Working offline & sync

This is the promise that makes Contents Capture trustworthy in the field: you can always capture, and nothing is ever lost. Here's how it works and how to read it.

Capture never waits on the network

Every photo, video, audio clip, room, group, and detail is saved to your device first. A basement with no bars, a concrete parking structure, a rural property — none of it stops you. Keep working exactly as normal.

When a connection is available, the app quietly catches up in the background.

What happens after you capture

Behind the scenes, each capture moves through a few stages:

1. Saved — written safely to your device the instant you capture.
2. Prepared — a lightweight preview is made (the full-resolution original is always kept for the final report).
3. Uploading — sent to secure cloud storage in the background.
4. Synced — confirmed in the cloud, verified intact.

You don't manage any of this. You just capture; the app handles the rest.

Sync status

A sync screen (and the indicator on each assignment) shows the truth at a glance:

• Synced — safely in the cloud. Done.
• Pending — saved on your device, waiting to upload. Safe, just not uploaded yet.
• ⟳ Uploading — in progress.
• Needs attention — an upload failed (usually a network blip). Tap Retry; the app also retries automatically.

9:41

Sync status

ConnectionWi-Fi

Sync now

Outbox0

Pending uploads2

Failed0

By state

Captured1

Uploading1

Synced12

The sync screen — connection, outbox, pending uploads, and a per-state breakdown.

IMPORTANT

Before you leave a job or hand off a phone, open the sync screen and confirm everything shows Synced. If items are still pending, get onto Wi-Fi and give it a few minutes — your device is holding the only copy until then.

Saving battery and data

• Wi-Fi-only uploads (optional) — large video jobs can use a lot of cellular data. If your admin or settings enable Wi-Fi-only, captures still save instantly and upload once you're on Wi-Fi.
• Uploads are paced to be gentle on battery and memory, and pause/resume cleanly if you lock the phone or lose signal mid-transfer.

If your phone is lost or replaced

Anything already Synced is safe in the cloud and reappears when you sign in on a new device. Items that were only pending lived solely on the lost device — which is exactly why the sync screen check above matters.

TIP

On a multi-day total-loss job, end each day on Wi-Fi and confirm a clean sync. It takes thirty seconds and guarantees a bad day can't cost you a day's work.

Next: Bulletproof documentation.