What is it?

The SongShow Sync service provides a way for you to synchronize media files between one or more machines. The machines can be located anywhere that is accessible by the Internet.

What files are synchronized?

The Sync service is designed to synchronized the folders used for songs, slide shows, images, videos, audio files, web pages, and programs. Any files in these folders (including non-media files) will be included in the synchronization process. To use the Synchronization service, you will see an additional folder area in your media panels that are labeled "Sync Folders". These are the files that will be synchronized in the process. Note that your regular media files from previous versions of SongShow Plus are not included in the synchronization process.

How does synchronization occur?

If you are adding or modifying files that need to be received by other users, after you have finished your work, you tell SongShow Plus to synchronize the files. Similarly, if know that there are files that you need to receive that have been added or modified by other users, you can execute the synchronization process to receive those files. Synchronization occurs when you tell SongShow Plus to synchronize files. It does not happen automatically, by design. This lets you be in control of when files will change on your system.

To start a synchronization process, use the menu command Tools > Synchronize > Corporate.

Where are files stored when they are not on my machine?

Files are stored in repositories located on R-Technics servers. These can be accessed by any of your organization's SongShow Plus machines that has access to the Internet. Your organization will have at least one repository it can use for this service, but can subscribe to additional repositories if needed.

What happens if two of us modify the same file at the same time?

Consider this situation: Your coworker modifies a file, then synchronizes. You, before synchronizing, modify the same file, then synchronize. What happens in this case is that your file will be retained. Your coworker's modifications are ignored. However, your coworker's modifications are still located on the server as an older version. A tool is provided that allows you view this older version of the file so that you can see the differences and even copy and paste content from the older version.

What happens if another user deletes files that shouldn't be deleted?

On the server, history is maintained from previous synchronizations so those files can be restored. Also, before a synchronization is made, a snapshot of your local media files is made. This lets you also restore older versions of modified or deleted files on your own machine without accessing the server.

How do I view the history of older version of files?

Use the menu command Tools > Snapshot Verisons > Corporate. This will open the Snapshot History window. From there, you can view history of both your local files and the server files.

Can I restrict access to these files?

By the time this service is released you will be able to set up multiple users and assign different access rights to each one of them. As an example, you will be able to specify that some users are only allowed to receive changes, but not submit them. (At the time of the 11/23 release of 8.3, this feature is not available).

How is this different than Package-to-Go?

The Package-to-Go feature assembles all of the files that you use for a slide show or program into a single file. All files are transmitted whether they are needed or not. There are also multiple steps involved in creating and restoring a package. The sync process only uploads and downloads files that have changed. There are also fewer steps involved in synchronizing. In all, use of the synchronization service will save you time. And it has built-in version history.

How do I get this service?

At this time, you will receive 50MB of storage and 150MB/mo bandwidth complimentary with an active SongShow Upgrade Subscription. This service will be automatically applied to your "Corporate" account. By the time this service is released to production, there will be ways to upgrade to more storage and bandwidth as well as adding additional repository accounts.

How do I set up this service?

1. Execute the menu command Settings > Synchronized Folders. This will open the Synchronized Folders window.
2. Enter your organization's user name and password. By default, this is your organization's ID number and the password is your organization's mailing zip code.
3. Click Get Repositories. If your user name and password are correct, you’ll get a list of repositories below.
4. Click the repositories you want access to on this machine.
5. Click Save.
6. Restart SongShow Plus.  You should now see the new folders the media panels.

How do I move most or all of my current media files to the synchronization folder?

With the 11/23 release of 8.3, there are no additional tools available to move lots of files at one time. The plan is to add new tools before the production release that will make this easier. In the meantime, however, you can use Windows Explorer to move large numbers of files.

What else do I need to know?

You start out empty:  The synchronization folders are additional folders that are not part of the existing folder structure that you already have. You will store or move files into the synchronization folders as you need them.

Use the new Consolidation feature:  When you create a slide show or program and save it to the new Synchronization folder, you may have included file references (images, videos, etc.) that are not in the synchronization folder. This is a problem because the slide show or program you synchronize will be missing files it needs when used by other users. For both slide shows and programs, there is a new Consolidate menu command that will move all referenced files into the synchronization folder area for you. The slide show and programs will be modified in the process to reference these new file locations.

Song databases are a bit different:  Songs are accessed by database, not by folder. Because of this, you will now see additional databases that correspond to the new sync repositories you are using.  When copying or importing songs you will now have the option to add them to available repositories.

When synchronizing, you'll need to shut down SongShow Plus (for now):  With 11/23 release of 8.3, you'll need to shut down SongShow Plus when you synchronize. A future update to 8.3 will make this unnecessary.

Significant work has taken place over the last few months on the SongShow Sync service. SongShow Plus 8.3 will be in a preview/test period for just a few more weeks before production release. Now would be a good time for those of you who want to take a look at this new feature to give it a try. For current SongShow Upgrade Subscribers, a 50MB sync account is provided at no additional cost. You will notice a new department account called "Shared". This is created for all current customers and is where the default SongShow Sync service is located for your organization.

Additional storage space may be purchased for that department account as well as any other department accounts you have. During the preview/test phase, the cost for additional storage is discounted. You may want to take advantage of that discount while it’s available to you. Upgrades to the SongShow Sync service are available through the SongShow Plus web store.

Additional Notes:

• Regular technical support from GoFishMedia is not available for 8.3 during the preview/test phase of the product. Any issues you have with the SongShow Sync service need to be made known in this forum.
• It is no longer necessary to shut down SongShow Plus during the sync process, or at least, not normally. If SongShow Plus is hanging on to a file and not releasing it for the sync process, then you will need to shut down SongShow Plus. You’ll be notified during the sync process if this is necessary.
• Avoid using any sync folders while synchronization is taking place. If the sync process detects changes to the folder it is synchronizing, it will stop the process and you’ll need to start over.
• With the 5/28 release, there is a problem when syncing files that are over 2GB in size. This will be fixed in the next update. For now, avoid using files this large in the sync folders.