Sync strategy

Privacy Questions
1

Hello dear community,
I’ve read so many discussions, here and redt, but I’m still in a loophole, from above a year and a half, about choosing the correct configuration for my data. I’m currently in the situation of manual quarterly backup (I really can’t do it more regularly) of my smartphone, and I’m looking for a better automated system.
Speaking of my hw/sw config: powerful desktop replacement laptop running Linux and a Pixel running Graphene.
I need to sync the classic smartphone data: contacts, calendars, tasks (tasks org app), notes and all data (whatsapp backup included).

I want a no-cloud based sync configuration, that could transfer the various data, on an local wifi network (maybe connected to internet, but the data, between the local IPs)

so I tested syncthing.

I put my smartphone on thetering, deactivate data cell, and I was able to sync everything (even the whatsapp backup). All works great (even the big archive of whatsapp).
But there’s a thing: I could’t choice for the hotstop as the only wifi network for syncing. I don’t want the syncthing service running on the smartphone, looking for my PC in every wifi I’m connected with.

for contacts, calendars, tasks, I tried DecSync in combination with syncthing and I have a lot of problems here: the files in the folder created by the DS service, are completely empty. That’s for the smartphone side. For the laptop side, I couldn’t understand what software I could use to open the different formats, contacts, calendar, tasks (tasks org app)

for the note, I’m actually using standard notes, but I want to switch to a no-cloud based system (with attachments), I see jtxBoard could fill that role, but I don’t understand how I can open the notes archive created with it, with the laptop

so I’m thinking…maybe could be a good idea using NextCloud?
so in the web interface, I could browse the various contents, even the notes using their app?

last big problem: browsers passwords
I’m using, on laptop linux/brave/keepassxc, on the smartphone graphene/vanadiumORbrave/keepassdx
…but I don’t have any idea how to do that in an automated way

I gratefully hope for your opinions.

  • a dazed person :melting_face:
2 Likes
2

I know that’s not really an answer, but could a self-hosted Nextcloud box at home be a solution? Then you could easily sync your files, calendar, tasks, addressbooks, notes, passwords and so on. All of these have Nextcloud “apps”. And it’s not really a “cloud” if it’s just another computer in your house.

2 Likes
3

For various reasons, can’t do it, one of these: I don’t have a connection at home. But I know, it’s the best thing to do, in most of cases.
thanks! :smiley:

4

You can self-host nextcloud on your own notebook.

DecSync looks interesting, I did not knew about it.

And I think you can not make sync keepass easy way. Syncthing could help, but it wont be sync in real-time, just updating current db to other devices.

For notes maybe check Markor, it stores your notes as simple MD/txt files, which you can sync with Syncthing, also with nextcloud (nextcloud stores notes same way as files).

Also Syncthing can encrypt/decrypt synced folders, I never used this feature though, not sure if it is for untrusted networks or untrusted devices…

5

I’m sorry, I didn’t specify I obviously meant (basing on my current hw setup and needs), nextcloud must be running on the laptop (virtualized or containerized … or both :rofl:). I did’nt know Markor. I installed it. I think I give it a try! It use mainly markdown files for persistence, so It haven’t a encrypted db, but I think this could be simpler to do, combining an archive using DroidFS. But… if I use Nextcloud, I could use It’s system for notes.

I try to find and test the feature you’ve mentioned about encryption on syncthing.

and … I know, for the passwords, is a big problem…

thanks :wink:

6

You allready use linux, you should dig into docker or Podman, they run containers to self-host literally anything, nextcloud or Bitwarden or whatever else. I use podman for two photo hosting solutions, also Jellyfin, minecraft server recently, some small things, all from local pc for LAN access only.

7

The most interesting thing, for me, you said, is: you were able to selfhost bitwarden… i didn’t know that! This could be a great solution instead the brutal file synchronization, of keepass

thanks! :smiley:

8

Updates and questions:
One of the problems is in different local IPs subnet changing (because of different local networks, such as multiple android devices hotspot and the two LAN, such as office and home). The solution I’ve made for this is using mDNS, and between the workstations there isn’t any problem, but with the Android clients, I wasn’t able to configure them. Anyone who tried this way and maybe leave it for another or had success in it?

thankyou

9

For that you want DAVx⁵ it is available in both F-Droid and Google Play. If you’re looking for a decent calendar I think Etar works well enough.

You can use the default Contacts app, or install another one like Contact You or even use the official Google one with Sandboxed Google Play.

If you want to do that then look into Radicale and run your own DAV server. Add it to DAVx⁵.

Syncthing is okay for files, but it is not what you want to use for contacts/calendars.

Don’t use DecSync you can very easily lose data. Use Radicale it’s robust and use DAVx⁵.

Quillpad doesn’t yet support this. You could use a generic markdown editor like perhaps like BeauTyXT. Syncthing would be suitable for syncing these .md files however.

Probably overkill just for notes.

Vaultwarden, you can use their docker container. You can then use the official Bitwarden clients with it. They are re-writing those soon to be nice swish native ones.

Do not use KeepassXC with syncthing, again you can lose data if you update one of your copies and there was data in another copy that didn’t get synced. The reason for this is because Syncthing works based on the last time a file was touched, it has no knowledge of the underlying data or what changed.

2 Likes
10

@dngray very useful answer, thanks a lot!
Can I ask you if you have a solution for dynamic IP? as I said, I tried mDNS but I wasn’t able to work with it on the smartphones, only on my workstations

11

Like any other files… I tried DecSync and now I store my contacts with this app. It stores contacts as a bunch of files in a single folder, easy to sync, backup, export to common vcard if needed. One of the advantage is big photos, it do not compresses them.

12

Hello!
I’m working on Vaultwarden as the advice against keepass syncing model, but I had a doubt and looked for it: when the server could be unavailable, how can I keep syncing a laptop with the smartphone? maybe there could be a solution: using MariaDB Galera configured as a cluster; the
main servers is node 1 and the laptop become node 2 of the cluster. Now, the MariaDB official docs are against 2 nodes cluster, but I could set up another little server for the porpouse.
What do you guys think about that?

13

Self hosted Nextcloud with DAVx5 app works like a charm.