diff --git a/src/basic_memory/cli/commands/sync.py b/src/basic_memory/cli/commands/sync.py
index 655cb105..0a042d86 100644
--- a/src/basic_memory/cli/commands/sync.py
+++ b/src/basic_memory/cli/commands/sync.py
@@ -29,7 +29,6 @@ from basic_memory.services.link_resolver import LinkResolver
 from basic_memory.services.search_service import SearchService
 from basic_memory.sync import SyncService, FileChangeScanner, EntitySyncService
 from basic_memory.sync.utils import SyncReport
-from basic_memory.utils.file_utils import ParseError
 
 console = Console()
 
@@ -61,10 +60,7 @@ async def get_sync_service(db_type=DatabaseType.FILESYSTEM):
 
         # Initialize services
         knowledge_sync_service = EntitySyncService(
-            entity_repository, 
-            observation_repository, 
-            relation_repository,
-            link_resolver
+            entity_repository, observation_repository, relation_repository, link_resolver
         )
         entity_parser = EntityParser(config.home)
 
@@ -193,33 +189,12 @@ def display_detailed_sync_results(knowledge: SyncReport):
                 deleted.add(f"[red]{path}[/red]")
         console.print(knowledge_tree)
 
-async def validate_knowledge_files(
-    sync_service: SyncService, directory: Path
-) -> List[ValidationIssue]:
-    """Pre-validate knowledge files and collect all issues."""
-    issues = []
-    changes = await sync_service.scanner.find_knowledge_changes(directory)
-
-    for file_path in [*changes.new, *changes.modified]:
-        try:
-            await sync_service.entity_parser.parse_file(directory / file_path)
-        except ParseError as e:
-            issues.append(ValidationIssue(file_path=file_path, error=str(e)))
-
-    return issues
-
 
 async def run_sync(verbose: bool = False):
     """Run sync operation."""
 
     sync_service = await get_sync_service()
 
-    # Validate knowledge files before attempting sync
-    issues = await validate_knowledge_files(sync_service, config.home)
-    if issues:
-        display_validation_errors(issues)
-        raise typer.Exit(1)
-
     # Sync
     knowledge_changes = await sync_service.sync(config.home)
 
diff --git a/src/basic_memory/sync/file_change_scanner.py b/src/basic_memory/sync/file_change_scanner.py
index 37ee61e5..51198816 100644
--- a/src/basic_memory/sync/file_change_scanner.py
+++ b/src/basic_memory/sync/file_change_scanner.py
@@ -98,28 +98,27 @@ class FileChangeScanner:
         report = SyncReport()
 
         # Track potentially moved files by checksum
-        files_by_checksum = {}  # checksum -> (file_path, permalink)
+        files_by_checksum = {}  # checksum -> file_path
 
-        # Find new and modified files
+        # First find potential new files and record checksums
         for file_path, checksum in current_files.items():
             logger.debug(f"{file_path} ({checksum[:8]})")
 
             if file_path not in db_file_state:
+                # Could be new or could be the destination of a move
                 report.new.add(file_path)
-                # Track new file's checksum for move detection
                 files_by_checksum[checksum] = file_path
             elif checksum != db_file_state[file_path].checksum:
                 report.modified.add(file_path)
 
             report.checksums[file_path] = checksum
 
-        # Find deleted and moved files
+        # Now detect moves and deletions
         for db_file_path, db_state in db_file_state.items():
             if db_file_path not in current_files:
-                # Check if this file was moved by looking for same checksum
                 if db_state.checksum in files_by_checksum:
-                    new_path = files_by_checksum[db_state.checksum]
                     # Found a move - file exists at new path with same checksum
+                    new_path = files_by_checksum[db_state.checksum]
                     report.moves[db_file_path] = new_path
                     # Remove from new files since it's a move
                     report.new.remove(new_path)
diff --git a/src/basic_memory/sync/sync_service.py b/src/basic_memory/sync/sync_service.py
index 5fdf9301..03337e9f 100644
--- a/src/basic_memory/sync/sync_service.py
+++ b/src/basic_memory/sync/sync_service.py
@@ -40,7 +40,18 @@ class SyncService:
         changes = await self.scanner.find_knowledge_changes(directory)
         logger.info(f"Found {changes.total_changes} knowledge changes")
 
-        # Handle deletions first
+        # Handle moves first
+        for old_path, new_path in changes.moves.items():
+            logger.debug(f"Moving entity: {old_path} -> {new_path}")
+            entity = await self.entity_repository.get_by_file_path(old_path)
+            if entity:
+                # Update file_path but keep the same permalink for link stability
+                await self.entity_repository.update(
+                    entity.id,
+                    {"file_path": new_path, "checksum": changes.checksums[new_path]}
+                )
+                
+        # Handle deletions next
         # remove rows from db for files no longer present
         for file_path in changes.deleted:
             logger.debug(f"Deleting entity from db: {file_path}")