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PureSync is the top pick in this category. The only major feature that I found it lacks is the ability to copy open or locked files in the free edition. It has a fairly good set of filters and rules to fine tune what files are included in the job operations. It creates a database during the initial sync operation which it uses to detect file collisions or conflicts, and propagate deletions thereafter. It has a good preview of what files are going to be copied, updated, or deleted when performing a sync job. It has a nice scheduler and supports enabling auto sync for storage such as USB drives. It also has some special options for copying photos from digital cameras. Be aware that while it supports syncing to network locations, syncing with FTP is only supported in the paid version. Over all I was very pleased with its numerous features and ease of use, and heartily recommend it to the average user.
FreeFileSync is another solid contender here. In fact I had a hard time choosing between FreeFileSync and PureSync for my top pick. The thing I like the best with this utility is its very clear and informative interface. The preview is very easy to understand, and file collisions and deletions are more readily recognizable than in PureSync. If you require a sync program that can copy files that are in use or locked, FreeFileSync has you covered there too! Unfortunately it only has very basic filters, no auto sync feature, and no direct support for FTP. My final complaint would be that its help file is a little sparse. Those few flaws aside, I found it to be well designed and easy to use.
Allway Sync is my third recommendation. It is a very well rounded product with loads of features. It has a very robust filter and rule set and definitely has the edge here over the other two previously reviewed products. It also offers support for FTP, scheduling, and auto syncing. It has a very thorough help file which can be of great benefit especially to those who are new to synchronization programs. One draw back I found is that while it does detect file collisions and deletions, it is not very clear how to choose which versions of conflicting files to keep and which to overwrite. You should also be aware that in the free version of Allway Sync there is a file copy limit of 40,000 files in any 30 day period. So if you have a large amount of files to synchronize on a daily basis you might need to look at a different choice. Also note that it does not support copying locked files as the developers feel it could compromise data integrity. Honourable Mentions. SyncBack: Supports file compression, and can verify file integrity after job completion. |
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2.1.9 
Free for personal use 
Win 98 - 7
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About Always Sync & Go.
When you sync several thousands of you will get an invite to purchase a prof version. I have several thousands of pictures and mp3. So this is not freeware!
PureSync is listed as having a 64bit version available. Win7/64 installs their v2.2 download as x86. How do I get 64 bit version?
My deepest apologies. I appears I was wrong and there is not a 64bit version of PureSync. I miss-read the systems requirement list, which actually states that PureSync (32bit) will work fine on 64bit operating systems.
I corrected the info above. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Ritho
Editor
Not a problem! Thanks for taking the time to clarify. I'll just try it anyway!
Thanks for the excellent reviews and comments. One question I didn't see addressed: Do each of these options work with encrypted drives/volumes? As soon as the encrypted volume/drive is mounted, will the automatic sync functions perform as advertised, or is there an extra step? I refer specifically to U3-enabled flash drives, as well as TrueCrypt or similar. Thx.
I can't answer your question with absolute certainty because I don't have an encrypted drive to test it on. Still I will say yes I believe those with auto sync functions will work as soon as the drive any mounted. The moment that Windows can read the file system the auto sync feature will start.
I would try Puresync first. Let us all know what the results are if you try.
Ritho
Editor
I have never used any folder sync app, but recently realized I need to do so.
One requirement I would like that is not mentioned in the comparisons above is the ability to save and recall several persistent setups. For example my setup #1 would do one-way sync from folder A to folder B and recurse deeper folders, but my setup #2 would need to do two-way sync between folders A and C but not recurse deeper folders.
Is such a feature so common that it was not mentioned, or not implemented in any of them?
Thanks.
I've used Dsynchronize a little for basic sync/backup. Not bad but perhaps not good for advanced use...
http://dimio.altervista.org/eng
[Ah, DSynch already mentioned earlier.]
How about Toucan? That handles backup and restore jobs as well as syncing...
http://portableapps.com/apps/utilities/toucan
Toucan is reviewed in the backup category. As a sync app it does not really meet much of the review criteria mentioned in the introduction above.
Any comment on "Karen's Replicator"
Yep. It is good at what it does. But it is more of a backup program as it does not support bi-directional syncing.
Can anyone advise whether any of the sync programs reviewed here are capable of syncing sqlite data base files like that used by Firefox for bookmarks etc. I have tried Synctoy in the past but it just seemed to copy one sqlite data file over the other rather than syncing them.
Thanks
JT
Allway Sync synchronizes sqlite files okay
I assume you are wanting to synchronize the entries within the data base files. As far as I am aware none of the above programs can do that.
For bookmarks you can see our review here.
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-bookmark-syncronizer.htm
You might look into some of the freeware SQlite managers available on the net. I believe there are a few that can import and merge database files, and it may be possible to create a script to do it automatically.
RITHO
Editor
I have used SyncToy (okay for minor syncs)and All Way Sync in the past, but find Free File Sync to be the easiest to use. It seems to me to be faster than All Way, too.
Does anyone know if Synkron can copy open or locked files?
Are these all cross-platform?
If you are asking if they will all run on Operating Systems other than Windows the answer is no. Only FreeFileSync above has a Linux version. The other two are Windows only.
A couple of utilities I have found very useful for sync'ing folders:
Vice Versa Free - http://www.tgrmn.com/free/
Ice Mirror - http://www.ice-graphics.com/ICEMirror/IndexE.html
(Ice Mirror is more of a 'duplicator' than a sync utility, but it's extremely good at it).
~~Spider
Synchredible is definitely another awesome option to sync files and folders:
http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/File-Management/Synchredible.shtml
Enjoy!!
Try Microsoft SyncToy:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=C26EFA36-98E0-4....
SyncToy is no longer recommended here because of some major bugs including but not limited to improper reading of file creation times (date stamps) on external media, and serious data corruption errors.
Many people use it without problem but if you go read in Microsoft's SyncToy forum you will find many do have some serious problems.
Editor
YES - synctoy cannot synchronize between FAT32 (on a USB memory stick, for instance) and NTFS. A major shortcoming.
I like SyncToy
Allway Sync is quite powerful, though it can be a bit fiddly to manually select the right option for copying/ignoring/deleting individual files. One very irritating feature is the way it changes the volume label of a disk where it is installed, renaming it "Allway Sync" - this can be undone, but in the case of a hard disk requires a registry edit.
I agree about the fiddliness of the interface for selecting what happens to individual files. They definitely need to rethink that a bit.
I have never experienced the volume label change you mentioned. You mean it renames your drive label so that it reads "Allway Sync" even if you look at the drive with windows explorer, or just as you view it from within Allway Sync itself?
Ritho
Editor
It would be helpful also if the author advised which of the programs leave database files littered all over the user's hard drive. I use Syncback which doesn't, and have tried FreeFileSync, which also doesn't, but I have also tried AllwaysSync and SyncToy, which do. Other than that minor quibble, Thanks for the great effort at finding and reviewing these apps.
The title of this review is "Best Free Folder Synchronization Utility", but the review begins with talking about sychronization of "files or folders in two or more locations, such as different computers". I downloaded the first pick PureSync, but (it seems that) it can only handle files and folders on one computer (aside from support for FTP servers in the paid versions), so I am quite confused. Do some of these programs synchronize between two computers?
Also PureSync doesn't seem to handle files with country specific characters, it totally trashed my Mp3 collection because there were files with Icelandic characters in the file names.
PureSync started making new folders wihout those characters and temp files all over the place.
I will never use it again.
I personally am very sorry about the difficulty this has caused you. I contacted the developer and am including his response below.
PureSync is able to handle filenames with unicode characters. However there was a bug, so that the tmp files were not deleted. This has now been resolved with version 2.2 (Download: http://www.jumpingbytes.com/en/puresync.html)
About the problem with the filenames with the Icelandic (or other unicode) characters: In case this still occurs with version 2.2 please send details (e.g. operating system (type and language) and screenshots) to the email address which you find in the PureSyncs About dialog. Thank you , Christoph Guentner, Jumping Bytes
Regards,
Christoph Guentner, Jumping Bytes
Yes all the programs reviewed above can synchronize across different computers on a local network. Fore example if you want to synchronize two home computers such as a desktop and a laptop you must set up a home network, then create network share, such as a shared folder. Then in Puresync where you choose the folders you want to sync, you go to your network places and choose your shared folder on the other computer.
If you don't have a home or local network set up and don't know how, search the internet for articles on "setting up a home network"
FTP is for transferring files over remote networks like the internet. For example syncing your home PC with your PC at the office. While Puresync does not support FTP directly, I think there is a work around. I believe that it can be made to work by mapping a remote network drive in Windows over a VPN (Virtual Private Network). Then the mapped drive will appear as a local drive and you can synchronize to it. A good free software for setting up a VPN is OpenVpn which can be found at www.openvpn.org
A simpler method, however, would be to set up auto sync to a portable drive such as a small usb flash drive. You plug it in at the office, it syncs the files, then you take it home, plug it in and the same thing happens there.
Hope this helps.
Ritho
Editor
Simple question that MAY be already answered, but...
my two pc's are a desktop running XP SP3 and a laptop, running Vista.
Can any of these sync programs work in synching between those 2 PLATFORMS, or do the operating systems have to be the same?
Yes they will work between different versions of Windows. See the comments directly above on how to go about syncing two computers over a local network.
Ritho
Editor
These apps are OS agnostic. Install on one PC, map your sync to a second using the IP or UNC path, and you're done ....
I use syncbackpro, and it's great. Try their free version at 2brightsparks.com
Has anybody used PureSync? = http://www.jumpingbytes.com/en/puresync.html
It came highly recommended by Auslogics = http://www.auslogics.com/en/blog/2009/07/puresync-backup-and-synchronize...
PureSync is now included in the review above
The newly released SyncToy 2.1 appears to have some serious flaws when copying large amounts of data. Go to the SyncToy forum for comments from some users who have done some fairly extensive tests. SyncToy 2 also had problems with mangling photos and mp3s. This program hasn't worked right since version 1.4
I've settled on Robomirror. It is essentially a GUI for the robust file copy command included with Windows.
From the Robomirror site:
RoboMirror's aim is to provide a user-centered GUI for Robocopy, which allows to easily synchronize two directory trees, e.g. to perform a robust incremental backup, both locally (e.g. to an external hard disk) and across the network.
Installer and portable versions available here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/robomirror/
Here's another really good one: PureSync http://www.jumpingbytes.com/en/puresync.html which is free for personal use but a Pro version adds a few extra features. It is easy to use and light on resources. The interface is a bit jittery (on Windows 7) but nevertheless it is still a great program.
I have been using Windows Live Sync since the FolderShare days, and have been very satisfied. I have several different sync folders configured: between work laptop and desktop, between daughter's laptop at college and home desktop (her "live" backup of documents), and between 2 laptops and home desktop. The latter allows synchronizing across laptops that are not always online at the same time, but by including the desktop, everything stays in sync. The conflict resolution mentioned above is great - prevents overwriting.
Another feature of Live Sync is the ability to allow (if desired) access to files on a computer in your list. So if there is ever a need to copy a file that is not inside a synchronized folder, you can still get it.
How about up to 400GB synced for free. That's what Live Sync offers.
I couldn't agree more with the previous author. Live Sync is a splendid product with amazing (to me) capabilities - 20 separate syncs with 20GB per sync - Mac and PC. I have it automatically syncing seven computers of varied age and OS. Some are on all the time and some are used only once a month or so - these latter serve as backups.
Yes it has some problems, but they're inherent to the logic of the situation. If two people edit a file on different machines when offline, then both copies are saved with an identifier to indicate where they came from. One has to go through and clean out the "wrong" versions once in a while.
If you're paranoid you could worry about MS having access to your files. That's about the worst I can think of to say about it. Other than that it's wonderful.
Jim Mitchell
Was using SyncExp but found FreeFileSync to be easier and faster. The interface is easier to understand and you do not have to create a task, just select folders to be compared. Deleted folders are handled better with FreeFileSync also. You can delete folders or send them to the recycle bin. Great utility!
I've finally quit looking for one that has a logical interface and is easy to use.
Synkron as mentioned in a couple of other posts is great, it is simple and easy to use but has a lot more options than I've ever needed.
FreeFileSync used to look good but in use previous versions seemed to be missing a few things. However, the latest version of FreeFileSync has been improved, it is now even easier to use, and it added a delete files option as well. I no longer have any complaints with it and it is now the only file/folder sync utility I use.
Thanks for the article, helped me get started but after trying a couple of different softwares, Synkron seems like a definite win for me, it's not mentioned here but open-source, packed with features, very configurable. Only problem might be that you can't use ftp with it but there are obviously workarounds using windows etc.
I tried all three tools suggested in the article and only one suited me needs: AllwaySync. SyncToy had a problem with the current version (2.0) that involved reading timestamps incorrectly and the SyncBack freeware version wasn't sophisticated enough to provide the feature to propagate deletions. AllwaySync was the most useful tool and the one I favoured but it had the blasted filecount sync limit that absolutely crippled it for me for the next 30 days.
Afterwards I went through all the posts and comments prior to mine and looked up many other sync utilities but most of them were underpowered and/or not attractive (it may seem irrelevant, but if you find two tools with the same features but one supports a Vista Compatible GUI and the other a Win3.1 GUI then the choice is obvious).
Finally, right on the last post I read about Synkron and I feel like I found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow! This program is somewhere near as powerful as AllwaySync but it's open-source and best of all: free! the program is active but updated not so frequently. Regardless, it still works wonders. I successfully ported all my sync jobs from AllwaySync to Synkron and I'm at peace.
In case Google is failing (can it really?):
https://sourceforge.net/projects/synkron/
Yep, totally agree. Dropbox wins hands down
Dropbox is the winner for me with my mixed environment of Macs, PCs and iPhone.
If you can live with the 2GB limit Dropbox is very good... but it won't get a mention here because this is a Desktop-only review and Dropbox is online sync. Another interesting solution is to use Skydrive - 25GB for free - with Gladinet, this is even better - AFAIK - than Dropbox or Syncplicity... Mesh is still in beta but so far you can only sync files, not folders and subfolders which is a BIG con if you ask me... review should include not only that but also file managers sync features, never reviewed that specific category (Free Commander, Xplorer2, XYplore the new Far Manager, others...?).
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