What is "data synchronization"

n. 1 (context computing English) The establishment of equivalence between data collections (typically on different servers), where each data element in one item maps to a data item in the other, and their data is equivalent. 2 (''computing between trading partners'') Data synchronization is the electronic transfer of standardized product and location information between trading partners and the continuous harmonization of that data over time.

Data synchronization is the process of establishing consistency among data from a source to a target data storage and vice versa and the continuous harmonization of the data over time. It is fundamental to a wide variety of applications, including file synchronization and mobile device synchronization e.g., for PDAs.