Very likely a newbie question, but is there a way to synchonize the installation and setup of various plugins between different computers. I mainly use my desktop Windows machine at home, and have a number of useful plugins installed (thank you plugin developers). I would like my laptop to look the same.
Do I need to manually organize my laptop plugins, or is there a way to do this automatically?
Cheers.
This would be so useful, but I don't think there is an easy way to do it. It would be a fine thing, more so for particular plugins, if the data could be synced between machines. The actual installation of the plugins is trivial, but I'm thinking about data in plugins like Note Tabs and Favorites.
There is one plug in Templates that achieves this aim, and syncs templates between machines, but it does so by saving the templates as ordinary notes and adding a template tag.
I think folk have talked about syncing Settings also elsewhere in the forum, as it's a pain to have to repeat all settings on a new instance of Joplin on another device.
Here's hoping improvements can be made in time; especially when you consider it's not so long since there was no plugin capability with Joplin. The foundation is firm so lots should be possible over time 
You can use Syncthing to sync the plugin folders between machines.
That would be great. maybe PROs could make a plugin to sync all plugins?
I use Joplin on Win 10 and a couple of Arch based linux OS's on my laptop and my PC at work
So I'd be really interested on how to do this
I have a RPi Nextcloud that I could use perhaps?
Or just put the plugin folders onto my common to all OS's external disk?
Where are these plugin folders?
And where are the other (e.g. markdown) setting held?
Please
Cheers
One of the gsoc ideas was a settings sync project but it hasn't drawn much interest so far. The idea is that it would sync settings as well as plugins etc.
Otherwise everything is stored within your application profile dir. The settings are mostly in the json file.
Thanks
So, on Windows at least I found the C:\Users\Leigh\.config\joplin-desktop folder
EDIT: and on EndeavourOS (i3) Linux there is also the /home/leigh/.config/joplin-desktop folder (there are also a /home/leigh/.config/@joplin and /home/leigh/.config/Joplin folders, but these have 'other stuff' in them - no idea what these folders are for)
If I synced (via Nextcloud) the plugins folder and the settings.json file between instances of Joplin what would happen?
Mainly, would it mess up anything?
I guess there is no way of changing the location of the plugins folder and the settings.json file? Then I could just have one instance of them both on my external disk that is shared by all OS's
You can also just use the menu to open the location of you aren't sure (help > open profile directory)
.config/@joplin and .config/Joplin is all runtime and temp stuff which don't hold any profile data
I don't think there is anything in the settings json that is incompatible to different clients (other than you might need to reset the webclipper connection) but so long as you make sure you backup all your data (profile + jex) first then it should be ok even if something does go wrong as its only plugin + settings, not your actual data.
Not within Joplin, I guess you could symlink it? Might upset Joplin if it starts without the share being online though.
What's 'jex'?
Joplin export format. Just install the simple backup plugin and it will do it.
Thanks, I did have that plugin but cant remember on which instance and it started throwing up errors IIRC. Will look into it
Where are the plugin settings stored?
e.g. the filepath for the backup plugin
They are not in the settings.json file
Perhaps in the actual plugin .jpl file?
The settings from the plugins stored in the database. Therefore, these can not simply be copied, these would have to be exported and then imported back into the database.
Thanks Jack
I think I am only going to:
Given my talents, trying to set up an auto sync could well end in tears 
@laurent @personalizedrefriger wouldnt that be something special for the joplin cloud with which you can easily get more users. I dont think someone would be too angry if that gets developed specifically only for the joplin cloud as that would be something special.
I've been grappling with the same issue, primarily because I use three different desktop devices - one at home, one for outdoor use, and an older, reliable laptop serving as a backup or for specific outdoor environments. Simultaneously, I'm frequently installing, testing, and occasionally removing different interesting new plugins that emerge daily in Joplin app.
Although syncing files in Joplin's ~/.config/joplin-desktop/plugin directory seemed like a good approach to align changes in the plugin list, I've encountered a couple of challenges:
There's a noticeable discrepancy between the plugin files (.jpl list) visible in the plugins folder and the list shown in "Tools/plugin list" within Joplin on one of my devices. This necessitates a manual update, involving the removal of certain files in the plugin folder on that specific device.
As mentioned in previous posts, some plugins that require setup seem to save information in different locations within Joplin. This complicates achieving complete alignment, especially when I modify the plugin setup on one device.
I understand this might not be a widespread concern for the majority of users. But I want to express that it's a challenge for individuals like me who use more than one Joplin desktop and installing and removing every time plugin across different desktop device.
Looking forward to any insights or new idea of potential solutions, or will be a big problem to fix when plugin can be use or extend the use through tablets and cellphones.