Because I’m likely working on a project with someone at the time, I would let them them know to communicate to me that they gave me new files and I will decide whether or not I want to sync them and if I have enough space to do it. To manage my storage, I take the following two steps.įirst, in my Dropbox preferences, I tell Dropbox to create all new files and folders that it pulls down from the cloud as “online-only.” This way if I’m sharing a folder with another user, and they add a ton of new content, like footage, to that folder it won’t automatically start clogging up my hard drives. It replaces the cloud version of the file that was living up there with your new version, but it keeps a copy of the changes in the folder in case you ever need to revert to an older version of a file.įor small files like JPG images, spreadsheets and video project files, this process takes less than a second on standard upload/download speeds of 100mbps/10mbps.Īdditionally, any files added directly to the cloud via the web platform, or from another user who is sharing a folder with you, will automatically update and populate on the desktop folder you are using. When you work with files inside of your Dropbox folder on your desktop machine, anytime you modify a file, whether that’s a Word file or a Premiere project file, Dropbox recognizes that the files have been changed and immediately begins uploading the new files to the cloud. I rely heavily on Smart Sync for my workflow, which I’ll detail below. It will still live safely on your Dropbox account, but it won’t show up on your computer. With Selective Sync, you can tell Dropbox whether or not to even sync a folder to your computer at all. This means the folder will still be visible on your hard drive, but it won’t take up any space. With Smart Sync, you can select a folder on your computer and tell Dropbox to make it online-only. When you desktop sync your Dropbox folder to your computer, the files on your Dropbox appear in a dedicated folder on your hard drive.ĭropbox has two powerful tools for managing this storage. It has a web interface that works great, but the real power is in the desktop sync interface. A quick primer on Dropbox if you aren’t already familiar:ĭropbox is, like Google Drive, a cloud based storage solution for your files.

Work dropbox