Synced folders and concurrent use
familiar supports one writer at a time. You can keep a project in OneDrive, SharePoint, Dropbox, iCloud Drive or a similar synced folder. You can move between computers. Do not let two sessions write the same project at the same time, on synced storage or off it.
Before familiar replaces a state file, it reads the file’s revision again. If the revision changed, it stops. That check reads the local disk. A sync app copies changes after the write. Two computers can both read revision 3 and both write revision 4, and neither check stops them. The sync app then keeps one version or writes a conflict copy beside the original. familiar cannot see this happen. The rule is an instruction, not a lock, so the limit is real.
familiar does stop when it sees a conflict copy. Before it updates a state file, it looks for a
conflict copy beside it, such as tasks-DESKTOP-A1B2.md, timeline (conflicted copy 2026-09-11).md
or iCloud Drive’s tasks 2.md. If it finds one, it stops and reports it. You remove the copy
yourself. familiar never deletes it, never merges it without telling you, and never reads it as the
real state.
Two smaller effects:
- Online-only files. A file that is only a placeholder (OneDrive Files On-Demand) reads as an error, not as missing. A report can say “unreadable” when the file is only “not downloaded”.
- Long paths. A synced SharePoint folder adds a long prefix to every path. On Windows, a deep
project can then reach the
MAX_PATHlimit.