The app works entirely offline: your data lives in a local database on the device. Synchronization is what makes that data also exist on the server — so you can open the app on another device, so you don't lose everything if the phone disappears, and so a shared category can reach the other person.
What is required to synchronize
| Requirement | What happens if it is missing |
|---|---|
| Being signed in | Without an account there is nowhere to send. The app reports that the account token is missing. |
| A valid token | If it has expired, sync stops and offers the Refresh session button, which renews the token without asking for your password. Only when the server refuses the token do you have to sign in again. |
| Sync consent | Sending data to the server requires an explicit opt-in. Without it, sync is refused even with a valid sign-in — and the screen offers the Turn sync on button, which settles it without leaving the app. |
| Not being in Test Mode | Sync is disabled in sandbox mode on purpose: test data must not travel up to your account. |
When one of these is missing, the sync screen does not let "Start" fail: it says what is missing and shows only the button that settles that particular case — sign in, turn sync on, refresh the session, or open the client area on the website.
Turning sync on
The consent is your agreement that your data may leave this device. Turning it on is a two-step path inside the app itself, on the Turn sync on screen:
- You read and accept two statements — that the data will go up to the server, and that turning this off later is not symmetric.
- The app tells the server and renews the session. Both steps show on screen as they happen; if either fails, the message says what went wrong and offers the way out — try again, or sign in again when the session is the problem.
Repeating the process is safe: the server answers the same way for an account whose consent is already on.
Turning it on happens in the app; turning it off happens on the website, in the client area. That is not red tape: turning it off erases everything already synced, and that confirmation lives on the page that explains what is about to go.
If you have just changed the consent on the website and the app has not noticed yet, tap Refresh session — the preference travels inside the token, and the token has to be reissued. The app also does this on its own from time to time.
Before you start: what there is to sync
Before you press Start, the screen shows what a sync would move:
- To send — what still only exists on this device, split by kind: entries, annotations, categories, imports, settings and deletions.
- To receive — what already exists on the server and has not reached this device yet, counted the same way.
- Connection — whether the server answered, and how quickly. It is a real request made with your account: if it went through, the sync will too.
- Estimated time — a rough figure, worked out from the amount above and from your own previous syncs. It is deliberately a rounded phrase ("under 5 seconds", "about 2 minutes"), because the arithmetic behind it is not exact.
This request sends nothing and writes nothing — it is only a question. If the server does not answer, the panel keeps showing this device's side, which is a local number, and leaves the other side out: with no answer, a "0" there would be a guess. Refresh asks again.
What the progress bar is doing
- Collecting. The app reads the local database and separates everything that changed since the last successful sync.
- Marking. The selected items are marked for sending — the message shows how many.
- Communication. The batch goes up and the app waits for the response. It is the longest step and the one that depends on your connection.
- Completion. What came back from the server is written locally and the summary shows how many items synced and how many failed.
The on-screen log groups messages by second, so a big sync doesn't turn into an unreadable cascade. You can cancel at any time: the cancellation is requested from the running process and recorded in the log. And when it finishes, the app waits a few seconds before allowing another run — this prevents repeated triggers out of impatience.
Automatic synchronization
Most of the time you don't need to open the sync screen at all. The app fires by itself in four situations:
- Initial sync — right after the account is linked to the device.
- Manual change — when you create or answer a share, for example.
- Batch change — after an import or a bulk categorization.
- Routine — from time to time, and only when it has been a while since the last valid sync — not on every app launch.
Moving to a new device
- Sync on the old device. Run a manual sync and confirm it finished successfully, with no failed items.
- Install and sign in on the new one. With the same account. The app detects there is no local data and goes for the initial sync.
- Check before wiping the old one. Compare the category count and any given month of entries on both devices. Only then uninstall.
Under Settings › Sign out, among the other options, there is Download my data: a file export that opens the system's own save dialog. It is independent from the server and works even without an account — worth keeping a copy before any large operation, such as a huge import or a category tree reorganization. Being on that screen does not commit you to leaving anything.