Windows Vista : Work with Offline Files (part 3) - Use Sync Center and Offline Files, Create a Sync Partnership

6. Use Sync Center and Offline Files

After turning on, selecting, and working with offline files, open Sync Center to see what’s going on in there. You’ll see an icon for offline files, which you can manually sync, view results for, view conflicts for, and resolve reported errors. Figure 6 shows Sync Center and the Offline Files icon.

Figure 6. After turning on and using offline files, you’ll see the Offline Files icon in Sync Center.

Caution

You cannot sync with network folders with Windows Vista Starter, Windows Vista Home Basic, or Windows Vista Home Premium. However, with these editions, you can sync with devices as previously mentioned.

Manually Sync Offline Files

Although you can let the sync process happen automatically (each time you access the network or share), you can also sync manually. You should sync manually anytime you are connected and want to verify a sync has taken place or want to view conflicts and errors.

To manually sync offline files, follow these steps:

1.	Click Start, and in the Start Search box, type Sync Center.
2.	Press Enter.
3.	Click Sync.

If all goes well, the sync process will start and end without incident. However, you may get errors, warnings, and conflicts that will need to be handled. To see whether the sync process worked as desired, click View Sync Results in the Tasks pane. Figure 7 shows Sync Center with View Sync Results selected. There are several problems shown.

Figure 7. You may see problems when viewing sync results.

Deal with Sync Errors

Errors occur when a problem prevents a sync process from taking place. This occurs when the mobile device is not connected, not plugged in, or not turned on when you try to sync to it. An error also occurs when the computer you want to sync to is unavailable. Errors usually prevent a sync process from occurring.

Deal with Sync Warnings

Warnings are similar to errors but far less severe. A sync will continue to run through warnings; however, warnings can be the cause of a future error if not corrected. This can range from low laptop power to a phone that needs to be recharged.

Deal with Sync Conflicts

Sync conflicts occur when Sync Center can’t decide what it should do regarding what file to keep. When two copies of a file exist and changes are made to both, Sync Center asks you to decide which file to keep. To resolve a conflict, click View Sync Conflicts in Sync Center, and click Resolve. You can also choose to ignore, or skip, the conflicted file. You can also choose to keep both files by renaming one of them.

Create a Schedule to Sync Offline Files

To create a schedule to sync files and folders, open Sync Center, and select Offline Files. Click Schedule, as shown in Figure 8, and work through the wizard to create the sync schedule.

Figure 8. Click Schedule, and work through the wizard to create a sync schedule.

7. Create a Sync Partnership

With Sync Center you can create sync partnerships between your PC and your mobile devices. Creating a sync partnership lets you sync your data with different types of mobile devices that you connect via USB cable.

The first time you plug a Windows Mobile device into a computer that is connected to the Internet and running Windows Vista, Windows Mobile Device Center will automatically download and install. After you set up your device to sync in Windows Mobile Device Center, the sync results will appear in Sync Center. Setting up Windows Mobile Device Center takes only a few minutes and is a one-time process. If for some reason you are not prompted to install and run Windows Mobile Device Center, continue with the steps detailed next. If you cannot locate your device in Sync Center, you’ll need to download and install Windows Mobile Device Center manually.

To see your mobile device in Sync Center and set it up if necessary, follow these steps:

1.	Connect your mobile device to the PC, and turn it on. If prompted to install Windows Mobile Device Center, follow the directions to do so.
2.	Open Sync Center.
3.	In the Tasks pane, select View Sync Partnerships. If your mobile device is there, you’re finished. If not, continue with step 4 through 7 here.
4.	Click Set Up New Sync Partnerships.
5.	Click the device in the list of available partnerships. (If you do not see the device, it may not be compatible, or you may not have installed Windows Mobile Device Center. Visit the manufacturer’s Web site for updated drivers, download and install Windows Mobile Device Center, configure it, and then restart your computer. Start again at step 1.)
6.	In the toolbar, click Set Up.
7.	Select the settings and schedule to state how and when to sync the device.

Figure 9 shows a connected PDA. Note that choices for the PDA are Sync and Browse. Once synced, click View Sync Results to see the outcome. Figure 10 shows this.

Figure 9. A successful installation of a PDA is shown in View Sync Partnerships.

Figure 10. A successful sync of a PDA is shown in View Sync Results.