XPost: comp.mobile.android

I want my Android DCIM folder to automatically sync with a similar DCIM
folder on the Windows PC whenever Android is connected to the home Wi-Fi.

So I installed syncthing but I can't get it to work to sync files yet. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid

I don't see where to set up the location on Windows to sync with.
Do you have syncthing working to sync pictures over Wi-Fi with Windows?

If so, can you offer setup advice for using syncthing with Windows?

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

Jan K. <janicekoziol@nie.ma.spamu.prosze.com> wrote:

I want my Android DCIM folder to automatically sync with a similar DCIM folder on the Windows PC whenever Android is connected to the home Wi-Fi.

So I installed syncthing but I can't get it to work to sync files yet. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid

I don't see where to set up the location on Windows to sync with.
Do you have syncthing working to sync pictures over Wi-Fi with Windows?

If so, can you offer setup advice for using syncthing with Windows?

I don't use Syncthing on Windows but I do use it over a mixed bag of
other systems, including an Android phone.

So:-

You do have Syncthing installed on the Windows system as well as
on the Android system do you? Silly question but you never know?

You then have to go to the GUI at one end or the other (I think
I'd do it on the Windows machine) and tell it to add a Remote
Device, which will be the Android system.

Finally, when the two Syncthings can see each other (i.e. they're
listed as Remote Devices) you need to set up the required folder
on one system (I think you have done this) and tell it to share
that folder with the other system.

It is a bit quirky at times but it's incredibly useful (and bugfree)
when you've got it set up as you want.

If you want more detailed help then you can E-Mail me directly, my
E-Mail here works.

--
Chris Green
·

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

W Thu, 1 Feb 2024 07:30:37 +0000, Chris Green napisal:

You do have Syncthing installed on the Windows system as well as
on the Android system do you? Silly question but you never know?

Oh. Ooopsie. I did not know that. I was going to give up on syncthing
in favor of something like Windows freeware https://freefilesync.org/
but I see what you mean at the syncthing web site for Windows software. https://syncthing.net/ https://github.com/syncthing/syncthing/releases/download/v1.27.2/syncthing-windows-amd64-v1.27.2.zip

I guess you need both the Windows & Android software to sync DCIM.

You then have to go to the GUI at one end or the other (I think
I'd do it on the Windows machine) and tell it to add a Remote
Device, which will be the Android system.

That explains why when I used the Android software to add the remote
device, it just stared at me like I was telling my kids to clean dishes. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid https://f-droid.org/packages/com.nutomic.syncthingandroid/

Finally, when the two Syncthings can see each other (i.e. they're
listed as Remote Devices) you need to set up the required folder
on one system (I think you have done this) and tell it to share
that folder with the other system.

All I need, for now, is my DCIM folder to be synced one way.

Does syncthing do a one-way sinc in your experience?
Or does it have to actually sync both ways?

It's really just a one-way copy that I need, but if it's a sync, that's OK.

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

On 2/1/24 12:20 AM, Jan K. wrote:

I want my Android DCIM folder to automatically sync with a similar DCIM folder on the Windows PC whenever Android is connected to the home Wi-Fi.

So I installed syncthing but I can't get it to work to sync files yet. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid

I don't see where to set up the location on Windows to sync with.
Do you have syncthing working to sync pictures over Wi-Fi with Windows?

If so, can you offer setup advice for using syncthing with Windows?

If you have the phone syncing photos/videos with Google, you can see/download all the photos in
Google Photos on the web/PC. photos.google.com
--
Linux Mint 21.2 Cinnamon
Al

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

In comp.mobile.android Jan K. <janicekoziol@nie.ma.spamu.prosze.com> wrote:

I want my Android DCIM folder to automatically sync with a similar DCIM folder on the Windows PC whenever Android is connected to the home Wi-Fi.

So I installed syncthing but I can't get it to work to sync files yet. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid

I don't see where to set up the location on Windows to sync with.
Do you have syncthing working to sync pictures over Wi-Fi with Windows?

If so, can you offer setup advice for using syncthing with Windows?

If you want to control things from the Windows side, Syncthing is a
good approach. It's a bit 'difficult'/unusual to set up - its paradigm
is quite different than similar tools -, but once you've figured that
out, it's quite powerful. (You've got help on Syncthing from Chris, so
I'll leave it at that.)

As you elsewhere indicate that a one-way copy, Android to Windows, is
all you need, you might want to have a look at FolderSync [1].
FolderSync is an Android app, which can sync to/from a (SMB) Network
Share on Windows, so you do not need any additional software on the
Windows side. (But ofcourse you need to know how to set up a Network
Share on Windows.)

I looked at FolderSync, 'X-plore File Manager'/'File sync' [2] and
Syncthing and because my need was only to sync folders from Android to
Windows, I ended up using FolderSync.

Thanks, Arno Welzel, for the pointer to FolderSync.

[1] <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dk.tacit.android.foldersync.lite>

[2]
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lonelycatgames.Xplore>
*and* (for the 'File sync' function) <https://www.lonelycatgames.com/docs/xplore/file-sync.>

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

Jan K. <janicekoziol@nie.ma.spamu.prosze.com> wrote:

W Thu, 1 Feb 2024 07:30:37 +0000, Chris Green napisal:

You do have Syncthing installed on the Windows system as well as
on the Android system do you? Silly question but you never know?

Oh. Ooopsie. I did not know that. I was going to give up on syncthing
in favor of something like Windows freeware https://freefilesync.org/
but I see what you mean at the syncthing web site for Windows software. https://syncthing.net/ https://github.com/syncthing/syncthing/releases/download/v1.27.2/syncthing-windows-amd64-v1.27.2.zip

I guess you need both the Windows & Android software to sync DCIM.

You then have to go to the GUI at one end or the other (I think
I'd do it on the Windows machine) and tell it to add a Remote
Device, which will be the Android system.

That explains why when I used the Android software to add the remote
device, it just stared at me like I was telling my kids to clean dishes. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid https://f-droid.org/packages/com.nutomic.syncthingandroid/

Finally, when the two Syncthings can see each other (i.e. they're
listed as Remote Devices) you need to set up the required folder
on one system (I think you have done this) and tell it to share
that folder with the other system.

All I need, for now, is my DCIM folder to be synced one way.

Does syncthing do a one-way sinc in your experience?
Or does it have to actually sync both ways?

Well, if you only change files at one end it will do a one way sync! :-)

I can't remember if you can tell syncthing only to copy in one
direction, it's not something I've ever wanted to do.

It's really just a one-way copy that I need, but if it's a sync, that's OK.

If you're happy to tell it when you want to copy the files then rsync
would be an obvious choice, there is at least one rsync for Android.

--
Chris Green
·

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

Chris Green <cl@isbd.net> wrote:

Jan K. <janicekoziol@nie.ma.spamu.prosze.com> wrote:

[...]

All I need, for now, is my DCIM folder to be synced one way.

Does syncthing do a one-way sinc in your experience?
Or does it have to actually sync both ways?

Well, if you only change files at one end it will do a one way sync! :-)

I can't remember if you can tell syncthing only to copy in one
direction, it's not something I've ever wanted to do.

Yes, you can do a one way sync. Because that's what I wanted as well,
I re-checked my notes and indeed: You tell one side to use Folder Type
Send Only and the other side to use Folder Type Receive Only.

It's really just a one-way copy that I need, but if it's a sync, that's OK.

If you're happy to tell it when you want to copy the files then rsync
would be an obvious choice, there is at least one rsync for Android.

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

W 1 Feb 2024 18:04:09 GMT, Frank Slootweg napisal:

All I need, for now, is my DCIM folder to be synced one way.

Does syncthing do a one-way sinc in your experience?
Or does it have to actually sync both ways?

Well, if you only change files at one end it will do a one way sync! :-)

I can't remember if you can tell syncthing only to copy in one
direction, it's not something I've ever wanted to do.

Yes, you can do a one way sync. Because that's what I wanted as well,
I re-checked my notes and indeed: You tell one side to use Folder Type
Send Only and the other side to use Folder Type Receive Only.

Thank you. I got so far as a QRcode (which I've never used before) but it
turns out you can right click copy that image and text comes out of it.

All I want is that when I come home and connect to my home access point,
that this triggers a one-way-sync (aka a copy) of DCIM to the Windows PC.

When I installed the Windows (server? client?) it asked a few times to get through my firewall (public versus private?) but I don't know what to say.

I never understand that question from Windows so I don't usually allow it.
Do I need to set up the default Windows and Android firewalls somehow?

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

Jan K. <janicekoziol@nie.ma.spamu.prosze.com> wrote:

W 1 Feb 2024 18:04:09 GMT, Frank Slootweg napisal:

All I need, for now, is my DCIM folder to be synced one way.

Does syncthing do a one-way sinc in your experience?
Or does it have to actually sync both ways?

Well, if you only change files at one end it will do a one way sync! :-) >>
I can't remember if you can tell syncthing only to copy in one
direction, it's not something I've ever wanted to do.

Yes, you can do a one way sync. Because that's what I wanted as well,
I re-checked my notes and indeed: You tell one side to use Folder Type
Send Only and the other side to use Folder Type Receive Only.

Thank you. I got so far as a QRcode (which I've never used before) but it turns out you can right click copy that image and text comes out of it.

All I want is that when I come home and connect to my home access point,
that this triggers a one-way-sync (aka a copy) of DCIM to the Windows PC.

When I installed the Windows (server? client?) it asked a few times to get through my firewall (public versus private?) but I don't know what to say.

I never understand that question from Windows so I don't usually allow it.
Do I need to set up the default Windows and Android firewalls somehow?

Sorry, can't help you with that. I don't think I got any questions
about changes to the Windows Firewall. I normally take rather detailed
notes when I set something up and my notes contain nothing about
firewall settings.

As a general rule, it should be OK to open up incoming connections
for 'Private networks', because those are your network at home and
possibly at work. Don't open up incoming connections for 'Guest or
plublic networks', because those are networks in public places such as
airports or cafes.

While composing this response, I checked my Windows Defender Firewall settings and see that Syncthing has the 'Enabled' field set to 'Yes' for
the 'Private' Profile ('Profile' field says 'Private'). So I guess
there's your answer after all! :-)

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

Big Al <alan@invalid.com> wrote:
Big Al wrote on 01.02.2024 13:37Big Al wrote on 01.02.2024 13:37>> If so,
can you offer setup advice for using syncthing with Windows?

If you have the phone syncing photos/videos with Google, you can see/download all the photos in
Google Photos on the web/PC. photos.google.com

I think the key reason developers wrote syncthing was to protect people
from being forced to use Google's servers just to copy photos to a PC.

Without having to replicate & manage their own cloud servers to do it.

"Even if you use cloud storage, SyncThing can still be a useful tool." https://www.pcworld.com/article/2048298/how-to-use-syncthing-to-sync-files-without-the-cloud.html

"Syncthing is an open-source peer-to-peer file synchronization tool
that you can use for syncing files between multiple devices
(including an Android phone). Usually, we have a cloud sync solution
like MEGA or Dropbox to have a backup of our files on the cloud
while making it easier to share it. But, what do you do if you want
to sync your files across multiple devices without storing them
on the cloud? That is where Syncthing comes to the rescue." https://itsfoss.com/syncthing/

"Use Syncthing to Create a Cloud Without a Cloud" https://everyday.codes/tutorials/use-syncthing-to-create-a-cloud-without-a-cloud/

"This is referred to in techy circles as a BYO (Cloud) model, where you
provide the hardware instead of a third-party commercial vendor. The
encryption used is also fully end-to-end, as you encrypt it on your device,
and only you can decrypt it. No-one else holds the encryption keys."

"Syncthing replaces proprietary sync and cloud services with something
open, trustworthy and decentralized. Your data is your data alone and you deserve to choose where it is stored" https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nutomic.syncthingandroid https://proprivacy.com/cloud/review/syncthing

"Syncthing is an open source file synchronisation replacement for
commercial big-tech services like Dropbox and Google Drive." https://benhoskins.dev/syncthing-dropbox-and-google-photos-replacement/

"Syncthing allows you to keep files in sync across your machines, while
keeping you in full control of where your data is and how it is
transported."
https://www.jm.technology/post/syncthing-setup_final/

"Syncthing itself is a daemon/service, not an app in the traditional sense. It's something that can run in the background on your Linux, Windows, or
macOS machines, as well as your Android phones and tablets. There are
however, frontends for Syncthing that make the configuration and management
of it much nicer than a config file!" https://medium.com/linuxforeveryone/how-to-sync-all-your-stuff-with-syncthing-linux-android-guide-536fe61d68df

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

On 2/1/2024 11:59 AM, Chris Green wrote:

If you're happy to tell it when you want to copy the files then rsync
would be an obvious choice, there is at least one rsync for Android.

I'd like rsync on Android to sync with Windows my important files.
Is the rsync you speak of one of these I found just now by searching?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.legalimpurity.rsync https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.linminitools.myrsync https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.danielroggen.unison https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.arachnoid.sshelper https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.icecoldapps.serversultimate.packa

Each of those says it's a free rsync with no ads and no added costs.

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

On this 1 Feb 2024 19:01:31 GMT, Frank Slootweg wrote:

I checked my Windows Defender Firewall
settings and see that Syncthing has the 'Enabled' field set to 'Yes' for
the 'Private' Profile ('Profile' field says 'Private'). So I guess
there's your answer after all! :-)

Syncthing Firewall Setup
https://docs.syncthing.net/users/firewall.html

Syncthing Windows Setup https://github.com/Bill-Stewart/SyncthingWindowsSetup/tree/main

Syncthing Windows Firewall Rules https://github.com/Bill-Stewart/SyncthingWindowsSetup/tree/main?tab=readme-ov-file#windows-firewall-rules

Syncthing requires permission to communicate through the Windows firewall. Creating and removing firewall rules requires administrative privileges.

Firewall Rule Creation
If you run Setup in administrative (all users) installation mode,
Setup creates a firewall rule for Syncthing automatically, without prompting.

If you run Setup in non administrative (current user) installation mode,
Setup prompts to create a firewall rule for Syncthing if it doesn't exist (requires administrative permissions).

If you perform a silent install in non administrative installation mode
(see Setup Command Line Parameters), Setup does not create a firewall rule
for Syncthing, and you must create it manually.

Creating the Firewall Rule Manually
If you ran Setup using non administrative installation mode and need to
create a firewall rule for Syncthing manually, open a PowerShell or
command prompt window and run the following command:

cscript "C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Programs\Syncthing\SyncthingFirewallRule.js" /create
(where C:\Users\username\appData\Local\Programs\Syncthing is the Syncthing installation folder)

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

W Thu, 1 Feb 2024 14:47:48 -0700, Charlie napisal:

If you perform a silent install in non administrative installation mode
(see Setup Command Line Parameters), Setup does not create a firewall rule for Syncthing, and you must create it manually.

I didn't know at first to use the administrator account so that must be it.

Creating the Firewall Rule Manually
If you ran Setup using non administrative installation mode and need to create a firewall rule for Syncthing manually, open a PowerShell or
command prompt window and run the following command:

cscript "C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Programs\Syncthing\SyncthingFirewallRule.js" /create
(where C:\Users\username\appData\Local\Programs\Syncthing is the Syncthing installation folder)

That SyncthingFirewallRule.js file doesn't seem to exist in the current
version where there are firewall rules for various platforms, but not that.

I don't normally touch the Windows firewall (defender?) because
I don't understand when to say yes and when to say no to it.

What I might do is uninstall and reinstall as the administrator. https://github.com/Bill-Stewart/SyncthingWindowsSetup
I also noticed a web page comes up when I run the executable. https://docs.syncthing.net/intro/gui.html

I noticed in one of the posts that a Windows tray GUI is available. https://github.com/canton7/SyncTrayzor https://github.com/canton7/SyncTrayzor/releases/download/v1.1.29/SyncTrayzorPortable-x64.zip

"SyncTrayzor is a little tray utility for Syncthing on Windows.
It hosts and wraps Syncthing, making it behave more like a
native Windows application and less like a command-line utility
with a web browser interface."

I'll work on it by starting over by installing as administrator & following somebodies instructions instead of guessing how it installs on Windows. https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/how-to-download-and-install-syncthing-on-windows/ https://ltl.gitbook.io/lil-learning-cave/cloud-and-file-synching-softwares/installing-syncthing
https://www.osradar.com/easily-synchronize-your-files-with-syncthing-on-windows-10/

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

Larry Wolff <larrywolff@larrywolff.net> wrote:

On 2/1/2024 11:59 AM, Chris Green wrote:

If you're happy to tell it when you want to copy the files then rsync
would be an obvious choice, there is at least one rsync for Android.

I'd like rsync on Android to sync with Windows my important files.
Is the rsync you speak of one of these I found just now by searching?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.legalimpurity.rsync https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.linminitools.myrsync https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.danielroggen.unison https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.arachnoid.sshelper https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.icecoldapps.serversultimate.packa

Each of those says it's a free rsync with no ads and no added costs.

I'm afraid I'm not going to be much help, how to choose an app from
Google Play is something I've never quite worked out how to do! :-)
Personally I try and use Fdroid whenever possible and that offers the
rsync I found earlier - it's called syncopoli:-

https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.amoradi.syncopoli/

--
Chris Green
·

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On 2/2/2024 1:45 AM, Chris Green wrote:

I'm afraid I'm not going to be much help, how to choose an app from
Google Play is something I've never quite worked out how to do! :-) Personally I try and use Fdroid whenever possible and that offers the
rsync I found earlier - it's called syncopoli:-

https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.amoradi.syncopoli/

Since F-Droid is deprecated, I picked up syncopoli using F-Droid Basic. https://f-droid.org/packages/org.fdroid.basic/

Although I could have just downloaded it using a Windows web browser. https://f-droid.org/repo/org.amoradi.syncopoli_26.apk

I like that it imports/exports settings but this implies it needs root. https://gitlab.com/fengshaun/syncopoli

Why does it need root? Or doesn't it need root? Can't figure that yet.

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Larry Wolff <larrywolff@larrywolff.net> writes:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.arachnoid.sshelper

I've used this one for rsync. It has more features than just rsync, like
mDNS so I can refer to my phone as phone.local as below and ssh for the
rsync transport. Some more shell commands too. My backups started from a
PC go with just:

rsync -azzv --no-perms --ignore-times --checksum --copy-dirlinks --exclude-from=$HOME/phone_rsync_excludes phone.local:/sdcard /archive/backups/phone_rsync

There's one wart: the first time I start sshelper, I can't login in the
phone. So I have to start sshelper, stop it (there's a menu entry for
"Stop server and quit") and then start it again. This didn't happen with
my old OnePlus6 but only with my current Samsung S21.

I've never gotten around to setting this up so I could just start the
backup from the phone end.

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XPost: comp.mobile.android

comp.mobile.android Charlie <charlie@nospam.com> wrote:

On this 1 Feb 2024 19:01:31 GMT, Frank Slootweg wrote:

I checked my Windows Defender Firewall
settings and see that Syncthing has the 'Enabled' field set to 'Yes' for the 'Private' Profile ('Profile' field says 'Private'). So I guess
there's your answer after all! :-)

Syncthing Firewall Setup
https://docs.syncthing.net/users/firewall.html

Syncthing Windows Setup https://github.com/Bill-Stewart/SyncthingWindowsSetup/tree/main

Syncthing Windows Firewall Rules https://github.com/Bill-Stewart/SyncthingWindowsSetup/tree/main?tab=readme-ov-file#windows-firewall-rules

Syncthing requires permission to communicate through the Windows firewall. Creating and removing firewall rules requires administrative privileges.

Firewall Rule Creation
If you run Setup in administrative (all users) installation mode,
Setup creates a firewall rule for Syncthing automatically, without prompting.

I got the Windows Syncthing program by downloading from the 'Windows Intel/AMD (64-bit)' link on the <https://syncthing.net/downloads> page:

<https://github.com/syncthing/syncthing/releases/download/v1.27.2/syncthing-windows-amd64-v1.27.2.zip>

I guess this gave a UAC prompt during installation (resulting in administrative installation mode), which would explain why I didn't have
to create any firewall rule myself.

After the fact, I found that there are apparently several different installation packages.

Jan K. seems to have used the 'Synchthing Windows Setup', which is
listed under 'Integrations' on the <https://syncthing.net/downloads>
page.

It's somewhat funny that these Integrations are labeled "user friendly"
and as "These are good starting points if you are a new user unfamiliar
with Syncthing, or not prone to loving the command line.", yet Jan K. encountered firewall problems with the 'user friendly' Integration,
while I had no problems with the 'hostile' zip file! :-)

If you run Setup in non administrative (current user) installation mode, Setup prompts to create a firewall rule for Syncthing if it doesn't exist (requires administrative permissions).

If you perform a silent install in non administrative installation mode
(see Setup Command Line Parameters), Setup does not create a firewall rule for Syncthing, and you must create it manually.

Creating the Firewall Rule Manually
If you ran Setup using non administrative installation mode and need to create a firewall rule for Syncthing manually, open a PowerShell or
command prompt window and run the following command:

cscript "C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Programs\Syncthing\SyncthingFirewallRule.js" /create
(where C:\Users\username\appData\Local\Programs\Syncthing is the Syncthing installation folder)

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