Your data everywhere,
always in sync.

StringsTheory stores all of your data locally on your device using Apple's SwiftData framework. Every inventory item, work order, customer record, and BOM entry lives on your Mac or iPad first. You never need an internet connection to use the app -- everything works fully offline.

When cloud sync is enabled and you have internet access, StringsTheory sends your local changes to the cloud and pulls down changes made on other devices. If you lose connection mid-day (spotty shop Wi-Fi, traveling to a show), nothing breaks. Your changes simply queue up and sync the next time you're online.

• All data is stored locally on your device -- the app works without internet
• Changes are tracked with sync metadata (timestamps, status flags) so nothing gets lost
• When online, local changes push to the cloud and remote changes pull down
• If you go offline, changes queue up automatically and sync when connection restores

When you make changes while offline, StringsTheory adds each change to an offline queue. You can see how many pending changes are waiting by looking at the count badge displayed in the Cloud Sync settings area.

• Each create, update, or delete operation is tracked as a pending sync item
• The pending count badge shows exactly how many changes are waiting to push
• When your connection restores, the queue processes automatically -- no manual action required
• If a sync attempt fails (server unreachable, timeout), the queue retries on the next sync cycle
• Changes are sent in chronological order to preserve data integrity

You control how often StringsTheory checks for changes and pushes your local updates. Navigate to Settings → Cloud Sync to configure the sync interval.

• Open Settings from the sidebar
• Select Cloud Sync
• Choose your sync interval: 5 minutes, 15 minutes (default), 30 minutes, or 60 minutes
• The timer resets after each successful sync, so a 15-minute interval means 15 minutes after the last sync completes

StringsTheory also uses adaptive backoff when sync failures occur. If the server is temporarily unreachable, the app gradually increases the wait time between retries instead of hammering a down server. Once a sync succeeds again, the interval returns to your configured setting.

Before accepting remote changes from the cloud, StringsTheory lets you preview exactly what's coming in. This is especially useful when multiple people are editing data -- you can see incoming changes before they overwrite anything locally.

• When a sync pull is available, you'll see a notification in the Cloud Sync settings area
• Open the pull preview to see a list of incoming changes grouped by entity type (inventory, work orders, customers, etc.)
• Each change shows what will be added, updated, or deleted on your local device
• Accept all changes at once, or review them individually before applying

When the same record is edited on two devices before a sync happens, StringsTheory detects the conflict and presents a side-by-side comparison so you can decide which version to keep.

• Conflicts are detected automatically when both local and remote timestamps are newer than the last sync
• The conflict viewer shows a side-by-side layout: Local (your device) vs. Remote (the cloud version)
• Each changed field is highlighted so you can see exactly what differs
• Choose which value to keep per field -- you're not forced to accept an entire record
• Once resolved, the merged result syncs back to the cloud for all devices

For example, if you updated an item's price on your Mac while your employee updated its quantity on the iPad, the conflict viewer shows both changes. You can keep your new price and their new quantity -- the best of both edits.

You don't have to sync everything. Selective sync lets you choose exactly which data types participate in cloud sync, giving you control over what gets shared across devices.

• Navigate to Settings → Cloud Sync
• Toggle sync on or off for each data type: Inventory, Customers, Work Orders, Bill of Materials, Production, and more
• Disabled data types remain local-only on each device
• You can change these settings at any time -- enabling a previously disabled type will trigger an initial full sync for that data

The sync log gives you full visibility into what's been synced, when, and whether anything went wrong. It's your audit trail for all cloud sync activity.

• Access the sync log from Settings → Cloud Sync → Sync Log or from the Sync Log section in the sidebar
• Filter log entries by date range, entity type (inventory, customers, work orders, etc.), or status (success, error, conflict)
• Each entry shows an entity breakdown with counts of records pushed (sent to cloud) and pulled (received from cloud)
• Error entries include detailed error messages and status codes to help diagnose issues
• Use the log to verify that a batch of changes made on one device has arrived on another

A color-coded indicator in Settings → Cloud Sync shows your current connection state at a glance.

• Green -- Connected and syncing normally. Your device can reach the cloud server and sync is active.
• Red -- Offline. No internet connection detected. Changes are being queued for later.
• Gray -- Not signed in. You need to sign in with your Annual tier account to enable cloud sync.

The indicator updates in real time. If your shop Wi-Fi drops, you'll see it switch from green to red immediately. When connection restores, it flips back to green and your queued changes begin syncing.

Annual tier subscribers get access to the StringsTheory web app at app.stringstheoryinv.com. It's a full-featured companion that runs in any modern browser -- Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge -- on any platform.

• Sign in with the same email and password you use in the native app
• Full CRUD access: create, read, update, and delete inventory items, work orders, customers, and more
• Changes made in the web app sync to your Mac and iPad on the next sync cycle
• Great for checking inventory from your phone, updating a work order from a customer's location, or managing your shop from home
• The web app uses the same cloud backend -- no separate setup required