Other sync solution than iCloud needed

Any idea on the timing?

Can’t give dates, but it is something we want to look at first half of this year.

Perhaps OneDrive too? People that have Office365 have 1TB+ OneDrives.

Maybe down the track. We will consider it.

Aside: This is the main reason we are a bit reluctant about supporting other services. There are so many file sync services, and everyone uses a different one. Each one is quite a lot of work to support. It’s not a question of adding one and the others follow easily. So we will probably go with the biggest (Dropbox), so at least there is an option to iCloud, and then wait and see. Other services will probably get a lower priority to other important features we want to add.

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Thankfully I’m not in this boat where I am locked out of icloud. Another possible option is to do what Omni Group did with OmniFocus. They were able to let users create their own WebDAV server and have it host the data.

https://support.omnigroup.com/omnifocus-sync-webdavnav/

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Understood. Side question, why not going the full integrated sync solution, just like “Things 3” just to name one?

Excellent point. I’ve used it for years, although mostly for synchronizing OmniOutliner and OmniGraffle documents. I have found that it is actually more reliable than either iCloud or Dropbox for timely and accurate synchronization of files. The big BUT is, but where do you find a reliable commercial WebDAV server; the Omnigroup provides one with limits that I occasionally run into.

I know it is a crowded field, and I have friends who insist that their cloud choice is “better/cheaper/faster,” and Dropbox is on the over-priced side, but it continues to be reliable and nearly universally embraced year-after-year. Would I pick it over iCloud? Since I’m essentially forced to have both, I use iCloud for synchronization and Dropbox for file storage, but I think Dropbox would be the smart alternative for those who can’t use iCloud.

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But there are some user who won’t be able to use Dropbox because of corporate security (all internal data must stay on internal servers). So, Dropbox is not an option.

I’m not familiar with WebDAV.does someone know about hosting your own WebDAV server on a Mac Mini?

If a corporation blocks iCloud and Dropbox, they’ll block other services too. Nothing we do would work there.

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It’s an option down the line. Storing the data of hundred’s of thousands of customers is expensive though, and you really need server experts. Ie a much bigger company than we currently have. And we would have to pass the cost on to the customer, where iCloud is already paid for. (OmniFocus costs 4 times as much as Agenda, and part of that is cloud costs.)

Trying to make either macOS or iOS standalone is self-defeating. The end result would be a product that really doesn’t do anything special. Given such limitations, why not just put everything into text files and copy them back-and-forth? I know: neither convenient or interesting. (As an aside, retirement was the the only cure for corporate IT madness.)

At some point every software developer has to make tough decisions about supported platforms, with an emphasis on “supported.” The Agenda team seems to keep this in perspective, which is a reason I would bank on your longterm survival in a market where cool looking apps come and go.

If you were to provide your own synchronization service, I guarantee that the same companies blocking iCloud and Dropbox would block it, too. I also doubt that the IT departments would allow “rogue” WebDAV servers in their enterprise; I know that would have been the case in my career.

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    I’m in the same boat - IT has disabled iCloud Drive.
    My ability to use the tool will be super limited without an ability to work across devices using some other shared cloud resource (e.g. Dropbox or OneDrive)
    Super encouraged by the response of the Agenda team to add support for other options.
    Thank you!
    I love the fresh approach you’ve taken with Agenda.
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Yeah, that is what I think too. As soon as these companies see people syncing with something, they will block it.

The text file idea is not totally absurd. We actually have ideas about something a bit like that, and even experimented quite a bit with it. Maybe it will come out someday…

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i think the recurring theme here is that it is impossible to sync with iCloud as work devices often disable it or force the use a business account.

I do not believe people have qualms, in general, of having personal data on the work machine and vice versa.

I would very much like WebDAV to be an option. I’m also already using it with OmniFocus, and with other applications using OmniPresence on top of it. This has been the most reliable way to sync stuff for me, over several years.

You can set up a WebDAV server very easily anywhere by renting a VS with Apache and mod_dav. It would be an IP address not on anyone’s blacklist, looks like regular HTTPS traffic, and is under your control. So that’s certainly a viable option for tech-savvy users that are suffering from other cloud services being blocked.

And I’m certain that for non tech-savvy users, there are a bunch of services out there which provide webdav shares for third party users.

Maik

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Thanks for the feedback. The main challenge with WebDAV is the expense. We would have to pay for the storage, and that would probably mean increasing the price of our licenses, which we would prefer not to have to do.

Omni charge 3-4 times as much as we do, and have a 100 man team with server engineers, so they now have the luxury to do it. Might be a few more years before we can afford it :wink:

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Well, I didn’t at all want to imply that Agenda should host such a service. In my case, I would want to use my own existing WebDAV server, and anyone else could either choose to use someone else’s WebDAV service, set one up themselves, or stick to iCloud or something. Agenda would “just” need to be able to sync via WebDAV.

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I see. We can consider it down the track. For now, it is probably a bit too fringe for most customers. We will likely add Dropbox first, which has a wide audience, and also will facilitate sharing of Agenda libraries between users. Later, we may get to other sync options, and perhaps WebDAV is a good one which, as you point out, would allow people really in a pickle at work able to circumvent the firewall.

I can’t purchase unless I can sync between iOS and my MacBook - such a shame

You will need to give us more information. What is stopping you from syncing? An employer firewall?

We began by supporting the one service that all Apple customers have. We hope to extend this to other services in the near future. Hopefully that will help.

Kind regards,
Drew

I am having the same problem, in my case due to security restrictions on my work Apple devices placed by my employer. The security profile prevents enabling iCloud, for some reason. Dropbox seems to be allowed, for now.

That’s probably your best bet then. Dropbox sync is coming soon.