Managing many profiles with sync: do it once, it happens everywhere

What is sync (a synchronizer)?

Sync is a feature that lets you operate several browser profiles at once. One profile becomes the leader; every mouse move, click, scroll and keystroke you make there is mirrored to the other profiles (the followers) in real time. With one mouse and one keyboard you use all the profiles tiled side by side on your screen.

The difference from RPA: with RPA you define the steps beforehand and the flow runs for you. With sync you stay fully in control; you decide what to do in the moment and the other profiles follow.

When is sync useful?

• One-off bulk tasks: changing a setting in every account, dismissing a notice, updating profile details.
• Preparing new profiles: opening the same sites and taking the same first steps in several profiles.
• Testing and checks: comparing how a page looks from different countries and device profiles at the same time.
• Work without a fixed flow yet: tasks that differ a little each time and are therefore hard to turn into RPA.

How does sync work?

The leader and the grid

When you start sync, the profiles are tiled on the screen in a grid of equal-sized windows. The first profile is the leader and takes the top-left corner of the grid; the others line up next to and below it. Two profiles open side by side, four in a 2×2 grid, six in 3×2. With many profiles the layout grows to more rows or onto other monitors, and every window fits the screen.

What is mirrored?

Mouse movement, clicks, scrolling, keyboard input and navigation in the leader are passed to the followers. To the page, the followers receive events that cannot be told apart from real user input.

Elements, not pixels

Simple synchronizers copy the on-screen coordinates of a click. But if the profiles have different window sizes, display scaling or page layouts, the same coordinates land somewhere else. A smarter approach identifies the element clicked in the leader, finds the same element in each follower and clicks that. Different window sizes stop being a problem.

Instant or humanized?

A good synchronizer offers both speeds. In Instant mode every pointer move, click and keystroke of the leader happens in all profiles at once, so menus, drags and forms follow without loss. Every account clicking the same spot at the same millisecond is not natural, though, and can create a pattern that links the accounts. That is why the Humanized mode gives each follower its own reaction delay, its own mouse path and its own typing rhythm. Which one fits depends on the job; Kalkan offers both with one click.

Safety and control

• Password fields: what you type into password fields should never be passed on; every account's password is its own.
• A follower on a different page: if a follower lands on a sign-in screen, a verification prompt or another page, it should stop instead of clicking blindly. The rest continue; you deal with that profile separately.
• Keeping an eye on things: because you see every window in the grid, you notice at once when something goes wrong.

Sync or RPA?

They are not rivals but complements:

• If the task is the same every day and its steps are clear, build an RPA flow and let it run in the background at the concurrency you choose.
• If the task varies, needs decisions or happens once, use sync.
• When designing a new flow, trying it by hand with sync first is a good way to see which steps you need.

Tips for efficient use

1. Before you start, make sure every profile is on the same starting page.
2. Choose the number of profiles to suit your screen; if windows get too small, following what happens in them gets hard. With more than one monitor the layout can spread across them.
3. Before an important action, check that the followers really are on the same page.
4. Avoid using sync for things that make accounts look alike, such as posting identical content everywhere at once. Our multi-account guide covers this.

Frequently asked questions

Do the followers have to be on the same site as the leader?

Yes. Sync looks for the element you clicked in the leader inside each follower; if a follower is on another page, that element is not there. The follower then stops and waits for you. The easiest way is to open the same address in every profile before you start.

What if the profiles use different languages or countries?

As long as the page structure stays the same it is not a problem; element-based clicks can find the same button even when its text is in another language. Some sites, though, show different layouts in different countries. In that case that follower is paused and the others continue.

Can I step in on one follower during sync?

Yes. If a follower is stuck on a verification screen, switch to that window and solve it yourself, then go back to the leader and carry on.

Does sync link my accounts?

Sync itself shares no data between profiles: each profile keeps its own cookies, fingerprint and proxy. The linking risk comes from doing exactly the same things in every account. The healthiest approach is to use sync for bulk maintenance and preparation, and keep the day-to-day use of each account its own.

Sync in Kalkan

In Kalkan you select profiles and press Sync. The first profile you select becomes the leader at the top-left of the screen; the others tile in an equal grid on the monitor Kalkan is on. Mouse, click, scroll and keyboard actions in the leader are mirrored to every follower in real time.

The leader always sits at the top-left of the even grid. Pointer moves and clicks target the same element, not the same pixel; in the default Instant mode followers track the leader with no delay, and in Humanized mode each moves with its own delay and mouse path. Password fields are never mirrored, and a follower that lands on a different page is paused. Sync leaves no trace on the page: capture happens in a separate context the page's own code cannot see, and replay goes to the followers through Chrome's real input pipeline.

Sync is included in the 3-day free trial too. Download Kalkan, see the sync guide for the steps, and compare plans on the pricing page.