distant data file accessis pretty much what it sounds like : a service that lets you get at your file cabinet anywhere , anytime and with whatever machine you like , as long as you ’re connected to the Internet . This is what we formulate the net for in the first place : to get at , share and collaborate on selective information at will ( even if most of us will use it to share selfies , songs and cat videos ) .
Ever since we stopped play on mainframes and switch to PCs , we ’ve had to contend with the problem of access file from other locations . First , we needed to fetch oeuvre home with us , or lug disc and word central processor to distant conferences . Later , laptops , smartphones and consoles vastly increased the portability of personal data , enabling us to take photos , videos and documents with us on plane or to the local coffee bean workshop – but we still had to deal with swap files manually over meshing , disk or flash driving , worrying all the while about whether we had the right version .
cyberspace access seemed like the answer , but the former ( and ho-hum ) day of Internet connectivity made any but the simple file transfer indefensible . Rather than deal with the hassle , users would snail - chain armour or manus - deliver piles of disks ( a process nicknamed " sneakernet " ) . Never underestimate the bandwidth of a van full of cartridges speeding across town .
Today , despite ever - ballooning single file sizes , bandwidth has give up enough that we can download G - sized games in minutes , and smartphones pack enough data throughput tostream movies . The constriction has moved from the line to the tap , launch the way for companies to render outback file access services .
Larger corporations and university have offered forms of remote approach for years , either run internally or through server collocation facilities . Some usevirtual secret web(VPN ) protocol and programs to gain secure access to business office meshwork over the Internet , or allow approach to your desktop remotely – a blessing to IT department .
The dispute between these service and outside file access code is one of centering . Everyone , from individual users to small-scale businesses , wants approach to their Indian file wherever they are , whether those files contain music , photos , moving-picture show , shared projects or a high - construct screenplay about monkeyhacktivists . Remote file access gives you that , often for free , and synchronized to guarantee you ’re using the most up - to - date interpretation .
Head in the Clouds
To understand how remote single file access works , rent ’s run through a typical experience .
Your religious service will install a file pamphlet on your computing machine or equipment . Any filing cabinet you drag or replicate into that folder is replicate – using a secure socket layer ( SSL ) and , in some typesetter’s case , encoding – onto a server somewhere on the Internet , much in the same elbow room shared document are stored on an agency connection . Meanwhile , a background avail on your computing machine or machine periodically syncs each of the brochure ’s contents with its duplication on the cyberspace server . Thus , any changes you make on one translation of the file will be think over in all version .
Although once decided concepts , the contrast divide " remote filing cabinet access " from " cloud computing " grows increasingly obnubilate , both in terms of the services they provide and the way companies commercialise them . We use the term removed file access throughout this article , but the services we describe overlap the two category somewhat .
Most services set aside you to access your remote file cabinet folder from gadget such as tablets and smartphones . Simply set up the necessary app and you ’re ready to go . In many case , an additional selection to partake your photo , video or other files on the remote Indian file service then appear on your app menus . For exercise , a Google Drive user with an Android phone who takes a picture will see a Google Drive option on the sharing carte , next to Picasa , Twitter , Facebook and so on . Like your background computer , these gimmick will sync every so often with the file server , much as they periodically check for new e - ring armour or text .
Once your files are on a remote access host , you’re able to share them publicly or with specific people . implementation vary , but typically a configurations bill of fare permit you nail down who can see a particular text file , which can alter from anyone on the Web , to anyone who has the radio link , to only specified people . Many services require users to register and make an bill ( typically free ) before they can get at the data file . you may also set apart permissions controlling what viewers or collaborators are allowed to do with the Indian file ( like read only , edit ) .
Some services , like Google Drive and Microsoft SkyDrive , also enable you to create documents online . These are stored on the server , but you could also download them to your computer or equipment to work on them while offline . The system will sync them with the distant filing cabinet service once you re - establish Web access .
Remote file access and cloud servers provide powerful tools and convenient file access , but they also bring out security measure vulnerabilities . These cut two ways : On the one deal , hackers can and will exploit surety holes in the host and on machine that get at them ; on the other , many users will rankle at security solutions proposed to quit those hackers , particularlydigital right wing management(DRM ) . Keep such concerns in mind when select a distant file entree military service – or decide if one is ripe for you in the first place [ reference : Thomas ] .
Choosing a Remote File Access Service
The Web is full of one - full point solutions where you may drop your files and let someone else sweat the details , with more hail online all the sentence . Here are a few of the standouts .
Dropboxis a straight service with a long track record book . It ferment on Windows , Mac and Linux operating arrangement and offers apps that tie into iPhones , iPads , Androids , BlackBerrys and Kindle Fires . client start with 2 G of store and can fall more via customer referrals or purchase up to 500 GB by going pro . A business form with edition ascendency and some squad management and coaction pick starts at 1,000 GB ( no expansion limit point ) [ source : Dropbox;Meece ] .
iCloudoffers the inevitable " one commonwealth under Apple " solution for the company ’s core customers , but PC die hard Windows Vista or later can get in on the action too . If your Apple gimmick is fairly new ( and if not , what ’s the matter with you ? ) , then a wizard is likely walking you through the process even as you endeavor to take this clause . In addition to allow approach to contentedness on all of your gimmick ( particularly iTunes and App Store purchase ) , iCloud keeps caterpillar tread of where you left off in your iBook or Safari browse , and can even interlock down and help oneself track a stolen machine . drug user begin with a free 5 GB , but can purchase more blank ( up to 50 GB as of October 2011 ) . Music , idiot box display , apps and books bought through the Apple Store do not count against this limit , but store non - iTunes euphony cost extra [ sources : Apple;Meece ] .
Google Driveaims to set users free from any chopine entanglements while simultaneously drawing you – and your data – deeply into the Googleverse . It works on Windows ( Vista or later ) , Macs ( Snow Leopard ( 10.6 ) or later ) and Android equipment ( Eclair ( 2.1 ) or later ) , as well as iPhone and iPad ( iOS 3.0 + ) and offer 15 GB free with wage plans expandable to 16 TB ( that ’s right – we said terabytes ) . Like Microsoft ’s Skydrive ( below ) , Google Drive allow users to create spreadsheet , docs and presentations online , and supports file share-out and coaction with 30 - days ' Charles Frederick Worth of revision tracking . What really coiffe it apart , though , is accession to Google ’s sinewy search capability [ sources : Google;Meece ] .
Microsoft SkyDriveleverages its strongest asset as well : namely , the ability to collaborate , with version ascendency , on Word docs , Excel spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations without converting them to an open source or other Indian file formatting . The avail also grants you access to removed computers running Windows , so you’re able to grab photos or stream video from your home computer to your machine . Microsoft commence you off with 7 GB free , with options to upgrade to 200 GB [ source : Meece;Microsoft ] .
Those are just a few of the many options available to you . Take your time and search out the solution that fits your picky need .
Frequently Answered Questions
Lots More Information
In light of recent revelations of NSA snoop and rubber - stamp FISA lawcourt , to say nothing of third - party data gathering , I ’m very odd to see how these remote data access and cloud servers will toy out – particularly once the RIAA gets ask .
