOK% Number of Synced-OK items in Post-Sync
Program name may contain %GSDISK% variable replaced with the disk GoodSync was started
from, like so:
"%GSDISK%\folder1\folder2\program.bat"
if you want to start this program from the disk on which GoodSync2Go resides.
Format 2: If program name is specified with %ALLARGS% arguments then the program receives
7 arguments:
1. Job name.
2. Terminal error message. Empty is no terminal error has happened.
3. Log File Path. Log may not exist or be empty if terminal error occurred. Non-terminal error
messages are contained in this log file.
4. Left Sync Folder Path.
5. Right Sync Folder Path.
6(A). Number of Changes (Post-Analyze only).
6(S). Number of Items synced OK (Post-Sync only).
7. Number of Non-Terminal Errors (Post-Analyze and Post-Sync),
8. Number of Conflicts (Post-Analyze and Post-Sync).
Format 3 (deprecated): If program name is specified without arguments then the program is
started without any arguments.
If program name is prefixed with "errors: ", then it is started only if:
- Terminal Errors occurred in Analyze or Sync, OR
- Non-Terminal Errors occurred in Analyze or Sync, OR
- Conflicts occurred in Analyze.
Advanced tab
Check that files did not change between Analyze and Sync (un-checked by default)
If checked then verify that files did not change between Analyze and Sync both for Remote file
systems and Local Windows file system.
If un-checked then perform this verification only for Local Windows file system.
Turning this option On slows down remote Syncs but guarantees better file integrity.
Fast Pre-Analyze using timestamps (un-checked by default, except for RoboForm jobs)
If checked then before doing Analyze check whether timestamp file on server side of the jobs
has changed. If it did not change then skip Analyze for the server side of the job and assume
there was no changes there.
If not checked then always perform full Analyze.
Conditions for use of this option: (1) one of the job sides should be on server, the other local,
(2) server promises to never change any files in sync folder other than via GoodSync ver 8.1.4 or
later, (3) if server changes any files by itself, it promises to delete timestamp file
_gsdata_\_insync.gsl.
General tab
These global options apply to all jobs, to the entire GoodSync program.
Create left/right Sync folders if they are not found (off by default)
If checked then GoodSync will create left/right sync folders if they are not present.
If not checked, then error message will be shown on Analyze if sync folders are not present.
A new job log file is created for each Analyze + Sync combo. Job logs are uploaded to _gsdata_
folder on both sides of the job when Sync finishes. Initially job logs are written locally to
Mirrors folder in your GoodSync profile. Logs of Analyze-only jobs are available only in local
Mirrors folder. Job -> Open Left/Right Logs shows logs files both from sync folders and local
Mirrors folders.
Critical
Important non-error messages that must be seen.
Error
Errors that terminates a job, shown in red.
Information (default value)
Warnings or major action performed, includes sync actions.
Details
Details on actions performed, no need for most users to see.
If 'Save Logs In Folder' option is specified (not empty) then GoodSync writes global logs to the
folder specified in this option.
Retain logs for this many days (7 by default)
Number of days for which global and job logs are retained.
Log files that are older than the specified number of days are deleted when GoodSync starts.
0 days means: retain logs for 2 hours.
Filters tab
In addition to job-specific Included and Exclude filter you can specify global (program-wide)
filters in this tab.
The effective Exclude and Include filters used for the job are
the sum of job-specific Exclude and Include filters and program-wide filters from this tab.
Connection tab
About tab
It also contains Check for Updates button that checks www.GoodSync.com for its most recent
version.
Dir2 =
Url = "https://online.roboform.com/users/user4id"
UserID = "user4id"
PasswordGarbled = "secret_password"
BadCerts = No
Direction = 0
1wayMode = 0
FiltersExcluded =
Matches = (
"RoboFormDataHere.txt"
"options.rfo"
"CVS"
".cvsignore"
)
ExcludeHidden = Yes
ExcludeSystem = No
ReconnectAttempts = 1
If option to load job list from registry or save to registry is set then registry values
"HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Siber Systems\GoodSync\Jobs\job-name\tix" are used. Each
job gets its own registry key and value named "tix" in that key contains TIX string that
describes the job. TIX string does not have newline characters.
If option to load program options from registry or save to registry is set then registry value
"HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Siber Systems\GoodSync\ProgOptionsTix" is used. It
contains program options encoded in TIX.
General Rules.
There can be more than one job in jobs.tix file.
Newline characters can be used to improve readability, but they are not required.
Each property is recorded as "name = value", where value can be a single constant, an object in
object brackets, or a list presented as "( element1 element2 ... elementN)".
Job Properties.
Appears in <Job> ... </Job> brackets.
ExcludeEmptyFolders = Yes | No
ExcludeHidden = Yes | No
ExcludeSystem = Yes | No
FiltersIncluded = Matches <FileMask> ( "string" ... ) </FileMask>
FiltersExcluded = Matches <FileMask> ( "string" ... ) </FileMask>
PreAnalyzeScriptOrEmail = "string"
PostAnalyzeScriptOrEmail = "string"
PostSyncScriptOrEmail = "string"
CopyUsingTempFile = Yes | No
CopyLockedFiles = Yes | No
CopyACL = Yes | No
FastPreAnalyzeWithStamps = Yes | No
Connectoid Properties.
Appears in <Connect> ... </Connect> brackets.
GoodSync connectoid describes how to connect to the server.
Url = "string"
UserID = "string"
PasswordGarbled = "string"
Program Options.
Appears in <ProgramOptions> ... </ProgramOptions> brackets.
SMTP server.
Appears in <SmtpServer> SmtpServer-property ... </SmtpServer> brackets.
Proxy server .
Appears in <ProxyServer> ProxyServer-property ... </ProxyServer> brackets.
UseWinInetProxy = Yes (use proxy of Internet Explorer / WinInet) | No (no auto proxy)
UseProxyBelow = Yes (use proxy specified below) | No (no proxy)
Host = "IP name of proxy server"
Port = NNN (port on proxy server)
UserID = "user-id for authenticated proxy"
Password = "user-id for authenticated proxy"
Command Line
GoodSync can be started from command line and everything that you can do from GUI can be
done using command line options described here.
GoodSync Pro/Free can only start execution of existing jobs via command line,
all other command line options (create, delete, modify job) are available in GoodSync Enterprise
only.
Global Options
/help
Show help message that lists command line options and exit.
/profile=<profile-folder>
GoodSync profile folder, job list is loaded from file jobs.tic in this folder unless option /jobs is
specified.
Global program options are loaded from file options.tic in this folder.
Global Log files are wriiten to this profile folder.
/jobs=<job-list-file>
If specified, then load job list from this file. File format is TIC or TIX, depending on file
extension.
/options=<options-file>
If specified, then load global options from this file. File format is TIC or TIX, depending on file
extension.
/min or /tray
Run minimized, only taskbar icon is visible.
/forcetray
Run minimized to tray, do not allow main window to show.
/miniwin
Start in mini window mode, allow main window to be shown.
/forceminiwin
Start in mini window mode, do not allow main window to show.
/exit
GoodSync will exit upon completing the action requested in command line.
/exit-ifok
GoodSync will exit upon completing the action requested in command line,
if return code is zero, that is, if no errors occurred.
If errors did occur in the last job that ran, then GoodSync will not exit.
/unatt
Unattended mode: only one job runs, no Auto jobs scheduling is performed, no GUI except
mini-window and/or tray icon, many instances of 'goodsync /unatt' may be run.
/system-tray=yes|no
Show system tray icon. Default: yes.
/tray-on-close=yes|no
Closing GoodSync causes its minimization to system tray. Default: no.
/check-new-ver=yes|no
Check for New Version. Default: yes.
/create-folder-if-notfound=yes|no
Create job sync folders if not found. Default: no.
/auto-hide-mini-win=yes|no
Auto-hide mini-window when there is no job activity. Default: yes.
/ll=0|1|2|3|9
Set log level to N (number from 1 to 3).
0 -- critical messages (job start and stop),
1 -- error messages
2 -- informational messages (default level)
3 -- detailed messages
9 -- no log at all (valid only for gsync)
/lf=<log-folder>
Write global log to <log-folder>. If not specified, write global log to profile folder.
Path should be an absolute path on local computer.
/log-retain-days=NNN
Number of days for which old logs are retained. Default: 7.
/group-log-lines=yes|no
Group similar log lines. Default: yes.
/compare-prog=<ExeFilePath>
Use this program to compare two files diff style when user selects Compare from item context
menu.
If nothing is specified then UNIX diff is used.
/proxy-auto=yes|no
Use WinInet proxy (the one used by Internet Explorer).
/proxy-host=<host-name>
Use proxy server set here by IP address or name, negates /proxy-auto option.
/proxy-port=<port-number>
Use this port on the proxy server specified in /proxy-host.
/proxy-userid=<userid>
UserID for proxy, both manual and auto.
/proxy-passwd=<password>
Password for proxy, both manual and auto.
/smtp-host=<host-name>
Use SMTP server set here by IP address or name.
/smtp-port=<port-number>
Use this port on the SMTP server specified in /smtp-host.
/smtp-secure=yes|no
Use SSL (encrypted connection) when submitting email to SMTP server.
/smtp-userid=<userid>
UserID for SMTP server.
/smtp-passwd=<password>
Password for SMTP server.
/smtp-sender=<name-email>
Sender of Emails: "[email protected]" or "FirstName LastName ".
/list-changes=yes|no
Print List of changes detected by Analyze to the log.
/save-global-options
Save global GoodSync options as changed by command line.
Commands
analyze /all
Analyze all jobs.
analyze <job-list>
Analyze listed jobs, job names are separated by space.
Job names containing spaces must be enclosed in quotes like this: "Job Name"
sync /all
Synchronize all jobs.
sync <job-list>
Sync listed jobs, job names are separated by space.
Job names containing spaces must be enclosed in quotes like this: "Job Name"
job-delete <job-name>
Delete existing job.
Job Options
/analyze
Analyze Job after it has been created or updated.
/sync
Analyze and Sync Job after it has been created or updated.
/makecurr
/makecurr
Make the job current in GUI when command line auto-starts it.
/f1=<full-folder-path>
Left sync folder.
Full Folder Path should be in one of these formats:
C:\folder1\folder2\file.ext
\\share\disk\folder1\folder2\file.ext
ftp://server.domain.com:port/folder/file
sftp://server.domain.com:port/folder/file
http://server.domain.com:port/folder/file
/f2=<full-folder-path>
Right sync folder.
For Full Folder Path format see the above item.
/userid1=<user-id>
UserID for left sync folder.
/userid2=<user-id>
UserID for right sync folder.
/password1=<password>
Password for left sync folder.
/password2=<password>
Password for right sync folder.
/encrypt1(2)=yes|no
Encrypt files in the left (right) sync folder using EFS.
/decrypt1(2)=yes|no
Decrypt files in the left (right) sync folder using EFS.
/compress1(2)=yes|no
Compress files in the left (right) sync folder using NTFS compressed files.
/uncompress1(2)=yes|no
Uncompress files in the left (right) sync folder, if they were compressed by NTFS.
/fat-like1(2)=yes|no
This should be treated as a FAT file system, with 1-hour seasonal time shift, even though it does
not report itself to be FAT. May be needeed for NAS devices that misreport their FAT disks as
NTFS.
/bad-certs1(2)=yes|no
Do not check SSL server certificates for left (right) folder.
/useproxy1(2)=yes|no
Use proxy to connect to the left (right) folder.
/wininet(2)=yes|no
Use WinInet implementation of the file system in the left (right) for DAV, S3, FTP.
/send-cookies1(2)=yes|no
Send cookies for left (right) DAV folder.
/utf8-1(2)=yes|no
UTF-8 encoding (No: ANSI) for left (right) folder.
/temp-dest-file1(2)=yes|no
Use temp files when writing to this folder.
/hostbased1(2)=yes|no
Use host-based addressing (S3).
/reduced-redundancy1(2)=yes|no
Use reduced redundancy bucket (S3).
/server-encrypt1(2)=yes|no
Use server side encryption (S3).
/accesspolicy1(2)==<access-policy>
Pre-cooked access policy for left (right) folder (S3).
/block-size1(2)==<gstp-block-size>
Chunk size in bytes for GSTP block level delta copy. 256 Kb by default. MD5 checksums are
computed per chunk of this size. (GSTP)
/active1(2)=yes|no
Active FTP mode (No: passive) for left (right) folder.
/mdtm1(2)=yes|no
Use MDTM command for left (right) FTP folder.
/implicit1(2)=yes|no
Implicit FTPS mode (No: Explicit mode) for the left (right) folder.
/pingcontrol1(2)=yes|no
Ping control connection when sending large file via data connection (FTP).
/show-native1(2)=yes|no
Show native Google Docs/Drive files, by converting them to external format. This makes Analyze
and Sync run very slow, as even Analyze of a native file requires to convert it. (GDocs)
/pk1(2)=<folder-path>
SFTP private key file absolute path, for left (right) sync folder.
WebDAV private certificate file absolute path, for left (right) sync folder.
/psession1(2)=<session-name>
PuTTY session name for the left (right) folder, SFTP connection.
*** General Options ***
/move-mode=yes|no
Move Mode: Delete Source Files after Copy.
/delete-empty-folders-on-move=yes|no
Move Mode: Delete Empty Source Folders after Copy.
/verify-dest=yes|no
Warn user if destination side of 1-way job changes.
/readonly-src=yes|no
Read-Only Source Side option. Can be turned on only in 1-way Forced job.
/deletions=yes|no
Propagate Deletions option.
/save-prev-version=yes|no
Saved files overwritten or deleted by GoodSync to _gsdata_\_saved_ folder.
Only one last version of the file is saved.
/do-not-save-past-previous-local=yes|no
Do not save Previous and Past versions for local file systems of this computer.
/cleanup-prev-version=yes|no
Whether to cleanup Previous File Version.
/days-prev-version=<number>
Number of days for which to keep Previous File Version.
/save-past-versions=yes|no
Saved past versions of file overwritten or deleted by GoodSync to _gsdata_\_history_ folder.
Many file versions are saved, one per every overwrite or delete of the file.
/cleanup-past-version=yes|no
Whether to cleanup Past File Versions.
/days-past-version=<number>
Number of days for which to keep Past File Versions.
/cleanup-old-generations=yes|no
Whether to cleanup old generations of files and folders.
/months-old-generations=<number>
Number of months for which to keep old generations.
/est-req-space=yes|no
Estimate Required Free Space needed for Sync.
/reconnect=yes|no
Automatically Reconnect when folders disconnect.
/reconnect-attempts=<number>
Number of Reconnect Attempts for the above option.
/speed-limit=<number>
File Copy Speed Limit in Kb/sec. If /up-speed-limit is set then this is Download speed limit. if
/up-speed-limit is not set then this is both Upload and Download speed limit.
/up-speed-limit=<number>
Upload Copy Speed Limit in Kb/sec, when separate from Download speed limit.
/balloon-msg=none|errors|changes
Show Balloon option.
/exclude=<file-mask>
Exclude filter.
File Mask is a |-separated list of patterns such as *.obj or \folder\file.
Several /exclude options may be provided, their values will be glued together, separated by '|'.
/include=<file-mask>
Include filter.
File Mask is a |-separated list of patterns such as *.obj or \folder\file.
Several /exclude options may be provided, their values will be glued together, separated by '|'.
/exclude-empty=yes|no
Exclude Empty Folder option.
/exclude-hidden=yes|no
Exclude Hidden Files and Folders option.
/exclude-system=yes|no
Exclude System Files and Folders option.
/on-start=analyze|sync|no
Automatically Analyze/Sync on Start of GoodSync.
/autostart-delay=NN
On Start delay in seconds.
/on-folder-connect=analyze|sync|no
Automatically Analyze/Sync on Folder Connect.
/on-file-change=analyze|sync|no
Automatically Analyze/Sync on any File Change inside local sync folders.
/on-logout=sync|no
Automatically Sync on Logoff from Windows account.
/on-timer=analyze|sync|no
Automatically Analyze/Sync on Timer (every N minutes).
/timer-period=<NN>
Timer period in minutes for /on-timer option.
/on-roboform=analyze|sync|no
Automatically Analyze/Sync on RoboForm command.
/limit-changes=<NN>
No Sync If Too Many Files Changed option.
NN is a number from 0 to 100.
/autoresolve=no|left|right|newer
Auto-Resolve Conflicts option: No Copy, Left wins, Right wins, Newer wins.
/rename-losing-file=yes|no
Rename losing file in the conflict, instead of deleting it.
/autoclear=yes|no
Auto Clear tree after Sync.
/pre-analyze-action=<email-addr|program-path>
Pre Analyze Program.
/post-analyze-action=<email-addr|program-path>
Post Analyze Email or Program.
/post-sync-action=<email-addr|program-path>
Post Sync Email or Program.
/temp-dest-file=yes|no
Use temporary files when copying from source to destination, so that sudden interruption of
copy does not result in corrupted file.
/compare-md5=yes|no
Compare MD5 checksums in Analyze.
/copy-create-time=yes|no
Copy File/Folder creation time.
/copy-acl=yes|no
Copy ACL security attributes.
/copy-locked=yes|no
Copy Locked Files using Shadow Copy Service.
/detect-moves=yes|no
Detect File Moves and Renames, instead of doing Copy + Delete.
/detect-folder-moves=yes|no
Detect Folder File Moves and Renames.
/check-file-stability=yes|no
Check Analyze-Sync File Stability on Remote File Systems option.
/fast-pre-analyze=yes|no
Fast Pre Analyze Mode.
/wait-for-locks=yes|no
Wait for Locks, instead of producing error.
/wait-for-locks-minutes=<NN>
Waiting period for Wait for Locks, in minutes.
/no-gsdata=yes|no
No _GSDATA_ folder for this job.
/worker-threads=<N>
Number of thread to execute in parallel on Sync.
/folder-links=ignore|copy-asis|drill-down
Folder symbolic links processing mode.
/file-links=ignore|copy-asis|drill-down
Folder symbolic links processing mode.
The options below are installer options, that is, they are specified for the installer GoodSync-
Setup.exe, not for GoodSync.exe.
/orderid=1234567890
/username="John Smith"
If /orderid and /username options are specified then GoodSync Pro is automatically activated
upon install using the specified OrderID and User Name. Note that this is online activation, so
GoodSync.exe should be able to get to www.goodsync.com.
/proxy-auto=yes|no
Use WinInet proxy (the one used by Internet Explorer).
/proxy-host=<host-name>
Use proxy server set here by IP address or name, negates /proxy-auto option.
/proxy-port=<port-number>
Use this port on the proxy server specified in /proxy-host.
/proxy-userid=<userid>
UserID for proxy, both manual and auto.
/proxy-passwd=<password>
Password for proxy, both manual and auto.
/S
Run installer silently, no input from user is requested.
Enterprise Activation
For those deploying GoodSync in an Enterprise environment, you can install and activate using
the above mentioned parameters of OrderID and Company Name from the purchase. An
example being:
GoodSync-Setup.exe /S /orderid=0123456789 /username="Company Name"
This will run the GoodSync installer silently, and attempt to activate the software using the
OrderID and Company Name specified.
Post-Install Activation
Activation of GoodSync Pro or Enterprise can be performed after the product has already been
installed.
Return Codes
If global option /exit is specified then GoodSync.exe returns
integer return code that describes result of the last job execution:
0 -- Analyze or Sync success
1 -- Analyze User Stop
2 -- Analyze with Terminal Error
3 -- Analyze with Non-Terminal Errors
4 -- Analyze with Conflicts but no Errors
5 -- Analyze with Conflicts and Errors
11 -- Sync User Stop
12 -- Sync with Terminal Error
13 -- Sync with non-Terminal Errors
Policies
Policies are used by system administrator to enforce enterprise-wide rules that limit or change
GoodSync behavior.
Policies are available in GoodSync Enterprise only.
- ForceMiniMode: Start GoodSync in MiniMode and do not allow expanding it to the full size
- ForceTray: Start GoodSync minimized to tray and do not allow expanding it to the full size
- NoAutoUpdate: Disable AutoUpdate
- NoJobListEdit: Do not allow to add/delete/rename jobs
- NoJobEdit: Do not allow to change job paths or options
RoboForm.
Latest versions of RoboForm have command RoboForm -> Tools -> Sync Data that setup sync
job and start GoodSync automatically. If setting up manually, you should synchronize folder
My RoboForm Data between two computers that you are syncing, or between computer and
USB drive with RoboForm2Go. These computer-specific files will be excluded from sync:
license.rfo, cache.rfo, mru.rfo. You may include file options.rfo, it contains RF options.
Outlook.
Synchronize file Outlook.pst that contains Outlook data.
Open Outlook application locks file Outlook.pst, not allowing GoodSync to sync it.
Outlook must be closed for this file to be unlocked.
If you sync your Windows Mobile phone or Pocket PC with desktop, then Outlook.pst file is
locked while your phone is plugged in. Pull out your phone from the cradle for Outlook.pst to be
unlocked.
How to make Outlook store your Outlook.pst in the folder you like:
* Move Outlook.pst from the standard folder to the folder where you want it to be.
* Start Outlook -- it tells you that it cannot find Outlook.pst.
* Outlook offers you to specify location of Outlook.pst. Select the folder where Outlook.pst is
now.
Outlook Express.
Outlook Express (OE) stores its data in several files, located in OE data folder. To find where this
folder is, open OE and go to Tools -> Options -> Maintenance -> Store Folder . It will show you
where the data files are and you can change this location of the folder too. Sync the entire
folder. Sync only when OE is closed, as OE may lock the files it uses.
Quickbooks.
Quickbooks (QB) stores all its data in one file that has format CompanyName.QBW . This is the
file to sync. Quickbooks backup files have extension .QBB. We recommend to back up the QBW
file using native QB Backup command and to sync the backup file too, for extra protection.
Quickbooks locks the QBW when opened, so you must close QB before syncing. Even if you
opened QBW file to only view it and not to modify it, QB will still modify this file. So you
cannot use GoodSync for 2-way syncing of *.QBW files, you can do only 1-way backup.
ACT!
Act locks its data files and when you close ACT, they are still locked. This is because ACT!
installs a SQL service that is active even when the ACT! application is not running. This service
keeps ACT! data files locked. You should stop the MSSQL ACT! service temporarily to be able to
sync these files: Go to Start/Control Panel/Administrative Tools/Services, locate the service
named "MSSQL$ACT7" (or something similar), stop it, do the synchronization, and then start
the service again. Alternatively, you can permanently exclude ACT! files from synchronization.
Advantages of GoodSync2Go:
- Portable list of jobs, residing on your USB device.
- Portable license, residing on your USB device.
Limitations of GoodSync2Go:
- GoodSync Connect server part does not work, because service installation is required.
- On Schedule Auto option does not work, because Windows Scheduler cannot run
GoodSync2Go jobs.
- Start GoodSync when Windows starts Auto option does not work.
- Copy Locked Files option does not work, as GoodSync must install a DLL for that.
It does not present any GUI (Graphical User Interface) at all, so it is ideal for:
GSYNC accepts exactly the same command line arguments as GoodSync.exe except as noted
below.
/check-ver
If set then check whether this GSYNC version is current, report to stdout.
/profile=<profile-folder>
GoodSync Profile folder.
This is folder from which GoodSync reads job list file, global options file, and to which it writes
global logs.
If not specified, profile folder is C:\Users\User Name\AppData\Roaming\GoodSync or similar
location on XP.
Path should be an absolute path on local computer.
/lf=<log-folder>
Write global log to <log-folder>.
If not specified, write global log to profile folder.
Path should be an absolute path on local computer.
/ll=0|1|2|3|9
Set log level to N (number from 1 to 3).
0 -- critical messages (job start and stop),
1 -- error messages
2 -- informational messages (default level)
3 -- detailed messages
9 -- no log at all.
/license
If set then show current license and exit.
/progress=yes|no
/progress=yes|no
Show progress messages when downloading or uploading files.
Default: No.
/override-locks=yes|no
If set to 'yes' then override lock files on Analyze.
Lock file is created in sync folder by a running Sync job and it is deleted when the job finishes.
Default: No. #if 0
/delegate command-line
If GoodSync.exe runs already then delegate command-line execution to GoodSync.exe. #endif
/jobs-file=<job-file-path>
If defined then load job list from the specified file in TIC or TIX format, depending on file
extension.
If not defined then load job list from file jobs.tic in the profile folder.
/jobs-file-save=<job-file-path>
If defined then save job list to the specified file in TIC or TIX format, depending on file
extension.
If not defined then save job lists to the same medium (file or registry) from which it was
loaded.
/options-file=<options-file-path>
If defined then load global options from the specified file in TIC or TIX format, depending on
file extension.
If not defined then load global options from file options.tic in the profile folder.
/options-file-save=<options-file-path>
If defined then save global options to the specified file in TIC or TIX format, depending on file
extension.
If not defined then save global options to the same medium from which it was loaded.
/jobs-options-registry
If defined then load job list and global options from registry.
If not defined then load job list and global options from files in TIC or TIX format.
/jobs-options-registry-save
If defined then save job list and global options to registry.
If not defined then save job list and global options to the same medium (file ore registry) from
which it was loaded.
/default-values-tix=yes|no
If set then save options that have default value, when saving in TIX format.
If not set then do not save options that have default value, when saving in TIX format, for
If not set then do not save options that have default value, when saving in TIX format, for
shorter TIX file.
GSYNC runs all jobs specified in the command line sequentially, in the order in which jobs
appear in Job List.
Return Codes for the last job that was run is returned:
0 - Normal completion: Analyze with No Change or Sync with Success.
1 - Analyze with Terminal Errors, error text written to stdout as last line.
2 - Sync with Terminal Errors, error text written to stdout as last line.
Negative - error when initiating GSYNC.
Non-terminal errors do not return error code, these errors are logged to log file.
Unlike an FTP client, GSCP can be used to script file operations in all File Systems that
GoodSync supports: Windows, Win Mobile, FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3.
/proxy-auto=yes|no
Use WinInet proxy (the one used by Internet Explorer).
/proxy-host=<host-name>
Use proxy server set here by IP address or name, negates /proxy-auto option.
/proxy-port=<port-number>
Use this port on the proxy server specified in /proxy-host.
/proxy-userid=<userid>
UserID for proxy, both manual and auto.
/proxy-passwd=<password>
Password for proxy, both manual and auto.
The following commands are accepted by GSCP once it connects to the server:
Command Argument(s) What it does
quit Exit program
ls List the current remote directory
isf file-name Test whether the specified remote file exists
isd dir-name Test whether the specified remote dir exists
pwd Print current remote directory
cd dir-name Change remote directory (no name means connect root)
pld Print current local directory
lcd dir-name Change local directory
md dir-name Create remote directory
rm file-name Delete remote file
rmd dir-name Delete remote folder
rmrf dir-name Recursively delete remote files and folders
mv file-name-1 file-name-2 Rename or move remote file/folder
put file-name Upload local file to remote folder
get file-name Download remote file to local folder
help Show this list of available commands
info Remote file system info
open url Connect to another file system
close Disconnect from current file system
Starting with Ver 9, GoodSync Connect should be used for these purposes.