I do not understand what "paire multiples" means (and how to avoid it) !

[Alomphega]

Hello,

I'm sorry to come back with this issue, but I really do not understand what are these "multiple pairs" (in French words : "paires multiples") and mainly how to avoid it.

Here are my logs (cut with only few samples) :
---8<---
16:37:45 Attention Certains fichiers seront synchronisés en tant que paires multiples.
Pour éviter les conflits, il suffit de mettre à jour les filtres d'exclusion pour que chaque fichier mis à jour ne soit inclus que dans une paire unique.
D:\Users\Guy\Documents 👓 Configurations\FreeFileSYNC\»SyncSettings.ffs_batch
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Configurations 💾 FreeFileSYNC\»SyncSettings.ffs_batch
D:\Users\Guy\Documents 👓 Configurations\FreeFileSYNC\»SyncSettings.ffs_gui
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Configurations 💾 FreeFileSYNC\»SyncSettings.ffs_gui
D:\Users\Guy\Documents 👓 Configurations\NotePad\Administratif.txt
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Configurations 💾 NotePad\Administratif.txt
D:\Users\Guy\Documents 👓 Configurations\PhraseExpress\20230222 phrases.pxp
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Configurations 💾 PhraseExpress\20230222 phrases.pxp
...
💾: Accès en écriture 👓: Accès en lecture
---8<---
What means these "multiple pairs" and what do I have to put in filter to avoid this issue ?
(please write for me an exact sample so I can copy it and reproduce it even if I continue to not understand ! O:-) )

Thank you very much for your help !

Cordially,
GC

[xCSxXenon]

You have files that are going to be synced within multiple folder pairs. This can cause conflicts.
Example:

You have folders A, B, and C
You are mirroring A -> B
You are mirroring B-> C
You create a new document in A.

Logically, you may think that running a sync will copy that new document from A to B, and then from B to C. It will not!! Running a sync is just comparing differences and then syncing them. The compare will see that A and B are different but B and C are already equivalent, so that new document will be copied to B but not C. You would have to run a second sync to then get B and C synced.

There are other scenarios, this is just one

It looks like you are syncing "D:\Users\Guy\Documents" to "D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Configurations" which makes absolutely no sense to do. If I'm wrong, you should post a screenshot of the entire FFS window so we can see the folder pairs you have set up

[Alomphega]

Hello @xCSxXenon,

Thank you very much to try to explain it to me.
I think I have found a solution moving my folders in the same path (within "A" and "B" if we take your example). So I'm not yet in an issue and I thank you already for this.

... But alas I'm pretty stupid enough to not understand all yet, and pretty curious to try to understand why I'm not understanding ! ;-)

I post here below a real issue I found this morning (before I found my solution) :

The sync was an update :
from "D:\Users\Guy\Nextcloud\Entreprise" to "D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise"

The alert told :
«
Some files will be synchronized as part of multiple folder pairs.
To avoid conflicts, set up exclude filters so that each updated file is included by only one folder pair.

D:\Users\Guy\Documents 👓 Entreprise\Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise 💾 Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk

💾: Write access 👓: Read access
»

After the sync, I got :
«
08:26:52 Warning Some files will be synchronized as part of multiple folder pairs.
To avoid conflicts, set up exclude filters so that each updated file is included by only one folder pair.
D:\Users\Guy\Documents 👓 Entreprise\Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise 💾 Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk
💾: Write access 👓: Read access
»

So I have some questions :

1) what is exactly a "part of multiple folder pairs" ?
(I really do not understand what this basically means.)

2) How to set up exclude filters "so that each updated file is included by only one folder pair" ?

3) If I save (update) the entire A to the entire B then the entire B to the entire C, how a "Z" file in A can be different of its "Z" copied file in C ?

Thanks again if you are courageous enough to try to explain that stuff to me again ! O:-)

Cordially,
Guy

[Plerry]

The "file" giving problems seems to be a link or shortcut (*.lnk), which points to some file or executable.
Likely, the linked-to file is in your left or right location, thus creating said overlap.

If so, as described here, you can try to set the Symbolic Link Handling to "As link" instead of "Follow".

[Zenju]

The "file" giving problems seems to be a link or shortcut (*.lnk), which points to some file or executable.
Likely, the linked-to file is in your left or right location, thus creating said overlap.

If so, as described here, you can try to set the Symbolic Link Handling to "As link" instead of "Follow".

FreeFileSync doesn't consider Windows "lnk" files as symolic links. The problem is a conlict in the users's folder pair setup.

[Plerry]

Ah!
Due to the (to me) confusing use of icons in the path, I did not notice that the left and right base locations are identical and thus fully overlap.

[Zenju]

Ah!
Due to the (to me) confusing use of icons in the path, I did not notice that the left and right base locations are identical and thus fully overlap.

Not exactly identical, one is

D:\Users\Guy\Documents

the other

D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise

But both essentially contain the same file:

D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise\Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk

Not only that but one folder pair is reading, the other writing to this file, thous the conflict. If both folder pairs were reading only, then this would have been fine.

[Alomphega]

Hi Zenju and Plerry,
Thanks a lot for your answer, but none of you both seems to be right :
Both path within the alert are the same, one being read (see icon), the other being written (see icon too)... BUT they are NOT "left and right" location within FreeFileSync, this path is only on the right side while synchronizing, and this is why I do not understand this "part of multiple folder pairs" concept. Please Zenju, could you explain this concept a bit more ?
(BTW the links are well set as "link" and not as "follow")
Cordially,
Guy

[Plerry]

Why don't you start by telling us your left and right base location(s).
That is where the root of your problem is.
And then we may be able to point out where the overlap is.

[Zenju]

Why don't you start by telling us your left and right base location(s).
That is where the root of your problem is.
And then we may be able to point out where the overlap is.

The position of the 👓, and 💾 symbols were placed as separators between base folder path and base-relative path to answer exactly this question. Cute, isn't it? ;)

That said I don't know how to explain the issue other than what I already said: viewtopic.php?t=10496#p41138
But then again, I'm also the one who wrote the error message :P

[Alomphega]

Hello my friends,

@Plerry : I answered exactly your question at the beginning of this topic :

The sync was an update :
from "D:\Users\Guy\Nextcloud\Entreprise" to "D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise"

This means :
Left path (left base location) = "D:\Users\Guy\Nextcloud\Entreprise"
Right path (right base location) = "D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise"

@Zenju : what you said did not take the paths I take, please take a look...
So I'm confused because I do not understand what you mean by "multiple pairs".
For me there is a "A" file on the left, and this "A" file have to be copied on the right if it is more recent, dot.
So why is there a "multiple pairs", which could mean there are multiple same files...
Why simply not update the right side file with the file having the more recent date ? Or at least asking the user to choose the one he wants to keep ?
I'm very confused in front of your error message, and believe I'm very sorry to boring you with my confusion !

Thank you very much to try to explain more, maybe my old and fool brain will accept to understand with some more help... Anyway, you know we already thank you very much to provide such a tool for us !

Cordially,
Guy

[therube]

.
D:\Users\Guy\Nextcloud\Entreprise
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise

Looks to be different.

But if I'm understanding correctly... in the case of the .lnk file, it appears to not be the case?

.
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise\Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk
D:\Users\Guy\Documents\Entreprise\Fournisseurs\incendie\Entretien VMC + extincteurs - Raccourci.lnk

So maybe "... Raccourci.lnk" is actually a (hard) link (linking of a .lnk file, which in & of itself is not a hard link ;-).)

[Alomphega]

therube, that is exactly what I do not understand : since the paths are different for my sync, why these "multiple pairs" alerts appear within the only and same path for the same files themselves ?

[B4STI1]

2) How to set up exclude filters "so that each updated file is included by only one folder pair" ?

Am i blind or nobody answered this question ?

[B4STI1]

I have this error and my case is

folder "pictures" in drive C,D,F,H to backup in drive J
and there are some pictures already duplicated between C,D,F,H

[xCSxXenon]

2) How to set up exclude filters "so that each updated file is included by only one folder pair" ?

Am i blind or nobody answered this question ?

I have this error and my case is

folder "pictures" in drive C,D,F,H to backup in drive J
and there are some pictures already duplicated between C,D,F,H

The filters you need to set up depend on the paths you are using in FFS. Without a full error message, it would be extremely difficult to help you. Based on your description though, I would say:
Since C,D,F,H contain some duplicate data/paths between them, and they are all being synced to J, this is going to lead to a conflict. For example, if a picture is updated on C but the duplicated original version remains on D, what is FFS supposed to do with the destination copy on J? Update it with the new version on C or ignore the version on C to maintain consistency with D? This is why you need to configure FFS to ignore these conflicts. One way is filters. In my opinion, that gets messy and it is like putting a bandaid on a shotgun wound. My recommendation is to organize the data in a simpler and more sensical way

[B4STI1]

The filters you need to set up depend on the paths you are using in FFS. Without a full error message, it would be extremely difficult to help you. Based on your description though, I would say:
Since C,D,F,H contain some duplicate data/paths between them, and they are all being synced to J, this is going to lead to a conflict. For example, if a picture is updated on C but the duplicated original version remains on D, what is FFS supposed to do with the destination copy on J? Update it with the new version on C or ignore the version on C to maintain consistency with D? This is why you need to configure FFS to ignore these conflicts. One way is filters. In my opinion, that gets messy and it is like putting a bandaid on a shotgun wound. My recommendation is to organize the data in a simpler and more sensical way

The path are very simple, the pictures are in the "pictures" folder wich are in root folder of each drive.
The rule of what FFS has to do is like my screenshot

b3f5418f-35b7-4e97-8c16-87e8794d499e.png (93.17 KiB) Viewed 6154 times

and that's why i don't understand whats the problem because it's already set.

If i understand i have to sync each drive to J one at a time ?

I tough i could sync everything at the same time...

[xCSxXenon]

That setup should do what you want, without deleting anything in 'J' ever, you could probably ignore the warning.
This is a bad idea, in my opinion, the organization scheme would be nonexistent with each source having its own directory on the destination. With your setup, if you are getting that warning, you likely won't be able to get rid of it without setting FFS to ignore it entirely or putting massive amounts of filters. For every file that exists on >1 source drive, you will need a filter for each pair until only one of those pairs syncs that file. And in the end, maybe you WANT files to be included in multiple pairs.

[B4STI1]

you could probably ignore the warning

i'd like but ffs just stop at the beginning and i can't restart the job...
I did hat i wanted by updating J with each drive one at a time

you will need a filter for each pair

Ouch that not an option there are way too much pictures

And in the end, maybe you WANT files to be included in multiple pairs

wdym ?
in the end i want to free up some discs that i have since 2010 cause i'm starting to worry about their stability.
the thing is i already tried to backup thos with each other manually and i did not use same tree folder nor same pic management software each time and with years it became a big mess.
that's why i want to do thing properly on this all new J drive

[Zenju]

@B4STI1: With the screenshot posted above it looks like there shouldn't be a warning about a multiple folder pair conflict. If there is however, it likely points to a legitimate problem with your setup. But this is all guesswork as you didn't post the warning.