[Solved] Sync 2.4.5 On iOS 10 Does Not Free Storage After File Is Deleted By Peer

[Pooch]

i documented this issue on october 1, 2014.  the issue still exists, so i'm now reporting it again.  i'm creating a new forum topic because it's been so long, because i'm running on more recent versions of software, and because the original issue was reported with bittorrent sync and that's since morphed into resilio sync.

i'm using sync to transfer files from a home server to a remote server, using my iphone as an intermediary/bridge.

the issue is that storage on the iPhone is seemingly not freed when a file is deleted by a peer.

there are three systems involved:

1. DESKTOP1:  OS X 10.9.5; sync 2.4.1
2. MOBILE1:  iOS 10.1.1; sync 2.4.5
3. DESKTOP2:  OS X 10.9.5; sync 2.4.1

here's the process:

1. DESKTOP1 and MOBILE1 are on the same wifi network
2. a file is created on DESKTOP1
3. sync is started on DESKTOP1 and MOBILE1 and the file gets synced to MOBILE1
4. sync is stopped on DESKTOP1 and MOBILE1
5. MOBILE1 is switched from the wifi network to the cellular data network
6. sync is started on MOBILE1 and DESKTOP2
7. file is synced to DESKTOP2
8. sync is started on DESKTOP1
9. file is manually deleted from DESKTOP1 and subsequently deleted via sync from MOBILE1 and DESKTOP2

the problem is that the storage on MOBILE1 does not get freed when a synced file is deleted by a peer.  for example, i have approximately 75GB of free space on MOBILE1.  i just today transferred an approximately 73GB file using the process outlined above.  after step 9, the storage is reclaimed on both desktops, but is not reclaimed on the mobile.

on the mobile:  [settings > general > about] shows approximately 2GB of free space.  it should be about 75GB .  but if i open sync and display the one and only folder, it shows that there are zero files in the folder and that they are taking up 0KB of space.

so my question is:  why is the storage not freed on the mobile?  i'm either missing some iOS or sync archive-type setting, or there's an iOS or sync bug.

the only way i've seen thus far to immediately reclaim the storage is to delete the app and reinstall it, but that's a pain.  i have noticed that if i wait several days and check the space again that the space has been reclaimed but i have not determined how many days need to pass before that happens, or what it is during that time that happens to cause the space to be reclaimed.

any insights will be greatly appreciated.  thanks.

 

 

[Helen]

On 1/22/2017 at 1:51 AM, Pooch said:

file is manually deleted from DESKTOP1 and subsequently deleted via sync from MOBILE1 and DESKTOP2

At this point the deleted file will be moved to Archive on mobile and will be stored there for another day. 
Disable Archive for this share and try again.

[Pooch]

thank you, helen. 

a note and a question:

note:  while i reported that i was using 2.4.5 on iOS i was actually using 2.4.4, and it seems the advanced options (including the ability to toggle the archive) were not introduced until 2.4.5.  that's why i missed it (and why the screenshot of the details for the folder in question did not include an "Advanced Options" link at the bottom of the page).  in any event, i updated to 2.4.5 and problem solved.  thank you.

question:  how long do the files actually stay in the archive?  you mentioned a "day".   just prior to updating to 2.4.5 i checked the free space on the device and the file was apparently still in the archive.  that was about 42 hours after i had removed it and it was placed in the archive.

thanks.

[Helen]

a day - 24 hours. 
reboot your phone - perhaps it won't update the info in real time 

[Pooch]

thanks for the reboot suggestion.  i'll keep an eye on things the next time around.  everything seems to be okay at the moment.