The three trees
Every tracked file is compared across three states:- remote tree: current source-app state;
- local tree: current mounted file state;
- synced tree: the last state accepted by both sides.
Common states
Review before push
Use a narrow path:--confirm only when Locality reports a destructive guardrail and you have reviewed the plan:
Pull before push
If the remote changed first:Restore local file
Restore rewrites the local file from the last synced shadow. It does not call Notion or Google Docs.--force only for a known conflicted file that you intentionally want to reset.
Live Mode
Live Mode handles safe background sync, but it is not fully autonomous. It can:- pull clean remote updates;
- push safe local edits;
- keep using the same push guardrails;
- pause for conflicts, destructive plans, unsupported operations, remote drift that needs review, or anything ambiguous.
Diagnostics
Start with:loc status, loc diff, and loc push try to reconcile the visible file before planning.