🗂 How the queue system works

SyncBase comes with a built-in queueing system to handle all updates safely and reliably.

This is especially important because both Shopify and Airtable have strict API limits. Instead of sending everything at once (and risking errors), SyncBase stores your updates in a queue and processes them one by one.

This guide explains how the queue works, why it matters, and how you can manage it.

Why we use a queue

Shopify and Airtable APIs only allow a certain number of requests per second.
Without a queue, too many updates at once could lead to errors or even lost changes.
The queue helps smooth things out by processing updates one by one, as fast as possible.

The queue is not unlimited. If it grows too large, it can crash or lead to significant delays.

How the queue works

Each update is stored in the queue and then processed as quickly as possible.
Not all tasks are equal: for example, creating a product might take longer than updating a single field, so tasks don’t all move at the same speed.
Stuck tasks are discarded after 1 hour (for example, if Shopify or Airtable can’t process them). This ensures your queue never stays blocked forever.
You can monitor your queue directly in the SyncBase App under Synchronization > Queue section.
SyncBase always processes the oldest task first. Any new update you make will be added to the end of the queue, so it will only run after previous tasks are completed.

How to clear your queue

If you discard your queue, all pending updates will be lost.

Sometimes you may want to wipe the queue and start fresh.

Go to the SyncBase App > Synchronization tab > Queue section.
Click the button “Discard all tasks”.

What to do if you accidentally discarded the queue and lost updates

When you discard the queue, all pending updates are permanently removed and will not be processed. Contact us via the in-app live chat first so we can assess the situation with you.

⚠️ If updates were lost in both directions — or you are not sure what was lost — there is no way to restore or resync the discarded tasks. A new update may overwrite a version that was never synced, and you could lose data without realising it.

Under certain circumstances, it is possible to resync what was lost:

1. Updates were only lost from Shopify → Airtable

Your Airtable base is behind. Run a Base Refresh from the SyncBase app to pull the latest data from Shopify back into Airtable.

👉 Refresh your data on demand

2. Updates were only lost from Airtable → Shopify

Shopify is behind. If you are on the Elite or Enterprise plan, you can use the Bulk update your Shopify data from Airtable feature to push your Airtable data back to Shopify — contact us via the live chat to activate it.

If you are on a lower plan, check Airtable's field revision history to identify what changed and manually re-apply the updates.

👉 Bulk update your Shopify data from Airtable

What to do if the queue keeps growing

You see thousands of pending updates and a delayed sync? It means the API is throttling the processing speed. New updates will not be synced until everything ahead of them in the queue has been processed.

This usually happens when bulk changes are made without the correct workflow. Always process large updates in batches to avoid hitting API limits following the Bulk operations guide

💎 For bulk changes from Airtable → Shopify on the Elite or Enterprise plan: contact us to activate the Bulk update your Shopify data from Airtable feature — built specifically to handle large volumes safely.

For bulk changes from Shopify → Airtable: if you are certain the queue only contains Shopify-to-Airtable updates, you can discard the queue and run a Base Refresh from the SyncBase app.
👉 Refresh your data on demand

⚠️ Running a Base Refresh will overwrite your Airtable data with the current state of Shopify in one go. Make sure this is what you want before proceeding.

Updated on: 02/07/2026

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