Sync devices
Lotti Sync keeps supported data aligned between your devices. Each device has its own local database; Sync moves changes through the configured sync account and catches a device up after it has been offline. Sync does not move the system of record into a Lotti cloud: the configured Matrix service relays end-to-end encrypted payloads between your devices while each device retains its own local copy.
What syncs, and what stays put
| Syncs between your devices | Stays on the one device |
|---|---|
| Journal entries and tasks, and the links between them · categories, labels, habits, dashboards and measurables · AI providers, models and profiles (including deletions) · saved task filters · config flags · light/dark theme choice · device profiles · your Daily OS name · notifications and their read state · task agents and their links · AI usage records (tokens, cost, energy) | Text-to-speech voice and speed · pane widths · AI concurrency limits · agent throttle timers · day-planning exclusions |
Two details worth knowing. Not everything that syncs is journal data: your device profile and Daily OS name travel as device preferences and are exempt from gap detection. And derived numbers are never sent — a saved task filter syncs, but the task counts computed from it are recalculated on each device.
Open Settings → Sync Settings to see the setup, health, and recovery pages. The number beside Sync Outbox is work that has not reached the sync service yet.
See your devices
Settings → Sync Settings → Devices lists every session on your sync account — not only the unverified ones. The header counts the devices on your sync server, and Add device starts pairing another one.
Each card carries a This device chip for the one you are holding, and Verified or Unverified for the rest. An unverified device cannot read new entries: a banner above the list says how many there are, and each one offers Verify. If a device has not checked in for a while, verifying it first warns that it may be offline — the emoji check only works while that device is awake and showing Lotti. Choose Verify anyway only when you know it is.
To retire a device, choose Remove from sync on its card. It is signed out and needs a new pairing code before it can sync again. If the sync server no longer accepts the password this device has saved, Lotti asks you to confirm it's you with the current sync account password before it removes anything. A device that never finished pairing can only be removed. You cannot remove the device you are on this way, and devices paired the old way — each with its own account — can be verified but not removed.
When a device you just added finishes verification, a banner says it joined and offers Send settings and Send message history right on this page, so the new device fills up without a detour.
Stop syncing this device, below the list, signs this device out of the sync account. Your entries stay on it, and your other devices are not affected; syncing again needs a new pairing code. Technical details shows diagnostic information you can copy into a support request.
Before sync is set up, this page shows Sync your devices instead, with Set up sync — see Add a device, or Your first device if no device is connected yet.
Pair another device
Pairing is its own flow, with a code to compare and two steps that follow connecting. It has a page of its own: Add a device.
In short: on a device that is already connected, open Settings → Sync Settings → Devices → Add device and show the code. On the new device, open the same page, choose Set up sync and scan it. Compare the check code on both screens before connecting — the QR code carries your sync account credentials, so it goes to your own device and nowhere else.
Verify the new device
Pairing connects the device; verification confirms that both devices are talking to each other without an unknown device in the middle.
Both screens show seven emoji. Compare them in person or over a trusted call, and choose They match on both devices only when the complete sequence matches in the same order. If even one emoji differs, choose They differ — cancel and check the account and device names before trying again.
Name devices and advertise capabilities
This device — “Device name and capabilities” — identifies the current device to the rest of the sync group. Give it a Device display name that distinguishes the physical machine, such as “Mission Control Mac” rather than “Desktop,” and choose Save.
Detected AI capabilities lists what this device can provide, such as local audio transcription or local language-model inference. Known sync devices shows what the other devices most recently published. The listed capabilities are descriptive; the relevant AI profile must still be configured to use them.
Understand catch-up and backfill
Normal sync processes changes as they arrive. Backfill sync detects gaps in the sequence received from known devices and requests missing records again.
- Inbound queue is work currently waiting to be applied.
- Missing is the number of known sequence gaps.
- Skipped is work the inbound queue gave up on after it could not be processed normally.
- Automatic backfill requests missing entries from the last 24 hours and is the right default for normal use.
- Advanced recovery contains manual actions for an investigation, such as Catch up now and requesting older missing entries. Use it only after ordinary sync and automatic backfill have had time to settle.
A non-zero missing count is not automatically data loss: another device may still be offline, or the request may already be in flight. Investigate when the count remains unchanged while all expected devices are online.
Read Matrix Stats
Matrix Stats separates message volume from processing health. It is useful when data looks stale but the account still reports as connected.
Sent messages counts what this device sent, grouped by Matrix event type. Under Sync Metrics, Top KPIs shows the rows applied to the database, the conflicts created, and the inbound events still waiting in the queue. The DB Apply group adds what was ignored as older data, skipped while a base row was missing, or dropped after retries.
A growing DB Applied count with a queue that drains is healthy. If the queue stays high or drops keep appearing, use Retry Now or Force Rescan, then check the outbox and the other device's connectivity. Copy Diagnostics puts the numbers on the clipboard for a support request.
Inspect the Outbox
The Sync Outbox is the local queue of changes waiting to be sent. The summary at the top says whether everything is synced, how many items are waiting or sending, and how many couldn't send.
Filter the list by state:
- Waiting shows items waiting their turn and items currently sending.
- Failed shows items that couldn't send after their automatic retries. They stay saved on this device but are not sent again on their own: once the problem is fixed, choose Retry or Retry all.
- Sent shows delivered items, kept for a while for diagnostics.
Use Retry all after the underlying connection or account problem is fixed, or Retry on a single item. Remove takes an item out of the queue: it stays on this device but will never reach your other devices, so remove it only when that is what you want. Removing it is not a substitute for repairing the corresponding local entry or attachment.
Continue with Resolve sync conflicts when two devices edited the same entry independently, or Sync maintenance for database-level recovery tools.