Bonjour sync not in OF 2? [A: Correct - use free WebDAVNav app instead.]

I’m also very sad, that local syncing is gone in OF2, especially that it isn’t communicated properly.

A version 2 looses functionality over version 1.

To have the possiblity to sync with iCloud or another cloud service is wonderful.
To be forced to is not nice … :-(

I’m hoping there is some kind of local syncing coming back to version 2 …

Greetings from Germany,
Matthias / Soul71

My solution.

I use the simple and free app from AppStore: WebDAVNav server . I set up local webdav server for 5 minutes, and now use local synchronisation in OF2

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Here a few firms where customer data got stolen. The NSA-Scandals and this are the reason, why I don’t want to get to much data into the Internet. Some is necessary, but I am against putting everything on or over the Internet. Only the things and data I WANT to.

I know there isn’t absolute (data) security, even on my computer at home (which is connected to the internet), but I don’t want to make it to easy, to get my personal data stolen.

Here some of the cyber attacks where customer data got stolen.
If you want to see even more, just google “cyber attacks” and “customer data stolen”:

05.2014 Ebay

05.2014 Orange (France)

04.2014 Michaels Stores Inc.

03.2014 Sands (Las Vegas)

02.2014 Barcleys

02.2014 kickstarter

01.2014 Target

01.2014 Neiman Marcus

10.2013 Adobe

10.2012 Barnes & Noble

04.2011 Sony

04.2011 TiVo

12.2010 McDonalds

12.2010 Honda

Thanks for the hint. I tried without success. Synchronization stops with an SSL error. Please, could you elaborate a little bit what you did?

I also require local Bonjour sync. Cloud sync is not an option. Please bake a proper solution into OmniFocus v2. As someone mentioned, even Apple backtracked and restored iTunes local sync for calendars, contacts, etc.

I’ve not seen problems using Bonjour sync of my OmniFocus database with my Mac, iPhone and iPad over the years.

This is a deal breaker.

-ITG

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  1. Download and install the WebDavNav Server
  2. Set manually ip address for you Mac in Wi-Fi settings
  3. Run WebDavNav Server app and set settings:
    -set the share folder
    -set the username and password in Authentication tab
  4. Set the ip address of you mac in OmniFocus WebDav server preference
  5. Add WebDavNav Server App in startup.

4 Likes

Thanks, got that done. Asked the developer to add https in the next version. I’m going this route even after downgrading to OF1 so I can control when the service is exposed.

Any Hope for a (easy) local sync in the future
with the technological possibilities of
iOS 8 and Mac OS X 10.10 Yosemite?

2 Likes

@Soul71 Could you please provide specifics about how WebDavNav doesn’t meet your needs?

  1. Difficult to configure in a secure manner using built-in WebDAV server. Third party solutions like WebDAVNavServer work, but don’t support HTTPS (yet).
  2. OmniFocus expects sync server to always be there, rather than manually triggered. No way to stop background sync, and OF hangs badly when it tries to run and doesn’t find the server.
  3. When switching networks, like running on an iOS personal hotspot, the IP address changes all the time, so you have to reconfigure sync repeatedly.
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I was SOOO MAD yesterday when I upgraded to OF2 Mac and iPhone and found I couldn’t sync them locally. Omni should have put a BIG RED WARNING saying that this feature has been removed. I mean WTF.

So I almost refunded my OF2 upgrade yesterday but I figured a temporary workaround… Seriously, who has the time to buy and install OS X Server and make sure the services enabled are secure??? I just want to work (instead of creating a “Make OF2 sync” project that would take up my time)!

  1. Have your master/server database computer run OF1 (that’s right, currently 1.10.6).
  2. Fix the port of your master OF1 (I chose 50042 in this example): defaults write com.omnigroup.OmniFocus SyncServerPort -int 50042
  3. On my OF2 laptop, I sync using Advanced (WebDAV) with the server address: https://my-desktop-name.local:50042
  4. My OF2 iPhone automatically recognizes the OF port I fixed.

OF2 Mac and iPhone now syncs with my master database on OF 1. I guess this works because OF1 must be setting up a WebDAV server behind the scenes on that port.

This is definitely NOT ideal as it requires the master to run OF1 but it’ll work for now until HOPEFULLY enough people complain to omnifocus@omnigroup.com to put this feature back.

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+1

This is a critical fail for medical use. Tasks often involve patient identities (“Check Mr Smith’s HIV medications”) and cannot legally be exposed to an external server. Individual jurisdictions have varying laws; all put strong limits on this.

A local WebDAV server is not a viable solution, as one frequently moves between networks (within and between hospitals along with private practice) and there is often no internet access available.

I would strongly support the suggestion that a “direct from the company” version with local synchronisation be created if the Mac App Store sandbox rules block this functionality in the mass-market version. Several other developers successfully follow this, and OmniGroup already have their own store…

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this idea should be take a serious look as Yosemite and iOS 8 advanced, especially in continuity.

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Hello all,
I also complain about this feature removal. I don’t want to store sensitive information in the cloud, so I’m tempted to ask for a refund too. I’ve also upgraded my iPad to iOS 8 just because it is not possible to download any OF compatible compatible with ios 7.x
Il try jang’s suggestion or LoggerH’s until get arrive to a decision

I hope OG guys would create an easy solution to deal with OF 1.x and iphone’s OF 2 to be compatible with their Bonjour services, in a very simple way.

Thank you,
S.

Bonjour is dead as a technology. Even Cultured Code’s Things has abandoned Bonjour support. You won’t be able to turn to Things if you still wanted Bonjour.

I’m not sure if there are any apps that still use Bonjour now. It is going the way of CRT monitors, SCSI, and parallel ports into the Junkyard in the Sky.

Doesn’t the free WebDAVNav app already meet that need? There’s a post about configuring it earlier in this thread:

Rather than setting it up with a server address of http://192.168.1.99:8080/, however, I’d recommend using the Bonjour hostname of the form http://hostname.local/ so that the same configuration works even when your network configuration changes.

With that change, I believe the WebDAVNav Server app is nearly as easy to set up and use as the Bonjour host server from v1 was. (And I think it’s more robust, since I believe it actually handles IP address changes better than our v1 solution did.)

P.S. — Turns out it has the same problem with IP address changes as our v1 solution. The workaround is to quit and restart the server whenever you switch networks.

Hello kcase, thank you for your fast reply
How can I properly migrate the old OF database into the folder shared with WebDAVNav server?

Thank you in advance
S

Not sure if it’s Bonjour, but OfficeTime and 1Password both have local wireless sync options.

You don’t have to migrate anything. Just make sure your clients are all synced, then change one of them to point to the new connection in sync preferences. It’ll create it there.

I’ve given Omni a hard time about the UI problems, but on this one, I’m on their side. Bonjour is a broken protocol - even Apple can’t get it right with Airtunes. I don’t even use bonjour for the server name. I’ve setup a DHCP reservation on each network for the master machine (my laptop) to a static IP, and connect to it. They should send a nice present to the guy who developed WebDAVNav server :-).

Post:

Sorry to seem dumb, but could anyone clear up the queries I have re. the above post?…

(1) Download and install the WebDavNav Server

That’s fine.

(2) Set manually ip address for you[r] Mac in Wi-Fi settings

Does this mean that on my Mac I need
(i) to go to System Preferences>Network
(ii) to click on Ethernet in the column on the left
(iii) Set ‘Configure IPv4’ to ‘Manually’? - I am concerned that my doing this, I will lose my internet connection. If I do set it to ‘Manually’ my Mac asks for an IP address. Which one should I use?

(3) Run WebDavNav Server app and set settings:
-set the share folder
-set the username and password in Authentication tab

Fine. This is a folder to contain the OmniFocus data file. However, what username and password should be used in the WebDavNav Authentication tab: completely new ones, or ones related to something else? If it’s something else, then the username and password of what should be put there?

(4) Set the ip address of you[r] mac in OmniFocus WebDav server preference

Where do I find out the IP address of my Mac? Should I use the local (Mac) IP address or the internet (ADSL’s) IP address?

(5) Add WebDavNav Server App in startup.

Does this mean ‘go to System Preferences>Users & Groups, click ‘Login items’ and add WebDavNav server app there’?

(6) It’s recommended to use h~t~t~p://hostname.local rather than h~t~t~p~://192.168.1.99:8080
(Ignore ‘~’)

Where do I get the bit(s) to type in for ‘hostname’ and for ‘local’ in the above?
What is h~t~t~p~://192.168.1.99:8080 the IP address for? Surely it’s not the same for all users?

Thanks in advance for any help in clarifying the above.