Sync and back up your files online with Dropbox

Backing up your files is a very important task as pointed out in another blog article of mine about backups. It also often comes in handy to be able to synchronize files between different computers. That’s exactly what Dropbox is about, easy sync and back up of your files online.

The main features of Dropbox are 2 GB of online storage for any kind of files, online synchronization, synchronization across computers & operating systems, deleted files recovery and access to previous file versions via the web interface. It also gives you the possibility to make folders public and share them with friends or coworkers. The storage is upgradeable to 50 GB at actually $9.99 per month or $99 per year.

Easy to use and free

If you are looking for an easy to use and simple backup/sync app then Dropbox is for you. It is handy for synchronization between different computers, like your home computer and your netbook, an ASUS Eee PC, for example. After downloading, installing the software and registering an account, Dropbox adds a “My Dropbox” folder on your computer in which you can start putting files. That’s basically it. Next time you put a file in this folder, it will be automatically synchronized via your Internet connection.

Dropbox is great for personal use as well as for work. Just consider the advantages of just moving project files in a shared folder with your coworkers instead of sending it around per e-mail. Additionally, Dropbox keeps a history of changes made to your files. You can return to a previous version of a file and even undelete it using the web interface. From personal experience I can recommend the service for home use and university, just like described by Adrian Thomas in his College Collaboration Tools article.

Solid synchronization service

After using the sync service for several months, I identified two little downsides. First, it constantly takes up between 30 to 50 MB of memory. For low end computers this might be too much. Simplest solution is to switch the program off and only activate it when you want to sync files.

The second downside is the one folder limit. In order to sync files and folders that live outside the My Dropbox folder, you need to create a symbolic link between the My Dropbox folder and the folder on your drive you want to sync. On Mac OS X and Linux it’s easy to set up and it is also possible on Windows. Follow the instructions in the article “Sync Files and Folders Outside Your My Dropbox Folder” at Lifehacker.

Keeping in mind that Dropbox is a young start-up, the team is very committed and the service gets regular improvments based on user input. The team is working constantly on the application, you can get in touch in the Dropbox forums.

Get more storage for free

So, all in all, great service, I recommend it it from personal usage, check it out. You can get an extra 250 MB of space registering via my referral link and try out the service. There are versions available for Windows, Mac and Linux. You can download Dropbox at www.getdropbox.com