Data Synchronization in mobile apps - multiple devices, multiple users
- by ProgrammerNewbie
I'm looking into building my first mobile app. One of the core features of the application is that multiple devices/users will have access to the same data -- and all of them will have CRUD rights.
I believe the architecture should involve a central server where all the data is stored. The devices will use an API to interact with the server to perform its data operations (e.g. adding a record, editing a record, deleting a record).
I imagine a scenario where synchronizing the data will become a problem. Assume the application should work when it is not connected to the Internet, and thus cannot communicate with this central server. So:
User A is offline and edits record #100
User B is offline and edits record #100
User C is offline and deletes record #100
User C goes online (presumably, record #100 should get deleted on the server)
User A and B goes online, but the records they edited no longer exist
All sorts of scenarios similar to the above can come up.
How is this generally handled? I plan to use MySQL, but am wondering if it's not appropriate for such a problem.
