Mary Jo Foley is reporting that Microsoft’s Sync Framework is now available for download. Some others are calling it a competitor to Google Gears but it’s not a good comparison. For one thing, Sync isn’t a browser plugin. Based on the documentation it looks like it’s aimed at synchronizing data across a number of sources instead of taking applications offline using a database with Google Gears. As a result, building something that synchronizes with Microsoft Sync might be more complicated than building something that takes advantage of Google Gears. With Microsoft Sync however, you get a lot of functionality.
On the main page for the Microsoft Sync Framework Runtime the framework is defined as
” a comprehensive synchronization platform that enables collaboration and offline access for applications, services and devices. It features technologies and tools that enable roaming, sharing, and taking data offline. Using Microsoft Sync Framework, developers can build sync ecosystems that integrate any application, with any data from any store using any protocol over any network. ”
It’s quite a bit more powerful than just a browser plugin for offline data.
Because Sync lets you replicate its data across a number of devices and PCs, the potential benefit for using it as part of your rich Internet applications is significant. If you were looking at a competitor I would lean more towards Adobe’s Live Cycle Data Services (LCDS) although Sync is not a server product. Both of LCDS and Sync are meant to solve the problem of what do we do when we have data conflicts. As RIAs become more robust and data-heavy, this will be a huge issue. It’s something Google Gears doesn’t address and has been one of the big complaints about the plugin.
Here’s a list of what is included with the framework:
- Microsoft Sync Framework Runtime – An SDK which allows developers to create custom providers enabling new applications, services and data stores to participate in the synchronization ecosystem.
- Sync Services for ADO.NET – An ADO.NET based provider which allows synchronizing relational data using REST style interfaces, enabling data to be taken offline
- Sync Services for File Systems – A ready-to-configure provider capable of representing any Win32-compatible file system (e.g., FAT, NTFS, and removable devices). This provider handles challenges such as change detection on FAT volumes, name-name collision resolution, update-delete conflicts, and the ability to preview a synchronization action.
- Sync Services for Simple Sharing Extensions (SSE) – Full support for producing and consuming RSS and ATOM feeds from any provider.
- SQL Server Compact Metadata Store – A component that can be used by developers for storing sync metadata such as versions, anchors, and change detection information. This component greatly simplifies the development of custom providers that do not have a natural place to store metadata.
