Syncthing is a free and open source file sync software, you can use it to seamlessly sync files across your devices, all you have to do is install it on two devices, connect them, and then add some folders and share them.
As long as Syncthing is running and both devices are online, they will sync the files between them. If they’re on the same network, they’ll use it, otherwise. They’ll use a Syncthing relay server.
What Can You Use It For?
- Share files with other people
- Sync game saves across devices
- Sync configuration files between machines
- Sync media, documents, and notes
- Use it as a simple alternative to cloud storage services
An Example Use Case
Different people use Syncthing completely differently, I sync all the folders that i care about across my phone, server and PC. i also changed the file versioning option on the server folders to trashcan file versioning, this way:
- Even if i permanently delete a file from one if my devices, i still have a copy on the server thanks to file versioning.
- I don’t need to worry about losing data if i lost any of my devices, i have extra copies without the need of remote storage.
- Sending files to another device of mine is as easy as ever, i just put the file in one of the sync folders, and its already there most of the time since i have my screenshots, downloads and document folders synced by default.
- I can sync folders to share files with other people, this could be anything from Minecraft server mods to large raw media files without dealing with the limitations of any other method.
Caveats
The main caveat is that since files are not stored on a remote server, devices must be have Syncthing running and be connected to a network to start syncing, the only way to change that behavior with Syncthing is to have it installed on a server, or a machine that’s running 24/7.
Tips
- By default, when using an official client, file versioning is disabled. So deleting a file on one device will also delete it on the other once they sync. You can easily adjust this behavior when setting up sync folders, you can also many different things with sync folder, such as setting a folder to receive files only and never delete and much more.
- There are official clients for most popular platforms, not for IOS though. so if you’re on IOS, check out this blog post. It will help you find a client.
- By default, you you wont be able to access the web GUI from another machine until you change the listen address in the settings or configuration file.
- On android, your operating system might kill Syncthing and stop it from running in the background, to fix that i would visit Dont kill my app!.