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Sync folders/files between iPad and Mac WITHOUT using iCloud OR Apple Photos


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Hello,

I've researched the forum but still need to post for suggestions, recommendations... 
I use Affinity Photo, Designer, Publisher on Mac and iPad.

Old Workflow before Apple:
I had a nice workflow when I had Windows Desktops and Windows Laptops: Google Drive Backup and Two-Way Sync (now Google Drive Desktop for Workspace) kept all my Photo/Video folders and files in sync across all my devices.

Now, seeking new workflow with Apple:
Early this year (January, 2021) I decided to migrate to Apple and bought M1 Mac Mini (currently has MacOS 12 Monterey) and M1 iPad Pro (currently has iPadOS 15). Google Drive does not have Syncing features under the iPad Google Drive app.

3 Notes to keep in mind:
Note 1. I'm eventually going to a NAS but will stay with Google Drive in the meantime. I don't want a solution that uses  iCloud OR Apple Photos or other cloud or photo storage/editing solution.

Note 2. Also, I think the best solution is to have 2 copies of all my data (one on Mac, one on iPad) for speed of files with local availability, and as a backup. But want them to stay in Sync so if any of the data (One or more Terabytes of Photo/Video files) is changed. 

Note 3. Sync content between the Mac and iPhone or iPad using Finder (devices connected or on same wireless network) does not work because it wants to use iCloud OR it wants to use Apple Photos. The "Files" tab of this approach only transfers data, but does not "Sync" data even though it uses the word "Sync".

A few solutions I've seen in my research are:
1. Network Drive. Not sure of the details but want 2 local copies (one on each device) and sync capability when devices are apart and/or together on same network.
2. Resilio Sync
3. SyncThing with Mobius App (for iOS)

What suggestions, recommended solutions can you share?
What are your thoughts and suggestions for keeping Photo/Video folders and files in two-way sync across Mac, iPad devices?

Thank you!

 

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Curious why? Could it be because like here, iCloud is way too slow and unreliable with Affinity? That there is no way to know if and when the file will sync? Until u say f-it, and just air stash on the other device and waste time sorting it out later? Well, best of luck finding a replacement for whatever reason. But I just want the free one as advertised to work! 

ps i too just want to work back and forth on the new mini ipad and mac mini m1. right now, it dunna work.

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I suggest that if you fight against the features provided to you by Apple you will get incredibly frustrated.


You have migrated to Apple for good reasons. It took me 30 years to break away from Microsoft and Google. 10 years now with Apple now and never looked back.  Use iCloud and Apple Photos. Make sure optimise storage is enabled and subscribe to extra iCloud storage if you want the best experience of your new Apple devices. 

 

My dad always told me, a bad workman always blames their tools….

Just waiting for Ronny Pickering…..

Affinity Photo, Designer, Publisher 1.10 and 2.4 on macOS Sonoma 14 on M1 Mac Mini 16GB 1TB
Affinity Photo, Designer, Publisher 1.10 and 2.4 on Windows 10 Pro. Deceased
Affinity Photo, Designer, Publisher 2.4 on M1 iPad Pro 11” on iPadOS 17.4 
 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/AffinityForiPad

https://www.facebook.com/groups/AffinityPhoto/

The hardest link to find https://affinity.help

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10 minutes ago, Paul Mudditt said:

I suggest that if you fight against the features provided to you by Apple you will get incredibly frustrated.


You have migrated to Apple for good reasons. It took me 30 years to break away from Microsoft and Google. 10 years now with Apple now and never looked back.  Use iCloud and Apple Photos. Make sure optimise storage is enabled and subscribe to extra iCloud storage if you want the best experience of your new Apple devices. 

Is it working from your ipad (15.2) to your mac mini (12.1 Beta (21C5021h)) and back??? It does not here... reliably... things like color labels come across, but changes... nah. 

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  • 3 months later...

Hello,


Lot of digressions, sorry!

I’m not a professional but I was looking for the same answers and still am I.  My reasons were to be as web-free as possible ( an old bad but liked habit).As an old Mac user, I wish to be free to choose how I’ll do things (ex: it’s no more allowed to back up iOS apps on OS X and reinstall/modify the apps on iOS from your Mac. On each machine you’ll have to download apps again - and apps that are no more on AppStore won’t be usable no more…

That’s said, for the commodity of files quick updates between devices, finally I do sync Notes.app and Calendars.app threw my free 5GO iCloud account).

My wish too is to have a copy of my selected files and folders on each machine (iPad Pro 12,9 second generation, iPhone SE 2020 (not all files….) and…… (waiting M2 perhaps) a MacBook Pro 17 inches mid/late 2008 with an SSD - on 10.11 El Capitan!

For photos and music (import to Mac and sync of Mac albums to Photos / Music on iOS, I’ll (still) use iTunes. I did the same for Contacts and Calendars, till recently (as said before - now iCloud but without internet I could still use it too).
 

For files, I’m using Readdle Documents app (I’m speaking about the iOS side of sync.
- you can connect a lot of clouds , a little bit like Apple Files.app

- you can connect to sites or computers by FTP or SFTP:

1. Useful if you want to midify a part of a site

2. THE REAL SUBJECT: after having joined a computer on your local network, you could choose files or folders on your computer to be sync between your devices, with and through your computer (perhaps with a need to allow connection to shared folders on your Mac in Settings.app - Sharing tab - or you can connect to your whole computer).

Pro and cons:

- I would suppose it’s for a sync limit: your synchronized files cannot be attained from another app directly (ex Files.app): they are in a special folder only readable from Document.app . So, let’s imagine you always need to send a special attachment with your mails. Solution one: you’ll create you mail directly in Documents.app and send it through Apple Mail.app. But if you would like your attachment to be in an answer to a mail, it won’t be possible, because - answering to your message in Mail.app - you will only be able to use the files in Document.app at first level, not in your synced folders….. solution two: really not ideal: make a copy of those files from your synced folders to the first-level folders.

- Documents.app does synchronize to your Mac only if it’s not in the background….. not ideal, no?

- another remark about files and folders in Documents.app, with no relation with our problem: folders are always above files - what I dislike a lot. I even wrote to Readdle two years ago, but after some exchanges, they didn’t allow an option to change it.

 

Here we’re my two words…- I would be really curious to know about others strategy. Using iOS apps would be better, as K.I.S.S. (Keep it simple) seems a good precept to me.

With Apple Files.app, you can connect to your computer (ex. 192.108.1.1) but you cannot sync ….

 

Regards,

 

Macmat

 

Edited by Macmat
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  • 1 year later...

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