[landcruiser123]

Strange issue, never encountered it personally. The only thing I can think of was that something stopped Google Drive Sync from working as intended in your second computer.

My guess is there might have been a restart on your Dell (Windows update or Antivirus?) and the Google drive didn't start sync until you started working on it.

[kedar_GT]

I have noticed this on my Mac. The backup_and_sync does not seem to be running 'always' (esp after a restart). At such times, I run it manually and ensure the update. I suppose you would not have had an issue if you were working on a document using google docs - it happened of the MS doc file (unfortunately google is supposed to have an 'active sync' function and we cannot control the sync interval)

[AbhiJ]

Originally Posted by GrandTourer

My suggestion GTO is to move to Google Docs instead of using MS Word. It provides instant sync across all devices.

GTO, I have faced this before. Usually when the same document is open on two computers.

As Grandtourer says, Google Docs is excellent. Once you start using it you realize you want to stop using and paying for the Office Suite :P

Also, try this - go to Google Drive, right click the file and choose manage versions. You might find the earlier file there.

[Quoter]

I've found Google backup and sync to be less reliable for working on the fly on documents, especially when the same document is shared within the team or worked on across computers.
Have moved to Google drive file stream, which does not keep a local copy but stores everything on the cloud itself. Saves hard disk space on my laptop and also prevents any version issues with multiple team members editing the same document.

[mmxylorider]

As pointed out earlier, autosave or frequent saving should help in having the latest and greatest on cloud and available on connected devices. That said, try and use versioning to help with changes.

[BackstraightBoy]

GTO, I can totally relate to your angst.

I'm a writer too and can't think of a day without Google Drive and Docs, but I've never faced a sync issue for the simple reason that I handle all my word processing needs directly on Google Docs and not using the MS Word + Google Drive combination, which I deduce you're using (pardon me if I'm wrong).

That is, I surmise you're working on Word documents in your local Google Drive folder on your machine, which is synced to the cloud. Instead, I strongly recommend you move over to Google Docs completely online (that is, work on your document using a browser, online), by creating a new Google Doc (In Google Drive, New > Google Docs > Blank Document). So when you open the same document on any other computer, or even if it was already open, it'd be updated to the last letter, instantly and reliably each time.

In fact the document on computer B shows realtime the location and movement of the cursor and the typing of the letters on computer A all the time, so you virtually never risk any loss of your work or any confusion whatsoever. Sharing, collaborating and getting comments from peers/team too is easy. The best part is all this is free, and you don't need to pay for an MS Office subscription!

If you lose the internet connection, Google Docs stops working, and you cannot type any further, which means you at least know that there's no chance of typing something on computer A and losing it on B. Also, you can always go back and view all the previous versions in File > Version History, in case you want to revert the document to an earlier state.

The only time I find MS Word's ability to let you type even when offline advantageous is when you cannot connect to the internet, such as when you're on a domestic flight, and still want to work. But then, that is a time you can't expect instant syncing anyway, so I just use the in-built Notes app on my Mac in such situations, and then copy-and-paste the content to a Google Doc once I'm able to connect to the internet (so in a way, I manually sync it in these rare circumstances.)

By the way, I used to do the local saving and cloud syncing method for my photographs, but found that Drive was sometimes slow and unreliable in syncing, so I've moved over to Adobe Creative Cloud storage, which came as a part of my Lightroom-Photoshop subscription, and it works absolutely flawlessly.

So directly working on Google Docs online using a browser for word processing, and using Adobe Creative Cloud storage for syncing of other types of files is the combination I'd recommend, especially if you already have a Lightroom subscription.

[NiInJa]

I have faced a similar issue but it was on phone. Apparently, one drive on android has a setting where it does not sync up when connected via mobile data. Had to change it and then everything was normal.

[nishsingh]

I literally faced this - for my drive, not for the Google drive but for over 100 hours of driving.

Am talking about my progress on Forza Horizon 4 - the video game on Xbox.

Got a message while playing the game saying that there are two different instances of saves - one local and one on the cloud and I would need to choose which one to use. I used the local version as it was of a later date, but that caused all my 6 months + of driving progress to be lost.


I didn't really mind as it is just a game and nothing of consequence. But in a way it was a good thing, as Forza Horizon is a great game, and I got to replay the challenges.



P.S. - If I get up early morning, I prefer driving cars on Forza Horizon rather than taking out my actual car.

Online storage can have issues, but still much safer than having your harddrive eaten by ants and not having any backup (which happened to me in college)

[turbodude]

Originally Posted by GTO

For a writer, I don't think there is any nightmare worse than losing your work! Damn Google and its bugs. I haven't noticed this before though, so (hopefully) haven't lost any work earlier (not so sure after this event).

We use OneDrive for all our office and personal needs. Since it is integrated in Windows 10, very easy to use. Google drive has known issues for syncing and if you have an unencrypted document then it might read your contents too .

[lrsays]

Originally Posted by GTO

My question: why didn't the earlier edits reflect on the local version when Computer B & Google backup & sync were both running? Have any of you faced any sync issues? Is there anything I can do to avoid this situation in the future.

My guess is computer B's sync program which runs in background was stuck or was not able to connect to Google servers. This can happen due to a bug or issue with connection with Google server (not your internet connection), worth checking last sync time on B before editing document. If this is not what you expect disconnect/log out and reconnect with Google server.