Sync with Apple Reminders
Apple Reminders is an integrated sync method in 2Do. It is built on Apple's EventKit, the same framework the Reminders app itself uses, so your 2Do tasks show up right inside Reminders while 2Do keeps your projects and sub-tasks intact across your own devices.
This page covers the Reminders account type, which talks to Apple Reminders on this device. It is a different account type from iCloud CalDAV, which syncs iCloud's CalDAV task lists and does not show your tasks in the Reminders app. It is also different from iCloud, 2Do's recommended method, which carries your whole 2Do setup but keeps it inside 2Do. Pick one method and use it on every device.
What Stays on This Device
Some 2Do features are not carried by Reminders sync and stay on this device:
- Smart Lists
- Tag groups
- List groups
- Unused tags
- Attachments
- Locations
For a comparison of what each method carries, see Sync Overview.
Choose Reminders when you want your 2Do tasks to appear inside the Apple Reminders app and can do without attachments and standalone locations. Choose iCloud when you want every 2Do feature to travel between your devices.
How Your Data Looks in Reminders
- Across your own 2Do devices, projects and sub-tasks keep their full structure.
- In the Reminders app, they appear as a flat list. Reminders does not rebuild 2Do's hierarchy in its own interface.
Hierarchy is also one way: projects and sub-tasks created directly in Reminders are not shared with other apps, including 2Do, so structure you build in Reminders does not come across.
Extended Properties in Notes
Apple Reminders cannot natively store everything 2Do tracks. To preserve those extra properties, 2Do writes them as plain-text @tag:value lines at the bottom of the reminder's notes. That covers start dates, duration, starred state, tags, actions, project or checklist type, sub-task identity, and repeat-from-completion.
| Tag | Meaning |
|---|---|
@taskid:<uuid> | Stable identity for the task |
@parenttaskid:<uuid> | Which project or parent the task belongs to |
@tasktype:project / @tasktype:checklist | Whether the item is a project or a checklist |
@startdate:YYYY-MM-DD (plus optional @starttime:HH:MM) | Start date and time |
@duration:<seconds> | Task duration |
@starred | The task is starred |
@tags:tag1, tag2 | Assigned tags |
@action:<type> (plus @actionvalue:<value>) | Task action (call, email, URL, and so on) |
@repeatfromcompletion | Recurrence counts from the completion date |
Between 2Do installs these lines are parsed out and hidden, so in 2Do you see clean notes with only your own text.
@… lines if you open the note in RemindersBecause these tags live in the reminder's notes, they are visible at the bottom of the note in Reminders and in any app that reads the raw note text. That is expected. Avoid editing them by hand there, as they carry the information 2Do needs to rebuild your task.
Setup
- Open Settings > Sync and stay on the Setup tab.
- Open Account Type and choose Reminders.
- Tap Set Up Sync. There are no username or password fields; Reminders sync uses this device's own Reminders access rather than an online login.
- When iOS asks, allow 2Do full access to your reminders.
- Repeat on each of your devices.
2Do needs full access to Reminders. If access is denied or limited, sync cannot run, and 2Do shows a Reminders Access Required alert explaining "Reminders access is required before 2Do can sync your Reminders lists and tasks." Tap Open Settings to grant access in iOS Settings > Privacy & Security > Reminders, then try again.
Once connected, the Account Type menu is locked. To move to a different method later, use Change Account first, which resets this device's sync setup, then pick a new account type. The Enable Sync switch turns syncing on and off without disconnecting.
Sync Options
With Reminders selected, the Setup tab adds:
- Sync completed tasks, a picker for how far back completed tasks are brought into 2Do: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, 18, or 24 months, with 12 months to start. Its description reads "Older completed tasks stay in Apple Reminders and are removed from 2Do only. A shorter period keeps sync fast." Nothing is deleted from Reminders by this setting.
- Sync automatically, the shared device switch: "Turn this off to sync manually by pulling down on the task list."
- Push Sync, which lets the system wake 2Do when something changes.
The Setup footer shows Last Sync and, if a run failed, a red Last Error.
Next Sync Action
After the first sync, a Next sync action picker appears under Settings > Sync. It applies once to the next sync, then returns to Sync Normally. For Reminders, the choices are:
- Sync Normally
- Merge Sync, which reconciles this device with the synced data, matching existing items where it can and keeping both copies when an item was created separately on each side and cannot be matched confidently.
- Replace Local Data, which replaces the syncable tasks and lists on this device with what is currently synced.
Reminders is an app you also use directly, so 2Do will not overwrite it wholesale. Your choices are Sync Normally, Replace Local Data, and Merge Sync. Before choosing Replace Local Data, read Merge vs Replace; the wrong choice can overwrite good data.
Daily Sync
Once connected, 2Do syncs when you open it, when iOS grants it background time, and whenever you pull down on the task list.
Sync is not a backup. Use Settings > Backups & Export to keep milestone copies somewhere safe, independent of whichever sync method you use.
Troubleshooting
Sync stops with a Reminders access message
Access was denied or reduced. Open iOS Settings > Privacy & Security > Reminders and give 2Do full access, then sync again.
Completed tasks are missing from 2Do
They are still in Reminders. 2Do only brings in completed tasks inside the Sync completed tasks window; widen it if you want more of your finished history in 2Do.
One device shows different tasks
Sync the device with the correct data and let it finish, then choose Replace Local Data from Next sync action on the device that is behind. See One of my devices isn't syncing correctly.