iCloud and Sync
Orrique can keep the journal on one device or sync it through your private iCloud. You choose the storage mode.
Choose a storage mode
Section titled “Choose a storage mode”| Mode | Best for | Where the journal lives |
|---|---|---|
| Local Only | One-device use or no iCloud storage | This device only |
| iCloud Sync | Using Orrique across Apple devices | This device and your private iCloud |
There is no separate Orrique login. iCloud Sync uses the iCloud account signed into the device.
During first setup
Section titled “During first setup”iCloud Sync begins selected and is marked Recommended. Orrique checks the current iCloud account before setup continues:
- Ready to sync means no previous Orrique setup was found, so the new-journal questions continue.
- Previous iCloud setup found opens the shorter Welcome Back path and starts the private journal import before the cabinet opens.
- A signed-out, restricted, temporarily unavailable, or inconclusive account shows an inline explanation. Retry the check or choose On This Device.
For a new journal, the selection becomes active when setup finishes or when you choose Skip Setup, after Orrique prepares the storage successfully. For a previous setup, iCloud becomes active before Welcome Back so restored preferences are not replaced by fresh defaults. An untouched Skip keeps the visible iCloud selection while leaving unreviewed community sharing off. If preparation fails, the current storage remains active and setup offers a retry or an On This Device fallback.
Change the mode later
Section titled “Change the mode later”- Open Settings.
- Open Data and Sync.
- Choose Local Only or iCloud Sync.
- Keep Orrique open while it prepares the selected storage.
- Check Storage on this device to confirm the active mode.
Export a full backup first when changing storage or moving devices. It gives you a separate recovery copy. See Backup and Export.
Check sync status
Section titled “Check sync status”Data and Sync shows whether iCloud is available, the backend active on this device, and local counts for scents, diary entries, formulas, and shelves.
Common states include checking, iCloud ready, syncing, sync retry needed, sync needs attention, sign in to iCloud, restricted, unavailable, and Local Only. A sign-in or restriction state needs attention in the device’s System Settings.
When the system reports a completed private import or export, the page shows Last iCloud activity. This is separate from account readiness. An available account does not by itself claim that every transfer has completed.
Check for synced changes
Section titled “Check for synced changes”When iCloud Sync is active, use Check for synced changes in Settings, Data and Sync. This reloads changes that CloudKit has already imported into this device and checks the current account and durable retry state. This control is available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
On Mac, you can also choose View, Check for Synced Changes, or press Command-R.
Normal transfer timing remains automatic and is controlled by the system. The check does not claim to force an immediate CloudKit download. It is useful after another device changes a shelf, formula, layout, or saved search because it applies anything already delivered and shows whether a supporting change remains queued locally.
Returning to Orrique also schedules one foreground refresh. If a system picker or another interruption briefly changes the app state, Orrique combines those transitions instead of starting overlapping catalog and journal refreshes.
What syncs
Section titled “What syncs”Your private iCloud journal includes:
- fragrances, containers, photos, shelves, and saved searches
- diary entries, formulas, ratings, and personal notes
- supported layouts and preferences
- active wear-session state between full app devices
Apple Watch receives its working cache and live-session state through the paired iPhone, not by writing the journal directly to iCloud.
Some permissions and identifiers stay local because the operating system grants them per device. These include App Lock, notification permission and schedules, Spotlight permission, calendar identifiers, and similar device-specific state.
Public catalog downloads are separate from the private journal. Each device keeps its own rebuildable catalog database and refreshes it independently from the shared public catalog. The database is not part of private journal sync. Collection records, manual entries, diary data, and saved photos remain in local journal storage. Public catalog matching may need a connection after rebuildable downloads are cleared. See Device Storage and Offline Use.
Shared Base details and product photos arrive through that public catalog refresh. A personal photo added to your own saved base remains part of your private journal and takes priority in your bases and formulas.
Catalog-wide and supporting public reads use bounded CloudKit pages. Orrique applies a page only after every requested record succeeds, so a failed or incomplete page cannot replace confirmed cached data.
Photo text and compact preview details can arrive before the larger image asset. If the device already has a completed frame for that photo, it remains visible while Orrique checks or reloads the asset.
On a new device
Section titled “On a new device”- Sign in to the same iCloud account.
- Choose iCloud Sync in Orrique.
- Leave the app open long enough for the first private download.
- Use Check for synced changes if the counts stop changing and data is still missing.
When a previous setup is found, the Welcome Back screen says that your cabinet is arriving in the background and shows a Scent reminders switch. Morning and next-day reminder preferences can follow you through iCloud, while notification permission and scheduled delivery remain local to each device. Leaving the switch unchanged preserves the two separate reminder choices. If either is on and this device has not decided notification permission yet, Open my shelf asks at that point. Changing the switch updates both reminder types and asks for local notification access when you turn them on. The Community contributions popup then says your cabinet is here and asks you to choose Share both, Performance only, Open without sharing, or Keep reviewing. Either sharing option opens its applicable full disclosure before it becomes active. Keep reviewing, Escape, or Cancel returns to Welcome Back without changing sharing. The Collection can still look incomplete while the first download is in progress. Do not add duplicate copies during that window.
Recovery choices
Section titled “Recovery choices”CloudKit normally combines private journal changes in the background. Data and Sync reports transfer failures and supporting changes that remain safely queued on this device.
Queued supporting changes are retried by their independent record key. If one change still cannot be confirmed, Orrique keeps that change queued while continuing the same bounded retry pass for later independent changes. A failed item is never reported as saved just because another item succeeded.
When Orrique has two complete versions from a controlled recovery that it cannot combine safely, Recovery choices appears. Open an item, compare both versions, then choose Keep This Device or Use iCloud Version. An empty Recovery choices area does not claim that CloudKit has never merged concurrent edits.
When sync is delayed
Section titled “When sync is delayed”- Confirm Storage on this device says iCloud Sync.
- Confirm the device is online and signed into iCloud.
- Use Check for synced changes.
- Keep Orrique open briefly on the device that made the newest change.
- Check whether a recovery choice or queued supporting change is waiting in Data and Sync.
- Keep Orrique open briefly after a storage change so the first copy and any incoming iCloud rows can finish.
Local writes remain optimistic. If SwiftData cannot be read, Orrique keeps the current in-memory journal and queued wear or rating changes without replacing them from an older recovery mirror. It retries through a bounded recovery path and applies queued changes only after the durable store is readable again. If a local save cannot complete, Orrique keeps recovery information instead of claiming the change was saved. A retryable network problem can be tried again from the surface that reports it.
Local Only and backups
Section titled “Local Only and backups”Local Only does not create a cloud copy. Deleting the app or losing the device can remove the only journal copy. Export full backups regularly and store them privately.
A full backup is unencrypted and may be extractable by anyone who has the file. Import replaces the journal only after a preview and confirmation. Current Orrique versions also accept the earlier .orrique format written by previous Orrique releases for iOS 26.
Community sharing is separate
Section titled “Community sharing is separate”Private journal sync does not publish your collection or diary. Community performance sharing and catalog contributions are separate choices. In a fresh full setup, both controls begin on but remain visible and independently editable before you continue. Any switch left on still requires agreement in its full disclosure. Skip Setup does not turn on choices that have not completed that review. A returning device uses the separate popup with Share both, Performance only, Open without sharing, and Keep reviewing, followed by the applicable disclosures. See Community and Contributions.