How many files are there in the folders physically (on both sides)? Currently, the global state on both sides matches, which means that if there are more files on either side, they haven’t been detected at all, so Syncthing has nothing to send. Have you tried to trigger a manual rescan for the folder where you are trying to add the new file?
It’s okay. I have found the problem. The files that were not copied had a little arrow in a little black square in the bottom right corner of their icon on the linux mint box.
I just now copied some different files into those folders and they have copied okay.
I reckon it is because I was trying to use the symlink feature of linux mint and those files are somehow changed by it, looks like, and won’t copy with syncthing.
Do you know the thing I mean?
I have a file on the desktop on both win10 and on linux and i want to keep them insync so’s its’ one file. I can do that with syncthing but it means either syncing the whole desktop folder or doing it in some other folder. well the desktop is handy. i want to use the desktop if i can.
so that plan was to use symlink and have a symlink copy in my syncthing folder that then would copy over and stay in sync with the same thing on the other end: a copy in a syncthing folder which was a symlink to a ‘real’ file on the desktop.
If you get the idea.
Well looks like it is not going to work.
Syncthing can’t copy them, looks like. Something different about them. That’d be why the little arrow.
When you look in file manager in linux and open they open just like the real file: makes you think they’re identical and will perform the same. Apparently not.
Bummer.
So i will have to think of something else.
There was always doubt about if it would work anyway.
Might finish up simply having to work from the syncthing folder. It will still be better than having two different files containing the same stuff and still better than using google docs.
I got to thank you for your assistance. I is much appreciated.
Yes, Syncthing does see symlinks (aka. “soft links”) in Linux, but won’t sync them. Whether the destination is Linux or Windows, symlinks copied to another system would end up pointing to nothing.
Also, check out Syncthing’s ignore files feature if you’d like to only sync selected files from your Linux desktop.
For reference, from Syncthing’s FAQ regarding what types of things are synced:
Symbolic links (synced, except on Windows, but never followed)
From your screenshots, your Linux PC’s ~/Default Folder directory is more than likely on the same filesystem as ~/Desktop, so another option is to use a hard link instead of a soft link. Also from the Syncthing FAQ:
Not entirely accurate. As your own quote from the documentation says, they are in fact synced. Just not on Windows systems. Relative symbolic links within a folder can be very useful indeed. I haven’t used this consciously, but just pointing out what the documentation really says.
Thank you very much for that. I knew nothing of hard links. They look like exactly the way to go.
I had been thinking of trying the soft links the ‘other way’ round.
I remember (i was following instructions) I think that I made mine by going to the dir where I wanted the copy and issued the command there. That created a link file even if I already had a valid copy of the file existing there, which in fact I did. It edited it or overwrote it or something and made this file ‘with the arrow in the corner’. And it won’t sync.
I was thinking maybe if I put the original file in the syncthing folder and went over to the desktop to issue the command it would make the symlink file on the desktop but still have a valid file for syncing in syncthing’s folder.
I don’t know if it would work. I’d want it to work all along the chain of course. Do the same thing at both ends and have it operate smoothly: I edit the ‘real’ file on the desktop at either end and the changes replicated across to the other.
BUT now it looks like that’s totally not necessary. This hardlinks thing will do the job in no uncertain fashion I think. Feels more robust to me. Only need to have the files on the same disk I think? Too easy.
From a high level point of view, they look just like soft links.
Sure, that’d work just fine. Given the choice between a hard link and reversing the direction of the soft link, the latter would be more flexible.
The steps vary depending on the desktop environment being used on your Linux PC, but if using the command-line is of any interest, it’s the fastest and most portable method across not only Linux, but other Unix-like OSes…
The general syntax for the ln (i.e., “link”) command is:
ln --symbolic <target> <link>
So if you have the real file notes.txt as ~/Default Folder/notes.txt, and you want a desktop shortcut with the same filename:
On the Windows PC, right-click on the file, then drag-and-drop onto the desktop. A context menu will appear with options on what to do, including creating a shortcut.
Hardlinks are limited to the same filesystem, or from the point of view of disks, the same partition. On Linux/Unix systems, it’s very common to have /home on its own partition or disk, so soft links cover more use cases.
I got to thank you for your assistance. I is much appreciated.