Sync problems

[Mike Fedeski]

The first time I looked at Tap Forms, it was my preferred database for IOS in every way except one – I needed to sync between devices. Now that sync is available, I am trying again. Unfortunately, I cannot get it to work. I have tried iCloud and Dropbox (Dropbox is my preference) but the results are similar.

I am not sure how much information to give to be useful, so please ask if I have missed something. I have a small number of very small data files on each of an iPhone and an iPad; their category headings are different on the two devices. The number of files and their structure is like this:

iPhone: CATEGORY A > aaa, bbb
iPad: CATEGORY B > ccc, ddd, eee; CATEGORY C > fff, ggg, hhh

File ddd (only) has three photos in it. There are also a number of empty templates (and three unused templates that have record) but they are not visible in the list of forms. I have set the same encryption key for each device, and Enabled Sync. The devices appear as registered devices in the little window. When I sync them (sync iPad, then iPhone, then the iPad again) the files are collected together, but some of them are lost (I tried looking for empty files with the same titles, but there are none). The result on both devices is like this – two missing files:

CATEGORY B > ccc, ddd;
CATEGORY C > ggg
CATEGORY A > aaa, bbb

The number of records in these files remains unchanged and, on a quick inspection, they look OK. When I look at the sync folder in Dropbox, the file structure is nothing like the category structure that I have set up on the devices. The photos have their own folder, which I can understand, and the three photos from ddd are in there. Then there are (were) three empty folders named, I think, after category headings that I had erased on the devices, and folders called Share and SyncDocuments. The SyncDocuments folder contains logs which at least confirm the syncs. Some of the data files that I was trying to sync are (or appear to be) in the Share folder and the two subfolders (called Exports and Imports) within it. The Imports folder also contains something called tabexample.zip, which itself contains one of the data files. Here is the distribution:
[Share] > aaa.csv, aaaiPAD.PDB, [Exports], [Imports]
[Exports] > aaa.csv, fff.csv
[Imports] > bbb.csv, tabexample.zip
tabexample.zip > bbb.csv

This is curious, because the Dropbox Sync folder does not include all the files that were synced, includes one of the files that was not synced (and photos from the other), and some files more than once.

Fortunately, I followed the advice and backed up before I tried the sync, and the restoration worked.

I have tried all this out in different ways, without success, so there are a number of SyncDoc files – I attach one, which I hope may be representative. Does anyone have any advice?

[Brendan]

Hi Mike,

Tap Forms stores all of its data in one single file called TapForms_db.sqlite. That file contains the forms, fields, and records that you enter into the database. There’s no separate file for each form within the database. It’s all combined into one big database file.

Those other folders you’ve seen such as the Photos, Share, Imports, Exports, etc. are all folders that Tap Forms creates for storing files that reside outside of the database itself. The database simply references the files in those folders. So all of that is normal.

The SyncDocuments folder contains a couple different kinds of files. The TFSyncDevice files are the registration files that get created and synced whenever you enable sync on any device.

The TFSyncDoc files are a snapshot of the TapForms_db.sqlite file in time, containing only the changed information since the last time you pressed the upload to cloud button on a device. The first time you do it the file will be the largest since it contains all of your data in the TapForms_db.sqlite file. Subsequent times you press the upload to cloud button, it will contain only the data from the TapForms_db.sqlite file that has changed since you last pressed the upload to cloud button. Each file will have a sequence number at the end of the file name. That’s what the [0], [1],….[n] means in the file name.

The technique for syncing goes like this:

1. Make a change to the database on any device.
2. Press the upload to cloud button on that device.
3. Wait for the other device(s) to receive that data.

That’s really all there is to it. I do realize that some people have had troubles with this, so that’s why I’ve been working hard on a completely new way to sync. I should be ready with it in a few months. The sync process will be fully automated in the new version.

Thanks!

Brendan

[Mike Fedeski]

Brendan

Thanks very much for the explanation.

When I apply your three steps, I still get a result on both devices that as before is missing three files from the iPad. So I restored the files on the iPad and, one by one, made alterations to the three that had not transferred, and repeated the sync. They then did appear on the iPhone, which now had all the files on it. But the files that had started on the iPhone needed to be similarly synced to the iPad and, try as I may, I could not get this to happen. One of them did transfer, but stripped of all its records and so initially hidden.

I think the best thing for me is to wait for your revamped sync routine.

Many thanks

Mike

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