# How to sync with Ancestry tree when there are a lot of changes **URL:** \ **Category:** RootsMagic\ **Tags:** ancestry, question\ **Created:** [September 20, 2025, 4:01am UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714 "2025-09-20T04:01:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![markshancock](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/markshancock/32/5468_2.png) [@markshancock](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/markshancock)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 4:01am UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/1 "2025-09-20T04:01:37Z")
I tried out the free RootsMagic in June and created a file from my (rather large) Ancestry tree. It looks like it would help with research but Ancestry will probably still be our primary repository as my wife and I work on the same tree. RM11 pushed me over the edge so I purchased it and last light I tried syncing my tree and it looks like there are over 1000 updates and it wants me to approve them one-by-one. That would take FOREVER!!! What do I do, throw away the existing file and start again? What about the 2,500 media files it downloaded the first time? ---
**Author:** ![thejerrybryan](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/thejerrybryan/32/404_2.png) [@thejerrybryan](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/thejerrybryan)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 4:47am UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/2 "2025-09-20T04:47:27Z")
That is truly the way it works. Either do all the updates manually, or else delete your RM database and download from Ancestry again. Before you download from Ancestry again, delete all the media files that presently are linked into RM. They are all in a single folder, so just delete that one folder in a single step. ---
**Author:** ![keithcstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/df705f/32.png) [@keithcstone](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/keithcstone)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:47pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/3 "2025-09-20T12:47:35Z")
That’s the plan. I assume RM has a side marketing agreement with the folks that make carpel tunnel braces. Since I just merged a couple thousand people from a branch provided by a cousin I feel your pain, literally, but the only option at the moment is to suck it up and click your brains out. Since I have about 35,000 in my tree that’s (mostly) fully synced with Ancestry I wish I only had to deal with 1000 changes. The only thing I do to speed things up with a lot of additions is when I have a large family I upload a parent, close TreeShare, then update them. THat allows to you upload the uploaded parent, spouse, all kids, etc, in a lot fewer clicks. ---
**Author:** ![kevync1985](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3be4f8/32.png) [@kevync1985](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/kevync1985)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:52pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/4 "2025-09-20T12:52:44Z")
> [@markshancock](#): > > purchased it and last light I tried syncing my tree and it looks like there are over 1000 updates and it wants me to approve them one-by-one If you are used to or familiar with with FTM – it does work like that. I left FTM and switched to RM around Feb 2021. I left because of repeated multiple sync failures. I have not had any issues with since then related to “syncing” the drawback is you need to use it differently. Jerry and I use RM/ANC very similarly and have RM as our primary tree and use ANC for hints. Since ANC is your primary as you work with your wife its a little bit different scenario. ---
**Author:** ![thejerrybryan](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/thejerrybryan/32/404_2.png) [@thejerrybryan](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/thejerrybryan)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 2:18pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/5 "2025-09-20T14:18:40Z")
Let me know into a little more detail. If I were in your situation and if I were going to delete my current RM database and name a new one, I would do it in the other order. I would make a new RM database into which I would download from ancestry. That way, my current RM database would still be out there for a while in case anything goes wrong with the new RM database. Let’s say your current database is called **current** and your new database is called **new**. The full file name of your current RM database will be **current.rmtree** and your media files will be in a folder called **current\_media**. The full file name of your new RM database will be **new.rmtree** and your media files will be in a folder called **new\_media**. Your media files will have been downloaded a second time, but they will not be duplicated into the same folder. So if you are happy with this procedure after it all works, you could delete **current.rmtree** and you could delete **current\_media** very easily. Or you could just tough it out and do lot of clicking in your current RM database. ---
**Author:** ![markshancock](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/markshancock/32/5468_2.png) [@markshancock](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/markshancock)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 4:31pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/6 "2025-09-20T16:31:41Z")
LOL on the carpel tunnel braces. Since I really haven’t done much with the first Ancestry import I will probably just re-import my Ancestry account and not have to buy the brace. I mostly just used RM to find issues and correct them on Ancestry. I think I will also add a feature request to allow bulk/group accept changes from Ancestry ---
**Author:** ![markshancock](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/markshancock/32/5468_2.png) [@markshancock](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/markshancock)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 4:52pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/7 "2025-09-20T16:52:13Z")
I created a feature request > [@Please allow you to accept groups of changes](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/please-allow-you-to-accept-groups-of-changes/14718): > > I recently purchased Roots Magic and I have found that there is a problem when you share a tree on Ancestry with someone else. In that case, when you try to resynchronize to Ancestry, there can be a LOT of changes - sometimes thousands. Another person joked he wondered if RM was getting a commission on carpal tunnel braces - he had just accepted several thousand changes. My recommendation is to add a group selection feature to the changes screen that you can then “accept”. Maybe don’t allow… Everyone that doesn’t want carpel tunnel should like and comment. ---
**Author:** ![MadDog](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/maddog/32/313_2.png) [@MadDog](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/MadDog)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 4:55pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/8 "2025-09-20T16:55:05Z")
> [@markshancock](#): > > allow bulk/group accept changes Pros & Cons to that. FTM does it that way but if you have typo (maybe in a Place), you may not catch it. I usually make changes to a few people (maybe a family) then do the sync. ---
**Author:** ![markshancock](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/markshancock/32/5468_2.png) [@markshancock](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/markshancock)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 10:23pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/9 "2025-09-20T22:23:46Z")
The problem is when you have shared Ancestry tree and the other person working on the tree does a Family History Binge and the next time you sync there are thousands of changes you have to import - hence @keithcstone carpel tunnel comment ---
**Author:** ![keithcstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/df705f/32.png) [@keithcstone](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/keithcstone)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 10:47pm UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/10 "2025-09-20T22:47:29Z")
Actually has nothing to do with sharing a tree. I’ve had instances where either RM or Ancestry hiccups and I’ll have 10,000 or more updates to make. May take months to catch up. I’ve asked on multiple occasions that RM have some means to “catch up” when those things happen and the only way is ignore all changes, be out of sync. ---
**Author:** ![markshancock](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/community.rootsmagic.com/markshancock/32/5468_2.png) [@markshancock](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/markshancock)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2025, 5:10am UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/11 "2025-09-22T05:10:34Z")
@keithcstone post a comment in my feature request post - see the link above. The more people that talk it up, the more likely we will get it. ---
**Author:** ![keithcstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/df705f/32.png) [@keithcstone](https://community.rootsmagic.com/u/keithcstone)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2025, 10:33am UTC](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/how-to-sync-with-ancestry-tree-when-there-are-a-lot-of-changes/14714/12 "2025-09-22T10:33:40Z")
@markshancock I will do that, but I expect it will be merged with all the previous requests for the same thing. I’ve submitted that request for every version since TreeShare first came out in RM 7.5, as have others. > [@Proposal for treeshare improvement](https://community.rootsmagic.com/t/proposal-for-treeshare-improvement/7660/17): > > As @rzamor1 wants me to share an RM file the tables of which I have never looked at outside the RM user interface, I am creating a new one. As before, I am writing up what I do as I do it. This time, I plan to do the whole thing in RM, 1) creating a file there including a family with children having the same name, 2) using Treeshare to replicate the same file in Ancestry, 3) deleting the children in RM and 4) using Treeshare to recreate the children and demonstrate the completely repeatable bug …