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tomscharbach's avatar
tomscharbach
Bronze Contributor
Apr 15, 2019
Solved

A heads up about Edge Classic Sync

I stripped down my favorites in Edge Classic on my primary computer (which has both Edge Classic and Edge Chromium installed) this morning, leaving just the Favorites Bar and a few essential bookmarks. 

 

I waited an hour for the stripped down favorites on the primary computer to sync through to my MS account.  I then opened up Edge Classic on my two Windows laptops (both of which have both Edge Classic and Edge Chromium installed).  The Edge Classic favorites did not sync at all on either laptop. 

 

My default browser in each case is Edge Chromium. 

 

Sync works fine on Edge Chromium (I renamed some favorites in Edge Chromium on my desktop and the changes sync'ed to both laptop computers within minutes). 

 

It looks like my MS Account is now linked to Edge Chromium, and that sync no longer works on Edge Classic.  That's fine with me (I'm using Edge Chromium as my primary browser going forward, and not planning to use Edge Classic any more except to compare features/functions as needed to isolated bugs/issues), but I thought I should let people know.

 

I was wondering how MS was handling sync with two versions of the Edge Browser.  Now I know, I think.  MS syncs one or the other browser (in my case Edge Classic), but not both.

 

Version 74.1.96.24 (Official build) dev (64-bit)

  • tomscharbach's avatar
    tomscharbach
    Apr 23, 2019

    @akhator  I just recieved confirmation from Microsoft Support that the support lead replicated the issue of Edge Classic installed on one computer failing to sync with Edge Classic on another computer when both Edge Classic and Edge Chromium are installed on the two computers.  The lead also told me that the issue is going to be submitted to additional teams for review and resolution.  The issue is tricky to test and isolate, but I am now confident that MS is aware of the issue and working on it.

     

    This is probably not an issue for most Edge Chromium Insiders because few are doing what I am doing, testing Edge Chromium on three computers to allow me to compare performance in high-end, mid-range and low-end computing environments.

     

    When Edge Chromium replaces Edge Classic, the problem will, of course, go away.   But it is likely to take months for Edge Chromium to be released, and so the issue is something to be aware of as you test.

     

     

  • tomscharbach's avatar
    tomscharbach
    Bronze Contributor

    @akhator I've completed testing and have reached a preliminary conclusion that Edge Dev prevents Edge Classic from syncing between computers if both Edge Dev and Edge Classic sync through the same MSA.  Uninstalling Edge Dev on an affected computer allows the computer to sync Edge Classic again. 

     

    I am attaching the test summary describing the issue for anyone who is interested. 

     

    I have reported the problem both through the Feedback button and though Edge Support, as you requested.  Thank you for your effort on this issue.

    • tomscharbach's avatar
      tomscharbach
      Bronze Contributor

      @akhator  I just recieved confirmation from Microsoft Support that the support lead replicated the issue of Edge Classic installed on one computer failing to sync with Edge Classic on another computer when both Edge Classic and Edge Chromium are installed on the two computers.  The lead also told me that the issue is going to be submitted to additional teams for review and resolution.  The issue is tricky to test and isolate, but I am now confident that MS is aware of the issue and working on it.

       

      This is probably not an issue for most Edge Chromium Insiders because few are doing what I am doing, testing Edge Chromium on three computers to allow me to compare performance in high-end, mid-range and low-end computing environments.

       

      When Edge Chromium replaces Edge Classic, the problem will, of course, go away.   But it is likely to take months for Edge Chromium to be released, and so the issue is something to be aware of as you test.

       

       

  • tomscharbach's avatar
    tomscharbach
    Bronze Contributor

    A correction:

     

    I was wondering how MS was handling sync with two versions of the Edge Browser.  Now I know, I think.  MS syncs one or the other browser (in my case Edge Classic), but not both.

     

    should read:

     

    I was wondering how MS was handling sync with two versions of the Edge Browser.  Now I know, I think.  MS syncs one or the other browser (in my case Edge Chromium), but not both.

     

    Version 74.1.96.24 (Official build) dev (64-bit)

     

    • akhator's avatar
      akhator
      Icon for Microsoft rankMicrosoft

      tomscharbach Thanks for your feedback. Edge Insider preview builds (Edge-Chromium) is not expected to sync with the earlier Edge (what you called Edge-classic). If you have Edge Insider preview builds installed on multiple devices, they all should cross-sync fine.

      You should be able to import your favorites from Edge-classic to the Edge preview build. Also note that we currently support only favorites sync and are actively working on enabling other attributes. 

       

      • tomscharbach's avatar
        tomscharbach
        Bronze Contributor

        akhator   Well, I have to take back what I previously said. 

         

        While I was sitting here preparing my response above, Edge Classic on the three computers synced.  Whatever was broken the other day now isn't, and both Edge Dev and Edge Classic appear to be syncing internally.  But what is interesting about it is that the Edge Classic browsers synced to my OLD favorites, not the stripped down favorites I put on all three computers after I installed Edge Dev.  I guess the sync function in Edge Classic went to sleep for a few days, and work up again.

         

        The only difference between the two environments (that is, when Edge Classic did not sync, and now when it does) is that I upgraded to Version 75.0.131.0 (Official build) dev (64-bit).

         

        In any event, let me say that this is not something worth worrying about.

         

         

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