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System Requirements

• Windows 2000, XP, 2003 Server, Vista
• 128MB RAM
• 50MB hard disk

Related Products

• BatchSync FTP
• BatchSync Secure
• InstantSync FTP

Features in Detail

Folder sync between local/network and FTP server folders

The folders being synchronized can reside at local folders or at a network share (UNC filenames and paths are supported). The other side of the sync set can reside on any common FTP, FTPS, or SFTP/SSH2 server. InstantSync uses standardized FTP/FTPS/SFTP protocol commands, so it does not rely on any server side extensions or non-standard features.

Full support for FTP over SSL/TSL connections

FTPS is a secure and encrypted version of plain text FTP. FTPS creates an encrypted tunnel over the internet, securing usernames, passwords, and all data. FTPS file transfers are encrypted with strong encryption ciphers like 256-bit AES, Blowfish, and Triple-DES. BatchSync supports both implicit and explicit FTPS connection methods.

Note: FTPS is also known as FTP/SSL, FTP/S, FTP over SSL, and FTP over TLS. Read more about FTPS at Wikipedia.

Full support for SFTP over SSH2 connections

SFTP is a file transfer subsystem of an SSH2 server. In this setup, BatchSync is an SFTP client and makes a connection to the SSH2 server in a secure manner. The SFTP protocol encrypts usernames, passwords, and all data with 256-bit AES, Blowfish, or 3DES ciphers. The 256-bit AES encryption is adopted as an encryption standard by the US government.

Note: The name SFTP is a little confusing, as this protocol actually has nothing to do with the FTP or FTPS protocols. Instead, it's dependent on a "secured pipeline" created between BatchSync and an SSH2 server. So even though the name "SFTP" is close to "FTPS", they are two totally different protocols and are supported by different servers:

• FTPS: BatchSync <-> FTPS server
• SFTP: BatchSync <-> SSH2 server

Read more about SFTP and SSH at Wikipedia.

FIPS 140-2 certified

Product uses FIPS 140-2 certified components for reliable secure transfers (certificate #733). The FIPS 140-2 is a standard that describes US Federal government requirements that IT products should meet for Sensitive, but Unclassified (SBU) use.

SSH public key authentication

You can utilize the SSH public key authentication functionality to log in to remote systems by using private/public key pair. This provides even higher level of security than password logins. Both OpenSSH and SSH.com key file formats are supported.

Nearly instantaneous syncs with SyncDB™ smart change tracking

When synchronizing files over the FTP protocol, file comparison is much more difficult than when doing local file syncs. This is due to the fact that all the file dates change when they are transferred, due to FTP protocol limitations. Similarly, text/html/ascii file sizes change when these files are transferred, due to file system differences. This raises a problem, as there is no way to directly compare local files to FTP server files since the file dates and sizes are different.

The solution to this problem is SyncDB. The SyncDB feature tracks these changes automatically, and allows InstantSync to accurately transfer only those files that have really changed.

Consider the effect of SyncDB when updating a medium size web site, consisting of some 1,000 html files: Without SyncDB, all 1,000 html files would be transferred each time the sync was run, since the file dates and sizes are different on the local and remote systems. Now thanks to SyncDB smart file tracking, only files that have really changed are transferred, resulting in only a few files being transferred on each sync. This speeds up the syncs tremendously, resulting in nearly instantaneous synchronizations.

Easy Task Editor software for task management

The Task Editor is an easy to use tool for creating, editing, and running the sync tasks. All task options are clearly arranged in tabs and you can access context sensitive help everywhere, making setting up task parameters easy. Running a sync task couldn't be simpler:

1) Select sync task
2) Click Sync-button

The sync results are shown in a clear tree view arrangement, just like in Windows Explorer.

Sync Preview - see sync results without actual transfers

Task Editor also has a sync preview feature, which displays sync results without actually transferring any files. This preview feature is a great tool for testing and fine-tuning the sync task filters and options. While in preview, you can add files and folders to include and exclude filters via right-click menus, minimizing the possibility of typos and errors when creating filters.

One-way file synchronization

New and changed files are transferred from source to target.

One-way file replication (mirroring)

New and changed files are transferred from source to target. Any extra files and folders that no longer exist on the source are also deleted on the target. This helps you to manage clutter on the target, making the target an exact replica of the source.

One-way file move (transfer & delete)

All files in the source folder are transferred to the target, and after 100% successful transfer, they are deleted on the source. In other words, files are moved from the source to the target. If a certain file is not transferred in full, it is not deleted on the source. You can create a hot-folder sync task that is configured like this:

c:\OutBox -> ftp.yourserver.com/InBox

And all files found in the c:\InBox (and its subfolders), are moved to the remote /InBox. The sync task can also be set up in reverse:

ftp.yourserver.com/OutBox -> c:\InBox

Two-way file synchronization (bi-directional)

New files are transferred in both directions. The file date stamps are used for comparison. InstantSync will adjust server file dates using server time-zone setting for proper time comparison.

Multithreaded transfers

InstantSync supports up to 10 simultaneous browsing and file transfer threads. This will greatly increase the performance of the file synchronization.

Compression Support

InstantSync accelerates the file transfers with on-the-fly file compression using the MODE Z command.

Include/Exclude filtering

You can specify multiple include and exclude filters for each task. Filters can use file/folder names, file size, date, and attributes, and can utilize regular expressions for powerful control over filters. File name filters can be used for a specific sub folder, set of sub folders, or for all folders.

Handling of Conflicts

InstantSync can detect conflicts (=file has changed on both source and target) and you can specify the action to take in conflicts, like skipping the file, skip and report, always upload, etc.

Recursive folders and symbolic links

You have an option to ignore subfolders (no recursion to subfolders) and also ignore symbolic links. Specific folders and symbolic links can also be excluded with filters.

Automatic reconnects, retries, and resumes

The number of reconnects, retries, and timeouts can be specified individually for each task. You can also use unlimited retries. Software will automatically continue (=resume) the transfer at the exact point of the failure, rather than starting from the beginning of the file each time. When reaching the maximum limit for retries, you can be notified via log files and email notifications (more below).

Extensive logging with auto-rotate schemes

You can generate up to four different log files for each run of the sync task. The log files are: Transfer history log (a shared summary log file for all sync tasks), FTP command log, a log listing the files transferred, and an error log.

There are various auto-rotation schemes available for log files. For example, you can set it up so that a log file is rotated when its size reaches 10MB. Or you can arrange to have a new log file created every day or every week, etc.

Need scheduling?

Our BatchSync Secure product adds scheduling to the above feature set. Read more about BatchSync Secure here.

Related Information and Products

• Feature Comparison
• BatchSync FTP
• BatchSync Secure FTPS / SFTP over SSH2
• InstantSync FTP

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