DropBox is not a single person alive - 10 alternatives to the popular service

Dropbox is an extremely popular cloud service. If you have been using it for a long time, then most likely you did not look for alternatives. This is not surprising - Dropbox is so user-friendly that there is simply no incentive to search for another service. However, on second thought, the service has a number of significant shortcomings:
• You can not host your own server;
• Only 2 GB available for free;
• No remote access to computers;
• No open source code.

But the DropBox service has many alternatives - both new and not so much.

1. Dmailer Backup
Dmailer is an excellent storage for files. We can use this service both under Windows and with Mac systems. The service provides a backup file up to 2GB. All data is stored online, just as with Dropbox. The list of Dmailer advantages over DropBox is impressive:
• the ability to automatically backup your data;
• the ability to support multiple versions in one file;
• the ability to create multiple accounts;
• security: the application is password protected and encrypted with AES 128-bit protocol;
• help: the ability to use the instruction manual;
• simplicity: everything is done in one click;
• localization in 18 languages.
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2. Syncplicity
Syncplicity can be used as a program for data synchronization and backup. And as a result, the latest and earlier versions of the edited files will be stored on the server. In the case of accidental deletion of files on a PC, they are also restored via the web interface. The space occupied by deleted files and intermediate copies is not subtracted from the total.

Syncplicity integrates into the context menu of the system, from where you can add the necessary folders to the list of synchronized files, get direct links to download files and share any directory for public access.

You can make it so that on any number of computers, invited Syncplicity users will be able to change the contents of a specific folder, all modifications will be instantly transmitted to other users, so that the contents of the directory will be identical on all PCs.

Syncplicity also has tight integration with some online services. For example, you can upload photos to your albums on Facebook by simply copying them to specific folders on your PC. Also, integration with Google office suite looks quite interesting: any document created in Google Docs will appear in the selected folder on your computer, and vice versa. Thus, the file is edited both locally using Microsoft Office and online.

In a free account, 2 GB of space is available, which can be increased to five by inviting three friends (they will also receive a 1 GB bonus).

03. Wuala
Wuala is a Linux-friendly and secure alternative to DropBox. New registered users receive 1 GB online from the Wuala team.

Previously, this volume could be increased by trading storage on a local hard disk. For this, it was necessary that the computer was online at least 4 hours a day. The available network space size was calculated depending on the time the computer was online and the size of the local hard disk space provided for Wuala.

However, on November 3, 2011, cloud communism was canceled - the space gained through “trade” will be valid within a year. Then you have to use other ways to expand the space: invite friends, use promotional codes to get free space or buy it.

4. Sparkleshare
Sparkleshare is a solution for those who need open source. A freeware open source utility for organizing file sharing, designed to make it as easy as possible for users to set up and work with the program. The program creates in the user's home directory a directory named SparkleShare, to which you can connect many remote directories for synchronization, which can be located on different servers. In addition, SparkleShare has a notification system similar to DropBox. You can install the utility from the PPA repository:

$ mkdir -p ~/.ssh
$ sudo add-apt-repository ppa:warp10/sparkleshare
$ sudo apt-get update
$ sudo apt-get install sparkleshare libwebkit1.1-cil git-core

The first command is needed if you do not have the ~ / .ssh directory, because without it, SparkleShare crashes. If your Linux is not Ubuntu, you can build SparkleShare from the source code downloaded from the relevant project page.

5. Live Mesh
Live Mesh offers the ability to synchronize any number of computers, allocating as much as 5 GB of file storage. New folders are added via the context menu. Unfortunately, unlike other utilities in Live Mesh there are no indicators that display the current synchronization status on the icons of the files themselves.

A little unexpected was the presence of the function of remote access. It is not necessary to install Live Mesh to connect to another computer; you can control the PC directly from the browser.
The disadvantages include the fact that the synchronized folders on other computers connected to the service appear only on the Desktop and their location cannot be changed.

6. SugarSync
SugarSync is 5 GB of free space. In addition to backup and synchronization with multiple computers, a distinctive feature is accessibility for mobile devices: iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile.

7. Windows Live SkyDrive
Windows Live SkyDrive - unconditional "number one" in terms of disk space, free of charge, for registered users - 25 GB!

You can store files of any format, but some get additional benefits. So, if these are Office documents, then using the Office Sky Apps integrated into SkyDrive, they can be edited directly in the browser, and the Office 2010 installed on the computer allows you to save and open documents directly in SkyDrive. Photos and videos are structured into directories with the ability to display a slide show in the browser, file access can be differentiated for different categories of users, and the accompanying Windows Live Mesh service allows you to automatically synchronize files on one or more computers via SkyDrive.

8. SpiderOak
With the free usage model, 2 GB is allocated for your files, clients are available for all platforms - Windows, Mac and Linux.

The main and main difference between SpiderOak and Dropbox is the ability to synchronize any files and folders, and not just those located in a special folder.
It is also possible to configure the frequency of backups - from automatic (constant change tracking) to once every two days, the ability to roll back any modified file to the previous version, and many more options to automate the service.

9. 4Shared
Something pleasant appeared again on our horizon. Like SkyDrive, in 4Shared there is a Russian-language interface, and the amount of data storage provided in the free tariff reminds SkyDrive - 10 GB without any special restrictions, not counting as such the maximum size of 1 file in 200 MB and the limited download speed located on content service.

In terms of ease of accessing and managing files, something in between is offered between SkyDrive and Dropbox - a client installed on a computer, but not embedded in the system. Of the additional services, we can mention the generation of virtual photo albums from the uploaded photos and the ability to view downloaded video files directly on the site. However, the above-mentioned restrictions and a sufficiently large amount of advertising by all means motivate the user to switch to a paid rate of $ 10 per month or $ 78 per year.

10. Box.net
On Box.net, a free rate gives them 5 GB of disk space, with a limit of 25 MB per file. You can give out links to download posted files, there is a set of mobile clients (iPad / iPhone and Android). Unfortunately, advanced features can be obtained only at the business rate (500 GB and 2 GB per file), which is initially paid, at the rate of $ 15 per user, and there should be at least 3 users. Here you will have both password protection and synchronization with users' computers, and Google Apps integration.