Sync Outlook w/ comps that ARE running Business / Unltd

[misterbk]

Been searching for this for hours, and the only posts I can locate are people trying to do this with Home editions being told they cannot because it isn't supported in Home Premium...

Well I have two computers that -should- be able to do synchronize. They are both running Business or Ultimate editions. I need to at least sync folders but really I'm trying to get Outlook to sync. (mostly for the contacts.)

I have a laptop running Windows Vista Business (x64)
I have a desktop running Windows 7 RC (x64), which is basically Win7 Ultimate.
I have a Windows Treo PDA-phone that runs Outlook.

I can run Windows 7 on the laptop if it fixes the problem, just haven't switched yet.
I will very soon have the actual release of Win7 Ultimate for install on both computers.

Both computers have Outlook 2007 installed.
Both computers are hooked up with a LAN, and are able to communicate i.e. access each others' files over the network.

What I really don't get is, for one thing I'm pretty sure I was able to do this on XP with ActiveSync, i.e. one computer saw the other computer in the sync list and would try to sync Outlook with it. For another thing, my Windows Treo is able to syncronize all the Outlook data to either computer. How can it be that both computers' Sync Center know how to sync with a phone that runs Outlook, but they don't know how to sync with each other?

Does anyone know how to set up a partnership between two computers running Sync Center, when they ARE running fully qualified versions of Windows?


BTW I am trying to avoid third party software, for one because it all costs money, but mostly because I am already using Sync Center to sync my phone. I don't really want to be running more than one kind of sync software at the same time.

 

[clunkfish]

I'd be interested to know if this is indeed possible. After much research and head-scratching, I still couldn't figure it out and ended up going the third-party software route - I use Syncing.Net, which works very well indeed but isn't cheap.

 

[misterbk]

I'll say... According to their website, syncing Outlook clocks in at $240.

It still makes no sense to me that I have three Windows devices running Outlook and Sync Center, but syncing is only allowed if one of them is a PDA.

 

[mgmcc]

You can use Allway Sync to synchronise Outlook's .PST files between multiple computers.

It is free for "moderate" personal use. If used too much, it prompts you to buy the Pro version and if a monthly threshold is exceeded, it then stops working until the data sync'd in the last month falls below the threshold. However, the Pro version allowing unlimited use is only $20.

 

[clunkfish]

Allway Sync will do the job, but I wanted something more like always-on automatic and instant syncing such as you get with ActiveSync and a connected PDA. Syncing.net does do that - you leave it running and it instantly and seamlessly syncs calendar changes or whatever to a maximum of 2 other designated PCs. That's for the Home version - $150, not $240, but it does everything I need.

 

[misterbk]

Ah I see the home user pricing now and it is a multi-pack for use on multiple machines.

So what I'm hearing is Sync Center refuses to sync from a PC to anything that isn't a PDA, so you need third party software? Maybe I can convince my laptop that it's a PDA. :sarc:

Sounds like someone at Microsoft needs to be smacked.

I checked out Allway Sync, correct me if I'm wrong but it does not sync on a record-by-record basis like Sync Center, just copies the newer .PST over. I don't see any obvious mention of Outlook.

New strategy: just sync the stupid PDA between both computers. The computers will just have to stay in sync because they both sync to the PDA.

This feature should really just be part of Outlook.

 

[mgmcc]

I checked out Allway Sync, correct me if I'm wrong but it does not sync on a record-by-record basis like Sync Center, just copies the newer .PST over. I don't see any obvious mention of Outlook.

Allway Sync is indeed a "general" synchronisation program which overwrites the older file with the newer one. I help someone with a "one-man" business and the Outlook .PST file is one of several files/folders that we sync daily with a second backup PC.

 

[clunkfish]

New strategy: just sync the stupid PDA between both computers. The computers will just have to stay in sync because they both sync to the PDA.

Yes that will work, as long as your PDA can sync. I used exactly that method for many years to keep home and work versions of Outlook in sync. I had to abandon that strategy when I switched to Windows 7 because my PDA was too old to run a version of Windows Mobile that would talk to 7. Buying Syncing.net was cheaper than a new PDA, and to be honest it does work very well. It is like having an invisible PDA

 

[oneextraid]

I use Gmail for my email account. I have Outlook 2007 on multiple PCs with Imap accounts setup accessing the Gmail account. These accounts sync with Gmail and I do not have to use any other sync software.

 

[clunkfish]

I use Gmail for my email account. I have Outlook 2007 on multiple PCs with Imap accounts setup accessing the Gmail account. These accounts sync with Gmail and I do not have to use any other sync software.

But that won't sync calendar, contact and to-do data, which I think is the main issue here?

 

[misterbk]

I use Gmail for my email account. I have Outlook 2007 on multiple PCs with Imap accounts setup accessing the Gmail account. These accounts sync with Gmail and I do not have to use any other sync software.

But that won't sync calendar, contact and to-do data, which I think is the main issue here?

Correct. For the immediate time being I can just copy the PST folders over, my main concerns are 1: having my emails in more than one place (currently a laptop which is extra insecure) and 2: most important, being able to type email addresses that I have entered on the go.

The only problem with the syncing.net method is it fails when I enter data on both devices and then sync later. (i.e. if I forget to sync, ever.) Its behavior would essentially be to replace the older .PST, i.e. delete anything I'd done on the device I'd used longer ago. That becomes EXTRA sticky when I add the PDA syncing into the mixture. Just don't even want to think about it at that point.

What I'm going to do is,

1: look around and see if there's another email client that can sync

2: whine at my brother who works on the Outlook programming team and say I had to switch to whatever-mail because Outlook didn't have any decent syncing methods. (and hint hint nudge nudge that he tell his boss the story...)

3: in all honesty, probably fail to find a better email client, and just use IMAP on one machine and POP on the other.

As far as emails go, I really just need to receive them when they come in, and save them to at least one machine.

 

[clunkfish]

The only problem with the syncing.net method is it fails when I enter data on both devices and then sync later. (i.e. if I forget to sync, ever.) Its behavior would essentially be to replace the older .PST, i.e. delete anything I'd done on the device I'd used longer ago. That becomes EXTRA sticky when I add the PDA syncing into the mixture. Just don't even want to think about it at that point.

I understand your concern but it doesn't work that way. The PDA will be in sync with whichever PC it is physically connected to, so doesn't really enter into the equation. The critical thing is the two PCs. If both are online, any change to your Outlook data in one of them (not emails, but calendar, notes, contacts, to do list) will immediately be transmitted, encrypted, via syncing.net's servers to the other PC and both versions of Outlook will be in sync. If one PC is offline, the changes are stored until it comes online again, whereupon the data are immediately integrated into the PST file. What this means in practice is that your Outlook data will be in sync all the time, wherever you make the changes. The PDA will essentially be a slave to whichever PC it is connected to, so will automatically be in sync too. If you make changes on the PDA then connect it to one of the PCs, the Outlook data will be synced in the usual way and then syncing.net will convey the changes to the other PC.

If you have an IMAP email account, that will automatically be in sync as the emails aren't stored locally. If you want to make sure even sent emails are synced, just copy them to a "Sent Items" folder which you can create in your IMAP account. For what it's worth, I have a load of folders set up in my IMAP account for pretty much everyone I correspond with, then save their emails and my replies into those folders. That way I always have on hand a centrally-stored archive of emails; it's as secure as my employer's back-up procedures, and I have faith in those

 

[misterbk]

I understand your concern but it doesn't work that way. The PDA will be in sync with whichever PC it is physically connected to, so doesn't really enter into the equation. The critical thing is the two PCs. If both are online, any change to your Outlook data in one of them (not emails, but calendar, notes, contacts, to do list) will immediately be transmitted, encrypted, via syncing.net's servers to the other PC and both versions of Outlook will be in sync.

Ah, now I see why I saw so many posts looking for -immediate- synchronization. It effectively behaves like a record-level sync even if it isn't. Not bad. The fact they send the sync data through their servers explains why they charge so much.

I just realized the only reason I was dodging around the IMAP was I didn't want to have a huge pile of emails stored on my web host. The IMAP / POP3 method solves that though. I can just handle contacts in a separate .PST and copy those manually whenever I know I've made new ones.

I did find a freeware sync tool for Thunderbird, but it was touted as difficult and potentially buggy, and is still in beta. There's also a paid sync tool that's a really cheap one-time fee, something like $20 USD. It syncs PDAs using Outlook too. I don't remember the exact details but it came up pretty quickly in a google search. I'll use that as my leverage when I bug my brother about adding the functionality.