Best technique for managing two laptops, with a mirror of content in both directions?

I imagine this is not a unique scenario, and that there are numerous ways to approach it. I've been remiss in managing it well and I'm ready to do it right--finally.

I have two laptops -- a primary and a secondary (backup). I use the primary 75% of the time, the backup 25% of the time. Thanks to Google Chrome, the browsing side of this is super easy, as my unique email ID ensures new and updated bookmarks and saved passwords end up dynamically loaded for each browser. The issue is dealing with user files.

I would really like to avoid using a cloud solution at this point. I do make periodic backups to a small form HDD that I keep stowed in a fireproof box and I live in a "fortress" of a building that over decades has never had a fire creep past one apartment unit. I'm also a bit paranoid... as I do not want every single file activity I do on my computer also uploaded to the cloud. I like my local folders. In my 30+ years of using computers, I've never had more than 1 HDD failure (and that was long ago--chalking it up to a sub par drive), and now everything is SSD (even more reliable).

In terms of files, I try to isolate all of my textual document editing to the primary. If I do any textual document editing on the secondary, I copy the file to a flash drive and copy it over to my primary. I have music, picture, and video collections. The picture ones change the most, as I frequently download files and also edit files using photo editing tools.

So what I'd like to achieve is this:

1. Two laptops, each possibly creating or adding files
2. External HDD that stores consolidated updates from the two laptops
3. Run a utility that detects new file changes since the last time run. Copy those files into a "transfer" folder, then copy them to the external HDD. Copy the new files to the other laptop so that the images match.

Is that a sound approach, or am I stuck in an antiquated mindset here? What's a better approach to take without resorting to cloud storage?

I do it with a NAS [Network Attached Storage] drive attached to my Router via Ethernet cable then on any computer I'm working with, wired or wireless, I can Map the Public folder [or any folder I create] and work with the files I store on it. It does not rely upon any one computer running.

Berton said:

I do it with a NAS [Network Attached Storage] drive attached to my Router via Ethernet cable then on any computer I'm working with, wired or wireless, I can Map the Public folder [or any folder I create] and work with the files I store on it. It does not rely upon any one computer running.

Click to expand...

Interesting. I had heard of NAS and was planning to look more into it. Is there a solution where you can plug in a stand-alone NAS into any power outlet and configure it to work on the WiFi network without a wired connection, or must it be connected directly to the router? Is the NAS also managed such that password credentials can be required so other computers in the WiFi network can't simply access it as a free remote drive?

In the end, cloud storage is offsite. Any NAS solution or removable hard drive solution haa the weakness of fire, flood, theft unless you arrange to have backups at a totally different location.

cytherian said:

I imagine this is not a unique scenario, and that there are numerous ways to approach it. I've been remiss in managing it well and I'm ready to do it right--finally.

I have two laptops -- a primary and a secondary (backup). I use the primary 75% of the time, the backup 25% of the time. Thanks to Google Chrome, the browsing side of this is super easy, as my unique email ID ensures new and updated bookmarks and saved passwords end up dynamically loaded for each browser. The issue is dealing with user files.

I would really like to avoid using a cloud solution at this point. I do make periodic backups to a small form HDD that I keep stowed in a fireproof box and I live in a "fortress" of a building that over decades has never had a fire creep past one apartment unit. I'm also a bit paranoid... as I do not want every single file activity I do on my computer also uploaded to the cloud. I like my local folders. In my 30+ years of using computers, I've never had more than 1 HDD failure (and that was long ago--chalking it up to a sub par drive), and now everything is SSD (even more reliable).

In terms of files, I try to isolate all of my textual document editing to the primary. If I do any textual document editing on the secondary, I copy the file to a flash drive and copy it over to my primary. I have music, picture, and video collections. The picture ones change the most, as I frequently download files and also edit files using photo editing tools.

So what I'd like to achieve is this:

1. Two laptops, each possibly creating or adding files
2. External HDD that stores consolidated updates from the two laptops
3. Run a utility that detects new file changes since the last time run. Copy those files into a "transfer" folder, then copy them to the external HDD. Copy the new files to the other laptop so that the images match.

Is that a sound approach, or am I stuck in an antiquated mindset here? What's a better approach to take without resorting to cloud storage?

Click to expand...

I use Goodsync, www.goodsync.com. You can set up "jobs" which control which files or folders you want synchronized, meaning add/update and delete files. You run the jobs on demand. Sync can be one-way or two-way.

No external drives or server is needed.

Are the two laptops identical? What is the total, used volume on each disk? It's a simple problem if you only want to synchronise documents, photos, music etc but gets complicated if you are installing and deleting programs.

If a document exists on both laptops, would you always want the newer to overwrite the older? What if one was newer but had mistakes that you wanted to reject?

cytherian said:

Interesting. I had heard of NAS and was planning to look more into it. Is there a solution where you can plug in a stand-alone NAS into any power outlet and configure it to work on the WiFi network without a wired connection, or must it be connected directly to the router? Is the NAS also managed such that password credentials can be required so other computers in the WiFi network can't simply access it as a free remote drive?

Click to expand...

First question, NAS does mean Network Attached. Haven't seen a NAS drive with wireless capability, yet. Second question, Yes it can require credentials. Software that comes with it should help with that.

Search Google or Amazon for wireless drives.

kelper said:

Are the two laptops identical? What is the total, used volume on each disk? It's a simple problem if you only want to synchronise documents, photos, music etc but gets complicated if you are installing and deleting programs.

If a document exists on both laptops, would you always want the newer to overwrite the older? What if one was newer but had mistakes that you wanted to reject?

Click to expand...

Per my post #5 above, I use Goodsync for partitions other than C:. My C: partition is only for Windows and programs. All my data goes on D or E for media like photos, music, etc. I also have an F drive where I store my program installs, programs I want to try out, etc,

Just for fun, I posed this question to ChatGPT:

"How can I synchronize content between two Windows laptops without using a cloud storage solution?"

This was ChatGPT's reply:

"There are a few different ways you can synchronize content between two Windows laptops without using a cloud storage solution. One option is to use a network-attached storage (NAS) device, which is a small, standalone device that connects to your home network and allows you to access your files from any device that is connected to the same network. This is a great option if you have a lot of data that you want to synchronize between multiple devices, and it can be faster and more secure than using a cloud storage solution.
Another option is to use a USB drive to transfer files between the two laptops. You can copy the files you want to synchronize to the USB drive, and then plug the drive into the other laptop and copy the files from the drive to the other laptop. This is a simple and easy way to transfer files between two laptops, but it does require that you have a physical connection between the two devices.
You can also use a software solution to synchronize your files between the two laptops. There are many different file synchronization tools available, such as Microsoft's SyncToy, which allows you to easily synchronize files between two folders on different computers. You can also use a tool like Dropbox or Google Drive to synchronize files between your laptops, but these require an internet connection to work.
Overall, the best solution for synchronizing content between two Windows laptops will depend on your specific needs and preferences. You can choose a solution that is easy and convenient, such as using a cloud storage service, or one that is more secure and private, such as using a NAS device or a file synchronization tool."

The SyncToy suggestion is pretty good, although I'd bet there are other similar, and possibly better, tools that could have been mentioned.

Take a look at Syncthing.

LesFerch said:

The SyncToy suggestion is pretty good, although I'd bet there are other similar, and possibly better, tools that could have been mentioned.

Click to expand...

I used to use SyncToy until I discovered that it was making copies (with "(1)" in the filename. FreeFileSync failed under heavy loads. I have had great success with the paid version of GoodSync.

FreeFileSync - open source so 'free to use', but does 'nag' with a donation request during every manual install/update.

Berton said:

Haven't seen a NAS drive with wireless capability, yet.

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These things are expensive like hell, but they do exist: WRX560 | Synology Inc.
I have an Asus RT-AX92U 2 Pack that I am using in mesh mode, the USB3 ports on this are fast enough to share files from external USB HDDs over WiFi 6 fairly decently whereas other, similarly priced WiFi 6 routers and WiFi 6 mesh systems either give you abysmally slow file transfer speeds if using them in this manner or they simply cannot be used in this manner because they don't have any such feature.

NAS (or fileserver) solutions and cloud storage subscriptions each have their own unique set of pros and cons, that's why a lot of people choose some strategic combination of both. Consider to use more than one different cloud service just in case. Also, the added option of storing at least SOME of physical backup media off site for better protection of the most critical data against the potential risk of local disasters like fires/floods/earthquakes/hurricanes/burglary/vandalism/etc.. But, HDDs/SSDs inside a NAS box are still vulnerable until the NAS has been powered down AND all cables have been physically unplugged from it. This includes not just the power cable of the NAS, but also all (data) cables that contain metal conductors to carry electronic signals between the NAS and any (and all) other electronics devices. In fact the interior of a NAS is typically NEVER as safe as a protective case stored in a safe spot in a separate room. That's part why the drive bays in a NAS are often designed to use some kind of tray loading, or caddy system to allow the drives to be more easily inserted/removed. And they also have USB ports typically. Personally, I, don't run a hotel where 25 guests each need to watch a 4k movie from a NAS at once. So, I just use a decent 16 port USB3 hub that plugs directly into my laptop and uses its own 100 watts power supply. (By comparison, my laptop's power supply is only 90 watts. lol...)

As for SyncToy, Syncthing, FreeFileSync, ROBOCOPY, TeraCopy and the like. I don't use any of those, as there's just too many limitations/bugs and various other problems with them. So far, I have been able to find only one exception to this. This one: FastCopy

Depending on what you want to backup, I am sure that one of the below will suffice with no need to cloud help .
This is a list of Image, backup & sync tools :

> Acronis True Image - PAID
> AOMEI Backupper Standard Edition - Free Backup Software for Windows - FREE
> Drive SnapShot - Disk Image Backup for Windows and PE. - TRIAL
> EaseUS ToDo Backup - FREE
> FreeFileSync: Open Source File Synchronization & Backup Software - FREE
> Hasleo Backup Suite - FREE [ Newly Released Software - NOT a lot known ]
> Karen's Replicator - Backup Utility - FREE
> Macrium Reflect - FREE Edition - FREE
> NovaBackup - PAID
> O&O DiskImage 15 Professional Edition - PAID - See NOTE: Below
> Paragon Backup & Recovery - FREE
> Second Copy Automatic Backup Software - PAID
> SyncBackFree: Backup and Synchronization Software - FREE
> Goodsync- Backup & Sync- PAID
> GS RichCopy 360 - Backup & Sync- PAID
> SyncToy - MS Download Centre - FREE
> Resilio - Backup & Sync- PAID

There are many more that could be added to that list, including some really good ones, such as Syncthing and FastCopy.

SyncToy is no longer available from Microsoft Downloads (no longer listed), although you might still be able to get the last version (2.1) from some 'trusted' third-party sites.

It is still working at present, but it wouldn't surprise me if some of the required dependencies automatically downloaded by new installations also start disappearing.

cytherian said:

Interesting. I had heard of NAS and was planning to look more into it. Is there a solution where you can plug in a stand-alone NAS into any power outlet and configure it to work on the WiFi network without a wired connection, or must it be connected directly to the router? Is the NAS also managed such that password credentials can be required so other computers in the WiFi network can't simply access it as a free remote drive?

Click to expand...

You can configure NAS in both ways (password required or no), and you can also configure particular folder to be accessed without password etc..

You can make any ethernet (wired) connected device as wireless with ethernet to WiFi bridge. Cost about 40$. I have almost a decade old TP-Link network bridge, still working, but not in use anymore..

LeLibran said:

SyncToy is no longer available from Microsoft Downloads (no longer listed), although you might still be able to get the last version (2.1) from some 'trusted' third-party sites.

It is still working at present, but it wouldn't surprise me if some of the required dependencies automatically downloaded by new installations also start disappearing.

Click to expand...

You can download SyncToy the x64 2.1 version from MS archives : SyncToySetupPackage_v21_x64.exe

Any software that can make a replica of my source disk. For example, if I install new software on my PC1, can that change be reflected on Pc2, assuming both PCs are the same spec?. I have a laptop and a desktop. Use the laptop when I am working at a client site, but in the office, the desktop as it's a lot faster.

Currently, I use Dropbox to sync. This works fine if you are working with individual files. What I am trying to avoid is installing software twice.

Anyone tried https://www.goodsync.com/goodsync-connect

Jay