Syncing and Cloud storage problems?

AndrewRRM
Hi All,

Is there still a problem, as listed in the manual, regarding automatically syncing the Zotero folder with the cloud in addition to its own data syncing?

"Storing the Zotero data directory directly in a cloud storage folder is extremely likely to corrupt your Zotero database and should not be done. (The same is true of most database-backed programs.) The forums contain many threads about the problems that users have faced with Dropbox- or Google Drive–based setups."

I am using the automatic back up and sync function of Google Drive (set up to point to my Documents folder - Mac M1 Big Sur) as well as a similar solution attached to the university. In Zotero, I have automatic data syncing on but not file syncing.

The posts I found regarding the problems are quite old so thought I would check here.
  • dstillman Zotero Team
    Yes, that has always been true and always will be true — as it says, this is true of any database-backed program.

    (You can generally assume that our documentation is correct.)
  • AndrewRRM
    Ok, thanks for the very quick response!

    If I have understood correctly though, there is no problem in syncing the storage folder within Zotero as this doesn't contain the database, right?
  • dstillman Zotero Team
    Correct, as long as you can do so without syncing the parent directory.
  • AndrewRRM
    The parent directory? Sorry ... is that the sqlite file? I don't see anything in the storage folder except folders/containers storing pdfs, web pages etc.
  • dstillman Zotero Team
    The data directory — the parent directory of the storage directory.
  • AndrewRRM
    Ok, I think I follow. Because the storage folder lives within this directory, I'm OK to isolate it (storage) and sync it only?

This is an old discussion that has not been active in a long time. Before commenting here, you should strongly consider starting a new discussion instead. If you think the content of this discussion is still relevant, you can link to it from your new discussion.

Sign In or Register to comment.