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Keeping two MacBook Pro's synchronised

G

Graphically

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 18, 2020
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I have two MBPs. One I use as a desktop replacement and I rarely take it out. It's connected to an external monitor, external drives and so on. I have another one, that I would like to use as my 'grab and go' portable Mac. The software and email etc are easy enough to synchronise, but I would like any suggestions for having the data synchronised between the machines.

Obviously, Dropbox is one solution, but I use very large graphic files and so this isn't always practical. I had thought of having it connected as a target disk and having Carbon Copy Cloner run hourly clone backups to it. But any other 'no brainer' solution across WiFi/LAN/USB etc would be great.

Thanks.
 
No-brainer would be ChronoSync

The Best Mac Backup and Sync Software - ChronoSync | Econ Technologies

ChronoSync is a complete, all-in-one solution for file & folder synchronizations, incremental backups, bootable backups (a.k.a clones) and cloud storage. In use by thousands of photographers, video editors, filmmakers, musicians and other data professionals. No other app can compare!
www.econtechnologies.com
 
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sahnert said:
No-brainer would be ChronoSync

The Best Mac Backup and Sync Software - ChronoSync | Econ Technologies

ChronoSync is a complete, all-in-one solution for file & folder synchronizations, incremental backups, bootable backups (a.k.a clones) and cloud storage. In use by thousands of photographers, video editors, filmmakers, musicians and other data professionals. No other app can compare!
www.econtechnologies.com
Click to expand...

Thanks. Yes, similarly that's why I use CCC. I was mainly wondering about connectivity methods I suppose – Wifi/networking etc.
 
Possibly I am being a dense old man and not properly understanding the OP, but why not have all your data in folders under Documents and let iCloud sync across machines? That's what I do, so all my circuit and coding work as well as my routine Word files are available to me on all devices, and with only the 50GB data plan. Obviously I'm missing something.
 
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You're not being dense, because I didn't specifically say so. But I don't use iCloud.

However, as I said, I work with huge files and cloud-based options aren't really practical. Hence, I need a local-based solution.
 
What are you trying to sync? For a simple copy of e.g. the documents folder you can use the "rsync" command in terminal. That's what I do every now and again to keep an old laptop up to date (mainly as a secondary backup).

rsync allows you to just to copy what's new or sync (which will delete off the target what was also deleted from the source) in either direction. As an example:

rsync -va --timeout=5 --delete "/Users/<userID>/Documents/" "root@target.local:/Users/<userID>/Documents/".

If you wanted to copy over configurations for all apps, you'll need to copy directories out of the user Library folder. I don't know if the entire Library folder could be copied regularly but I did it once manually and the old laptop didn't crash :) It was good for getting my Firefox profile and email settings (and the local emails themselves) copied over.
 
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Graphically said:
However, as I said, I work with huge files and cloud-based options aren't really practical.
Click to expand...

What size are the files?

I am not exactly sure how iCloud drive works, but it seems to keep a local copy on my disk. The iCloud part seems to be a backup. When I move a file into Documents I sometimes see the uploading icon which does seem to slow file access.

After than, though, things are very fast. I just moved a 1.5 GB file from Documents to an external hard disk and it was virtually instantaneous. Clearly there was no network involved, although it was an iCloud documents file.
 
I was going to suggest the Dropbox LAN sync thing, but I'm pretty sure it still relies on a copy being uploaded to their servers first. After which, any other computers on the same account will check the LAN first to see if a copy exists.

Best bet would be CCC or another similar programme which can be set to run regular copy jobs. Or a lower-tech but maybe more reliable (for us old school techies) using rsync and have it automatically scheduled.
 
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I'm using Synology's Cloud Station to keep my Macs synchronized. Every time I'm connected to it (either WiFi/LAN or via the internet) it automatically keeps the files on the DiskStation up to date and synchronizes them, as soon as one of the other Macs was booted.
This doesn't help with configs/apps, but all the other stuff working for me perfectly (in the meantime 2MBP + 1 iMac).
 
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ascender said:
Best bet would be CCC or another similar programme which can be set to run regular copy jobs. Or a lower-tech but maybe more reliable (for us old school techies) using rsync and have it automatically scheduled.
Click to expand...

Yep thanks, I'm leaning towards that direction. Especially as I already use CCC.
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throAU said:
Set up a box running NextCloud and install the NextCloud client software on both. Treat it just like iCloud Drive or dropbox or whatever, but it's your own server.
Click to expand...

Thanks. That looks useful, but probably better for multi-user collaboration than my little set-up. But I've filed it for future consideration.
 
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