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Syncto
In the studio

Getting started with Syncto

Syncto is not on the Shopify App Store. Email [email protected] or book a call and ask XCO to put it on the stores you own. Both stores need it before a copy can cross between them.

The menu has three jobs: link a second store, choose which theme files to copy, and review history.

  1. On the store you will copy from, open Link Stores. The page shows this shop's name. Share that name with the other shop, or enter the other shop yourself.
  2. Under Link to Another Store, enter the other shop's name. You can paste the shop name, its .myshopify.com address, or the address from the Shopify admin.
  3. Choose Send Link Request. The request stays pending until the other shop acts on it. A pending request copies nothing.
  4. On the other store, open Link Stores. Incoming requests say action is required. Approve makes the link usable. Reject does not.
  5. Either store can revoke an active link later. A revoked link can be reconnected from the same page.

If the page says the linked-store limit is reached, stop. On Free, one other store is the cap the app applies. Pro and Advanced are configured in the app and are not a listing you can buy.

Choose which theme files to copy​

Open Sync Themes Files. The page heading is Sync Theme Files. You need at least one approved link. The steps are:

  1. Select Source Theme. Choose the theme on this store to copy from.
  2. Select Files to Sync. Tick the files you want, or a whole group such as sections or snippets. This is not a copy of the entire theme. Search the list if it is long.
  3. Select Target Store & Theme. Choose the linked store and a theme on it. If this shop has more than one approved link, you can include more than one store in the same run.
  4. Overview. Read the source theme, the files, and the target, then start the copy.

Before you start, check the options on the file step:

  • Auto-detect and add missing dependencies is on unless you turn it off. It adds sections, snippets, and blocks the selection references.
  • Exclude config files is on unless you turn it off. JSON settings files stay out. Turn it off only when you mean to copy those settings.
  • Exclude patterns skip names you do not want, such as files whose names start with cart.
  • Skip on failure lets the rest of the copy continue if one group of files fails.

If you pick the live theme, Syncto asks you to type CONFIRM. That writes onto the published storefront. There is no undo. Prefer a theme that is not live, then publish it yourself in Shopify when the preview looks right.

When the copy finishes, Syncto reports how many of the expected files it found and names any that are missing. A run can finish for one store and fail for another. Read the summary on the page, then open history.

Review history​

Open History.

  • Sync History lists each copy: source shop and theme, target shop and theme, how many files, the file list, and a status of success, partial, or failed. Open a run to see the verification count and any missing names. Partial means the copy was incomplete.
  • Link activity lists when a store was linked, revoked, or reconnected.

Times follow the shop's timezone. If one target could not be reached, that store is the failure. Other stores in the same run can still have received files, so check each row before you run the copy again.

After the first copy​

Open the target theme's preview in Shopify, not only the file list in Syncto. A file can be recorded in history and still look wrong on the storefront if the theme is not the one you published.

If you get stuck, email [email protected] with both shop domains, the theme names, and whether history says success, partial, or failed.