wip sync

wip sync

Mirrors the host source tree into the sync volume, once or continuously.

wip sync [-w|--watch] [--interval N]

Requires a sync: block:

`wip sync` needs a sync: block in wip.yml

See Source Sync for the configuration, and Sync Modes for exec vs. run.

One-shot

$ wip sync

Runs a single rsync pass from the read-only source mount into the volume. Where it runs depends on sync.mode:

sync.mode	Runs in
exec (default under container / compose-native)	the already-running primary container
run (default and only option under compose)	a throwaway wslc run --rm container

Under exec, the container must be up — start it with wip up -d first.

Fails loudly: a non-zero exit from rsync exits wip with the same code.

Watch mode

$ wip sync --watch
wip: syncing /home/me/app -> app-src:/app every 2s (Ctrl-C to stop)

Re-mirrors every interval seconds until interrupted:

^C
wip: sync stopped

Unlike the one-shot form, a failed mirror inside the loop does not exit — it prints the error and tries again on the next tick, so a container restarting mid-loop doesn't kill your watcher.

--interval N

Overrides sync.interval (default 2) for this run:

wip sync --watch --interval 5

Must be positive:

--interval must be a positive number

The two-terminal workflow

# terminal 1
wip up -d

# terminal 2
wip sync --watch

This is a foreground loop, not a daemon — keep the terminal open. See Continuous Sync for the full workflow and its gotchas.

sync.build is built once per invocation

If sync.build is configured, wip builds that image before mirroring — once per wip sync invocation, including once before a --watch loop starts, not on every tick. See Sync Modes.

Name collision

If you also declare an interaction named sync, the built-in wins and wip tells you:

$ wip sync
wip: commands.sync in wip.yml is shadowed by the built-in `wip sync`; run it with `wip dispatch sync`

See wip dispatch.

The one-way gotcha

The mirror is host → volume only, with --delete on by default. Anything the app writes under the target is removed by the next pass:

• generated files (scaffolds, migrations) don't come back to the host
• tmp/, log/, node_modules/ installed inside the container get wiped

Fix by excluding the path, giving it its own volume, or setting delete: false. See Source Sync.

Common problems

Symptom	Cause
rsync: not found	the image running the mirror lacks rsync — rsync Not Found
wip sync says the container isn't running	sync.mode: exec needs wip up -d first
Changes don't appear in the container	the watcher isn't running, or the path is in exclude
Files the app wrote keep disappearing	--delete — see the gotcha above

Related

• Source Sync
• Sync Modes
• Continuous Sync
• Fixing a Slow Boot