Sync conflicts

A conflict happens when the same file or note changes in two places before sync can bring them together. For example, you edit a note on your laptop on the train, and the same note on your desktop at home. In most cases, Filarr doesn't pick a winner behind your back: it keeps both versions and lets you choose.

What Filarr does in each case

What changed	What Filarr does	What you see
A personal file	Stops syncing that file and asks you which version to keep.	The file shows the Sync conflict badge. A message says a conflict was detected, with a Keep local button. In Sync activity, the Failed tab lists the file under Conflicts.
A personal note	Merges automatically. When the same note changed on both sides, it keeps one version in the note and sets the other aside as a conflict copy.	Conflicts to resolve appears in Notes, with a count.
A note in a shared vault	Overwrites nothing.	A message says someone else saved this note while you were editing, and the two versions appear face to face so you can choose.
A file in a shared vault	Overwrites nothing.	Someone changed this file at the same time, with Overwrite with my version, Keep both and Download theirs.

Resolve a file conflict

Settle file conflicts in the desktop app. The web app lists them, but its buttons can't settle them.

1. Click the sync icon in the header to open Sync activity.
2. Open the Failed tab. The file appears under Conflicts, with the size and date of My version and of The cloud one. When both sizes are equal, Filarr tells you the content is probably identical.
3. Click Keep my version or Keep the cloud one.

Choose with care: you can't bring back the version you don't keep from the app. You can also click Keep local in the conflict message as soon as it appears: it keeps the version of this device.

A conflict can also appear when you are the only one who changed the file, for example after saving it in Filarr's built-in text editor. Compare the dates: the most recent version is usually the one to keep.

Resolve a note conflict, step by step

The note concerned says so itself: when you open it, a This note changed on another device banner shows at the top, and the note bar carries Conflict. Click See both versions: the window opens directly on that conflict, at step 3. The conflict copy shows This note is a version set aside, with the same button.

To go through all the conflicts:

1. In Notes, click the title of the list (All Notes, for example) and choose Conflicts to resolve, at the bottom. The entry only shows when there is at least one conflict, and the note concerned carries the Conflict status in the list.
2. The Resolve conflicts window lists the notes concerned. Click Resolve next to one of them.
3. The window now reads Two versions of followed by the note's title. It shows Your version, the one the merge kept, and The other version, with where it came from (for example Came from the cloud).
4. Go through the differences. Each one is numbered (Difference 1 of 3, for example) and offers:
   • Use your version;
   • Use the other version;
   • Keep both, one after the other, when the two changes can sit side by side.
5. Move from one difference to the next with Alt+↓ and Alt+↑, or with Previous difference and Next difference.
6. To take one side for every difference at once, click Keep my version or Keep their version at the top.
7. Check the Result preview. A counter at the bottom shows how many differences you have settled.
8. Click Resolve. The button becomes available once every difference is settled. Then click Confirm and delete the copy.

The note now holds your result, and the conflict copy is gone.

Special cases

The list of conflicts flags some notes:

• Both versions are identical: there is nothing to choose. Click Delete the copy, then Confirm deletion.
• Original in the trash: click Restore the original to compare the two versions, or Keep as a separate note.
• Original gone: this copy is the last one holding that text. Keep it with Keep as a separate note, or delete it.
• Copy edited since: you edited the conflict copy after Filarr created it. Resolving deletes the copy, so bring what you wrote in it into the result first.

If the note changes while you are deciding, Filarr redoes the comparison and clears your choices.

Conflicts in a shared vault

In a shared vault, nothing is ever overwritten silently.

• A note: your version and the vault's appear face to face. Pick, difference by difference, what the note keeps, with the same choices as for a personal note. Then click Save the merged note, and Confirm and save. If the vault's version can't be shown, you can still choose Save mine over theirs or Discard mine and load theirs.
• A file you were replacing: Overwrite with my version replaces theirs, Keep both adds yours next to theirs with "(conflict copy)" after its name, and Download theirs saves their version to your computer.
• A document open in the editor (an .fdoc, a text file): if someone saved it while you were editing, nothing overwrites it: a banner says so, and nothing saves on its own anymore. Save deliberately overwrites their version, once you confirm; Load theirs replaces your text with the vault's, in front of the other participants, without saving anything. If the shared editing session you join has fallen behind the vault, the banner says so as soon as you open the document, with Load the newer version.

Work together in a vault covers live editing and the other shared vault tools.

Related articles

• How sync works
• Work offline
• Work together in a vault
• Version history and export
• File version history