OmniFocus for Mac FAQ

Is there a discount if I buy OmniFocus for Mac and OmniFocus for iPhone?

OmniFocus for Mac and OmniFocus for iPhone are separate products, with lots of independent work going into each one. We’re generally quite happy to offer bundle pricing for products purchased through our own online store, but there’s no way to do that when selling through the App Store. We’ve tried to make sure that each product is priced reasonably as its own independent product, and we hope you’ll agree that both products become even more valuable when you use them together.

I just did an OS update, and now my Mail plugins are disabled. Can you issue an update?

We’re sorry for the inconvenience this causes. We can’t prevent Apple’s system updates from doing this from time to time, but they’re disabling Mail plugins automatically, not because they’ve actually detected any sort of problem.

You can work around this behavior by opening the Clippings pane of OmniFocus’ preferences, and then using the button at the bottom of the pane to uninstall and reinstall the Clip-o-tron 3000. At that point, you should be back up and running.

Do I have to pay for OmniFocus 1.9.4 for Mac if I already own version 1.0?

Version 1.9.4, like all minor updates from the Omni Group, is free.

What can I do if my OmniFocus database seems to be growing without bound?

If you have syncing available, try resetting the database on the sync server by making sure that you have a client that is fully-synced, then moving aside the OmniFocus.ofocus file on your iDisk (the remote copy - not a locally-synced iDisk) or WebDAV server, then syncing again with that fully-synced client, to push all the data back.

If that does not help, try performing a backup in OmniFocus on the Mac (after making sure that it is fully synced), then restoring from that backup, and then resetting the database as described above.

What does it mean if I'm seeing an "Unable to lock Document. Another application has the OmniFocus document locked" error?

Try logging out and back in, or if that does not work, rebooting. This will clear up any issues if a second copy of OmniFocus is somehow running, causing a conflict with the lock on the database.

If that does not help and you are sure that there is not another instance of OmniFocus that is currently running and thus legitimately has the database locked, locate your OmniFocus database in ~/Library/Application Support/OmniFocus and look for a file there with a “.lock” filename extension. Delete this file and relaunch OmniFocus.

Why is OmniFocus repeatedly asking for my MobileMe / WebDAV login info?

Check that you are entering the correct user name and password, with the correct case. Passwords are always case-sensitive, and some servers treat the user names as case-sensitive as well.

Try canceling out of the sync setup screen, then start over.

Why are the controls in the Sync preferences pane disabled/greyed out?

Make sure that you have at least one window open showing your OmniFocus database. If there are no open windows, the database is not open, and the preferences for syncing the database will be disabled.

If you have multiple OmniFocus databases open (such as your normal database and your archive file or a backup), make sure that the main database window has focus. If a window for a different database has focus, the preferences for syncing will be disabled.

Make sure that OmniFocus is not in the middle of a sync. While syncing, the preferences for syncing are disabled.

Make sure that the username for MobileMe (set in System Preferences) or WebDAV (set in OmniFocus sync preferences) is spelled correctly and has the correct case. MobileMe and other services may allow you to log in with mismatched case in the username, yet disallow further activity. For example, if your user name is JohnSmith, make sure you enter that, not “johnsmith”.

I tried these troubleshooting suggestions but they did not help. What should I do next?

You can often get help from other OmniFocus users on our discussion forums at http://forums.omnigroup.com/.

If you are still having problems after trying these troubleshooting steps, please contact our support department at omnifocus@omnigroup.com.

Can OmniFocus use iCloud to sync?

We’re in the process of adding iCloud support to all our document based apps like OmniGraffle, OmniOutliner, and OmniGraphSketcher: iCloud is well-suited to the task of moving individual documents between your devices. OmniFocus’ syncing feature has more complex needs than the apps iCloud was designed to support, though. Right now, the two aren’t a good match for each other.

One possibility would be re-designing OmniFocus to fit iCloud, but it would be a significant engineering effort to do so; we’d need to build a new database format with iCloud-style sync in mind. We may do that in the future, but this would also mean putting all the other features that customers are asking for on hold until we were finished. For the time being, we’re hesitant to do that.

Folks that are syncing via iDisk will be able to continue to do so until June of 2012, even if they convert their MobileMe account to iCloud. Anytime between now and then, customers are welcome to set up free accounts on our own Sync Server - it works very much like iDisk sync, but there’s no yearly charge. (We may add additional for-pay services to the server in the future, but if all you need is sync access, we won’t charge for that.) If you’re interested in switching from iDisk sync to our server, you can request an account on the Omni Sync Server page of our website.

Once your account is set up, the server will send you an email that will walk you through the process of switching your devices over to our server. Enjoy!

Syncing OmniFocus

Do I have to use Apple's MobileMe service to sync OmniFocus for iPhone version with the desktop version?

Nope! OmniFocus can use any standards-compliant WebDAV server. The Omni Sync Server is free (though still in beta) and there’s a number of other WebDAV services out there.

WebDAV? What's that? It sounds charming and sophisticated.

WebDAV is a common type of server for sharing files on the web. Basically, it’s a way to read and write files on a web server but it is sophisticated and often complicated to set up. Many web hosting services support WebDAV; check with your hosting provider to find out whether you can set up your own WebDAV space.

Due to the nature and differences between each WebDAV server, we are unable to troubleshoot individual WebDAV issues on servers other than Omni Sync Server.

I have an existing document. How do I set up syncing?

• To sync with OmniFocus for iPhone, you’ll need to sign up for our own Sync Server, access to an iDisk, or you can use Bonjour. Check the Synchronizing Between Macs and Mobile Devices section of OmniFocus Help for step-by-step instructions.
• For advanced users, it is also possible to set up a WebDAV server to which OmniFocus can sync.

Can I merge the documents on my phone and Desktop later?

If you have two separate databases that started out on different devices, they can’t be automatically merged together. So if you already have an OmniFocus database on your Mac, and you start using OmniFocus for iPhone (or vice versa), you should set up synchronization right away.

If you already have two separate databases, you can copy and paste from one to the other to manually merge them.

1. Back up your database in OmniFocus for Mac.
2. Set up syncing for OmniFocus for iPhone if you haven’t already.
3. Sync OmniFocus for iPhone, choosing to keep the local database.
4. Set up syncing for OmniFocus for Mac if you haven’t already.
5. Sync OmniFocus for Mac, choosing to keep the server database. Your two devices should now be in sync, now you just need to copy your tasks across.
6. In the Finder, double-click on the backup you made earlier to open it. Now you should have both OmniFocus databases side-by-side.
7. Drag or copy and paste anything you want to keep from your backup document.

What's the value of synchronization if I only ever use OmniFocus on one device? Can I back up my data if I don't have OmniFocus for Mac?

Syncing with WebDAV provides you with one more place that your data is backed up. iTunes backs up your data once a week (or when you manually request it), and you’ll need to restore the entire phone, not just OmniFocus, to get your data back. But OmniFocus can sync with WebDAV automatically every time you make changes, so your backup will be current.

Synchronization seems really slow, or isn't completing. Can I do anything to fix this?

Make sure that you have a release of OmniFocus from August 4, 2008 or later as we made some significant improvements to the syncing performance at that time. On the Macintosh, these improvements were introduced in 1.5 sneaky-peek 77.9.0.103681, and on the iPhone and iPod touch the improvements are in 1.0.3. If you make changes on two different clients without syncing in between, the next sync can be much slower as OmniFocus has to do a lot of extra work to merge the multiple sets of changes. (If changes have only been made on one client, they can be merged much more efficiently.) This can be especially noticeable if OmniFocus on an iPhone or iPod touch is the next client to sync, because these devices are much slower than a Mac. To minimize this problem, try to make sure that changes get synced to the server before you leave one device (syncs happen automatically one minute after you make a change, or you can manually initiate a sync), and that you sync down any new changes before making changes on a second device. If you used OmniFocus 1.0 for Mac before upgrading to the 1.5 sneaky-peek, your database might still have a complete history of every change you have ever made due to bugs in some earlier sneaky peek builds. Make sure you have everything you need on your primary device, then remove the old sync database from your sync server to reset it, then sync to it from your primary device to create a fresh sync database. Sync once more to make sure everything is working, then go ahead and start adding other devices. If your database is very large you might consider archiving some of the older data. This will make it faster to merge in synced changes. Archiving is currently only available via the Mac version of OmniFocus: you can archive older actions which have been completed or dropped by selecting “Move Old Data to Archive” from the “File” menu. There is an option in that same menu for opening the archive so that you can reference it later if necessary.

Synchronization does not seem to work; what should I do?

Make sure that you’re using a recent version of OmniFocus. If the version number is below 1.8 on the Macintosh and 1.8 on the iPhone, you’re missing out on some big sync improvements.

If actions you add or modify on the phone are not showing up on the Macintosh, your filter settings may be hiding them. Try going to the Perspectives menu and choosing the built-in “All Items” perspective.

If you have iDisk Sync turned on in the MobileMe tab of System Preferences, try turning it off. Some users have reported problems when they had iDisk Sync turned on which went away when they turned it off. Otherwise, be sure not to touch the copy of the OmniFocus database on the synced copy of your iDisk, as this will certainly conflict with the syncing that OmniFocus performs. Similarly, make sure that you do not have OmniFocus syncing directly to a locally-synced iDisk (via the Disk option in OmniFocus sync preferences).

If you still think there is a problem with your synchronization, try the following steps to make sure:

1. Perform a sync on the Mac or device where you made the changes. On a Mac this means clicking the Sync button in the toolbar or choosing Synchronize with Server from the File menu. On iPhone this means tapping the Sync button in the center of the toolbar. When that sync is done, perform a sync on the other side. If you still don’t see the changes, move on to the next step.
2. Make sure your filter settings aren’t hiding the changes you made; on the Mac, choose All Items from the Perspectives menu to make sure you’re not missing anything. On iPhone, try changing your Settings to show “All Items” in the projects screen, and then navigate to the project that you changed.
3. If that still didn’t work, you might have some disconnected transactions or other residue in your database. Open the sync location and rename your database to something else, like “OmniFocus-aside.ofocus”. Sync from one copy of OmniFocus to put its database on the server. Then sync from the other copy, and choose to use the server copy. Now your two databases should be in sync, and things should go smoothly.
4. If you still have any problems, you may have found a bug. Contact omnifocus@omnigroup.com and we will help you track it down.

How often does OmniFocus sync? Do I have to sync it manually every time?

OmniFocus for iPhone automatically syncs one minute after you make a change, to make sure that the MobileMe (or WebDAV) server has an up-to-date copy of your database. OmniFocus for Mac does the same, plus both will sync once an hour in case another device made some changes recently. If the applications have not been running and the hour has elapsed, it will sync on launch. Whenever you like, you can manually make a sync happen, as well.

What does it mean if OmniFocus refuses to connect to a WebDAV server with an "untrusted certificate"?

Check that you are using the latest version of OmniFocus for iPhone, 1.13, as an earlier version of OmniFocus had this bug.

What does a 403 "Forbidden" error mean when I try to sync?

This message means that OmniFocus is able to communicate with your sync server, but the server is not letting you access the location the app is trying to work with.

The most common cause of this message is the server’s configuration has changed, but in a way that doesn’t tell OmniFocus that it needs to ask you for updated login information.

OmniFocus attempts to work around this by prompting you for updated credentials in most cases, but if you do see this message you can try temporarily changing your password on the server. This will cause it to send OmniFocus a different error message which the app will recognize as meaning that we need to prompt for new login info. (Another option is to try telling OmniFocus to sync to me.com if it’s currently configured to sync to one of the older mac.com addresses.)

A good next step is to make sure that you have plenty of space left on your iDisk or WebDAV server. For most people, a few megabytes is enough, but if you have lots of attachments or an especially large database, you may need more space.

If that doesn’t fix the problem, the next step is to check the document path specified in sync preferences. If it is incomplete or misspelled, this error may occur.

Another thing to try would be to check the permissions set on the folder or account you’re syncing with on the server. Certain WebDAV accounts especially may be configured incorrectly, or may be configured for read-only access from some accounts.

How long should sync take?

Our goal is to have sync (no matter what method you’ve chosen) take no more than 30 seconds. Keep in mind that some factors are out of our control; if the iDisk servers are having a bad day, for example, we can’t fix that. However, if you’re syncing frequently and consistently seeing longer sync times, please contact our Support Ninjas so they can lend a hand.

Licensing

Help! I upgraded/destroyed/forgot to back up my computer and lost my license! What can I do?

Just visit the Lost Licenses page to retrieve it. If this does not work for you, please send an email to sales@omnigroup.com.

Why won't it accept my license?

If you purchased your license through our online store:
Both the license key and license owner must be entered exactly as it was emailed to you. The key is linked to the owner so they both must match exactly to be accepted by the application. The license key should be a 23-character long string and does not contain numbers. If you need your license key sent to you again, you can use the Lost Licenses page to retrieve it. If you are still having trouble, please send an email to sales@omnigroup.com.

If you purchased a retail boxed copy:
Please double check you entered the license key exactly as given to you. The license key should be a 23-character long string in the format of XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXX and does not contain numbers. If you are still having trouble, please send an email to sales@omnigroup.com. It is also recommended you register your license key with us so we can send it to you if you happen to misplace it.

I bought one of your products through the Mac App Store; when I launch it, it asks for a license code. What should I do?

One of the advantages of the Mac App Store is that the products you buy there don’t require license codes. Instead, your iTunes account information is used to unlock the products you buy there.

If your Omni application is asking for a license code, it’s usually because a trial copy of the application downloaded from our website is being run instead of the Mac App Store edition.

The easiest thing to do in this case is a Spotlight search of the entire Mac for the product name. Use the results to find and launch each copy of the app on your Mac one by one. If a copy asks for a license, quit it, then move it to the Trash. Copies installed via the Mac App Store won’t do this.

If, at the end of this process, all the copies are in the Trash, you can use the “Purchases” tab in the Mac App Store to download a new copy of the product. Once the Mac App Store edition is installed, you won’t be asked for the license info on launch.

Uninstall

What should I do if I need to uninstall?

Like most Mac OS X applications, our products can be uninstalled by simply dragging the icon to the trash. Once you empty the trash, the application is gone from your computer. Like Jeff Goldblum says, “There is no step three!”.