They usually call this something like “file recovery” or “file versioning”. Not great for a backup.Ĭloud sync providers and Syncthing have an additional feature to save you from accidental deletions.

If you delete a file on your laptop it’ll be deleted in the cloud or other devices too. If you’re syncing a folder from one place to another, this means syncing deletions too. Deletion is involved in file synchronisation by definition. if you edit a file offline 3 times and then go back online to sync, only the most recent/current version is sent off to the cloud or other devices - if you need constant file state backups, you could use something like git or drive snapshots, but this is for another post.ĭeletion. Syncing does not store all states of the files in cohesion. The word backup is thrown around loosely, and although some people may consider having their data saved in the Dropbox or Google Drive cloud as a backup, technically speaking it is not a true backup.įile timeline states. Synchronisation is Different from Backup.

If you setup your devices in a linear bunny-hop style network all on their own closed networks then it’ll naturally be slower than a mesh network of all devices talking to each other with all their network ports open. It can also sync very fast, depending on how it’s configured. If you have 1000GB on your laptop and other computer, you can sync up to 1000GB. It syncs between your devices directly so there’s no limit other than your device itself.Į.g. Syncthing has as much storage space as you have. You can skip the Syncthing background reading and jump straight to the easy Dropbox Photo’s or Google Photo’s setup below. It’ll sync all your files and photos from your phone like Dropbox Camera Uploads or Google Photos automatic backup, replacing all but the public sharing features of Dropbox or Google Drive. It uses a clever P2P (peer-to-peer) file synchronisation technology called BEP (Block Exchange Protocol) to sync your files back-and-forth between devices directly without a storage server in the cloud. There’s no central server that stores your data, no company with other interests. You configure it, run it and control your data. If you’ve not come across Syncthing before, it’s an open source file synchronisation replacement for commercial big-tech services like Dropbox and Google Drive.

Dropbox to google photos