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Noal's avatar
Noal
Explorer | Level 3
2 years ago

I wish we could bind (linux) Dropbox as drive.

hi there

as a business user, let me ask for one missing feature, unsure where to get it ,or if i have to make one myself.

iam used to linux, and i start to migrate 2 other drives to dropbox , and have one more, my whole business is saved in clouds, and i keep updates all around.lets talk about 30-50tb at each drive.

what i miss here, is a app or function to bind dropbox to a drive. meaning, to have access to the whole dropbox, without downloading it (it would not work anyway, if my migration is complete,it ends up at maybe 50 tb. in the next 6 months, (based on what my other drives use)

to understand what i mean, a few examples

ocamlfuse, is what is used to bind Gdrive, as a whole disk to a linux system (thats what i migrate from)

box ..does not even know linux exists.. (there i migrate from as well)

pcloud uses their own app,which hosts a drive, with access to all data (thats what i use aswell with 60TB lifetime)

 

but dropbox,does not have any feature of that sort, the app for linux only offers selected sync, which is perfect,if you can prepare,or have a perma 1gbit, but if iam at a customer place,to setup a new system,or modify theirs , i kinda have no 1 gbit con.. and would need direct access on the fly.

take it as a suggestion, for now.. if nothing comes up,i will ask for all the api infos i can get,and might start making my own , kinda like ocamlfuse happend for gdrive (not my work,but a good one)

 

the whole question has no influence on dropbox as itself, the service is great, i love the speed, right now i throw several terrabytes a day, at it,to get my whole stuff sorted from box n gdrive to dropbox.  and i use 4 differend pages to shovel all the data, (like multcloud) , the only thing i am worried is, that i tried box n gdrive first, several years jumping thru hoops, to get my needs,and then its so simple, i wish i would have tried it sooner..nvm ,now iam here,and i have needs.. (space for now, access methods later) 

 

ideas,suggestions.. happy to read,

sorry for my horrible english,its far from my mainlanguage.

Best Regards Noal

  • Megan's avatar
    Megan
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

    Hi Noal, I hope you're doing well!

     

    So, just to make sure we're on the same page here, what you'd like to have is the ability to access the content of your Dropbox account locally on the drive itself, without having to download the app, right? 

     

    If I didn't understand that correctly, feel free to clarify for me. Can I ask how that would be different than accessing your Dropbox account online, from the web and downloading the content you need that way?

     

    In any case your feedback regarding  this has been very valuable and I will endeavor to make sure your voice is heard.

     

    If you need anything else, let me know!

    • Noal's avatar
      Noal
      Explorer | Level 3

      hi there ,

      thanks for reading

      hmm if you dont know the mentioned programs, think about it that way,

      i have a drive,thats called Gdrive,(same for Pcloud) i can handle that like a typical drive (ssd,m.2,hdd), meaning i can use whichever app, like double commander, and just run thru my files and copy or edit right from there, and upload content in the right folders 

      lets say i have for a customer a folder data/HisLinuxRouter/V9.2, and i have hundreds of such folder,for each customer personal made firewall linux router.

      and i wanne change one file, i can do that with double commander right away, if i have it on my Pcloud drive, but if i had it on dropbox,i would need to prepare, and check which customer it is, and sync that one folder, then change it, and place it back to his folder, thats quite a bit work. and one misstake would mean i would have to redo all,and check where i missplaced his file.. never happend so far, and i usually care too much to let this happen.

      its basically just handling, and preparation , but you cannot sync the whole database, such large drives dont exist,as far as i know,and any laptop i use, has at best 8 tb m.2, meaning i would need to prep before customers happen,but from time to time,i get  a info to change XY at company Z and then i need that data asap.

       

      right now, iam still trying to figure out what method would work best, and asking for such a tool,cant be wrong. 

      but until i have a solution, i just prep the most used things, and migrate towards Dropbox. 

      hope that was kinda easy to understand.. i can only use examples i know,and used before,sorry

      best regards Noal

       

      • Здравко's avatar
        Здравко
        Legendary | Level 20

        Hi Noal,

        Dropbox refuse support of virtual block devices, as can be seen here. 🤷 That was a great idea, but as seems Dropbox staff doesn't like it.

        As you mentioned pCloud as well as Mega are good alternative.

        Good luck.

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