Achieving close to real-time sync with Git

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Hi there,

I currently own a Macbook Pro, an iPad and an Android device and I would like to use Git as a sync service (and not just a backup service) so that I can move between devices effortlessly.

I am not particularly technical but I have used Git before so I roughly understand how it works + the basic commands. I have done a bit of research and I understand that if i follow the following guides, I should be able to implement this:

  1. To initialise my Vault as a git repo and to push this to Github - How I Put My Mind Under Version Control | by Bryan Jenks | Analytics Vidhya | Medium

  2. To pull and push changes from my Android device to Github - Setting up Git syncing for Obsidian on Android - by Lucid Hacker - Lucid’s Newsletter -

I have 3 questions:

  1. I know people use Git as a BACKUP solution but am I wrong in thinking that it is suitable for a real-time syncing solution. From what I can tell, if I am going to move between my MacBook Pro and my Android phone within say the space of 5 minutes then I will obviously need to commit changes on my MacBook Pro and then pull the changes on my Android phone manually rather than waiting for the automated script to run?

  2. How would I go about setting up Git on my iPad/use the Obsidian app?

  3. Should I just purchase Obsidian Sync instead? :sweat_smile:

Thanks - any help will be much appreciated!

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I don’t have a direct answer to your question. But I would like to offer my opinion here for question #3 “just purchase Obsidian Sync”:

Obsidian Sync (or any sync) should not be a replacement for full (or multiple redundant kinds of) backup. There are still some instances where people run into sync problems with Obsidian Sync, iCloud, or any other types of syncing services.

Even git and Github can have issues, as evidenced by the colourful language of this website: https://ohshitgit.com/

(Just be careful about relying on any one thing.)

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Thanks - I definitely will be creating regular backups of my Vault on an external drive in any case once I figure out the best way forward!

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Agree 100%.
Sync is not the same as backup at all. Considerations are wildly different. Just because, when there’s a fair wind, sync can save unwary from the lack of a backup that doesn’t make it equivalent.

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Ok, I’ve been doing more research and I’m arriving at the conclusion that for my primary use case of being able to move between devices in close to real time, the best thing to do would be just to purchase Obsidian Sync for now.

If all my devices were Apple then it seems iCloud works pretty seamlessly. I was actually considering moving over to an iPhone next year and this has probably just tipped me over! :slight_smile:

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