The Basics
The basic idea behind Allway Sync is pretty simple. You start off with two folders you want to have at the same state. This can be two folders on the same computer, on two different computers or one folder on a computer and one on a server.
Before synchronizing you can have the program present you with a pane showing differences between the two folders. There you can change synchronization settings (like the direction) for files individually, or mark files for the software to skip when synchronizing. Once you are done you simply hit ‘Synchronize’ and Allway Sync will do the rest.
Scheduling
One thing Allway Sync really shines at is scheduling. You get more options than you are ever likely to use. You can have your data synchronized periodically or manually or a mixture of both, for instance.
File Versioning
Now this is something I really love about this tool. Instead of only deleting older version of files, you can tell the program what to do with those outdated versions. You can, for instance, have older versions be saved into an archive folder. In my opinion this feature can be a real life saver.
Verdict
Allway Sync is very fast and very easy to deal with. While being simple in its basic use, there is more options than you will most likely ever shake your stick at. If you use a tool that synchronizes your data automatically and securely between different locations, if you expect the tool to be easy to use while giving you the option to set up special rules for certain items; then this is definitely for you.
Thanks for this site. It will be good once it gets more content. I found it because I am looking for a a solution to make my life easier. I have systems at work and home (work in NY, live in Canada). I would prefer on many occasions to travel with just a small solid state HD, versus carrying my whole computer. Here is what I’d like to do…
1) I have an eSata card on both machines and both with a NexStar eSata toaster (really just a hard drive connector that can be hot mounted)
2) I have a HD (in this case a good SDD) that is SATA (for speed, so that its not a pain to do all this)
3) At work our HD is encrypted as part of policy using Pointsec, but it allows me to mount a HD from the eSata card without trying to encrypt the drive.
4) I plan on putting all my Lotus notes DB’s in one folder and will keep all my docs in My Docs. From there I had planned to just use something like Alway Sync to keep both folders up to date.
Comments on whether this will work?