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FUTO Notes

Sync conflicts in FUTO Notes: merges and conflict copies

When two devices change the same note before syncing, FUTO Notes first tries to merge the two versions line by line. If both changed the same lines, it keeps both: the note keeps one version and the other is saved as a conflict copy in the same folder. Sync never throws either version away.

Edits to different parts of a note merge

Edits to separate lines combine into one note, and so do identical edits made on both sides. The merge compares each device’s version with the last version they both synced. If only one side changed, its version wins. The merged note then syncs to every device, and no copy is made.

Images are never merged. Two different versions of the same image always produce a conflict copy.

When you get a conflict copy

If both devices changed the same lines, the device that syncs second saves its own version as a copy next to the original and takes the server’s version under the original name:

Groceries.md                        the version that reached the server first
Groceries (conflict 2026-09-23).md  the other device's version
  • The date is the day of the conflict in UTC, so near midnight it can differ from your local date.
  • A second copy on the same day is numbered: Groceries (conflict 2026-09-23 2).md, then 3, and so on.
  • Suffixes don’t stack. A conflict on a copy is named from the original title, such as Groceries (conflict 2026-09-24).md, never Groceries (conflict 2026-09-23) (conflict 2026-09-24).md.
  • Copies are ordinary notes. They sync to every device.

The same thing can happen to a note that is open in the editor. If sync changes the note while you have unsaved edits in it, your draft is saved as a conflict copy instead of overwriting the other device’s text. On iOS and Android the app shows “Conflicting edits saved to a copy” and switches the editor to the copy.

Resolve a conflict copy

Resolve a conflict copy by hand, because there is no merge screen:

  1. Open the original and the copy side by side.
  2. Move the text you want to keep into the original.
  3. Delete the copy.

Deleting the copy syncs like any other delete. If you want both versions, rename the copy instead.

Two devices create a note with the same name

Two devices that each create Groceries.md before syncing make two separate notes. When they meet, the note that reached the server first keeps the name, and the other is renamed with a short piece of its server ID:

Groceries (conflict 01a0cd10).md

Every device picks the same winner, so all of them end up with the same two names. If the two files are byte-for-byte identical, they are treated as one note and no copy appears.

Names that differ only in upper and lower case, such as Groceries.md and groceries.md, count as the same name, because macOS, Windows, iOS and Android can’t hold both in one folder.

An edit and a delete at the same time

The edit wins. If one device deletes a note while another edits it, the edited note comes back on every device, including the one that deleted it. If the edit was still being saved when the delete arrived, the edited text is kept as a copy such as Groceries (conflict 01a0cd10).md. See How renames, moves and deletes sync.

First sync on a device that already has notes

When a device connects to a server for the first time, it downloads the server’s notes first, then uploads its own.

  • A note that exists only on the device is uploaded. A note that exists only on the server is downloaded. You end up with all of them.
  • A note with the same name and folder and the same text on both is linked up. No duplicate appears.
  • A note with the same name and folder but different text is kept twice. The server’s version keeps the name, and the device’s version is renamed, such as Groceries (conflict 01a0cd10).md, and uploaded.

Reconnecting a device that synced before

After Reset connection on desktop or Disconnect on iOS and Android, the device remembers what each note looked like when it last synced. When you connect again:

  • Notes unchanged on both sides are linked up again.
  • A note changed on only one side takes that side’s version.
  • A note changed on both sides gets a conflict copy.

Next steps