File Sharing Services

[RyanNicholson]

I know there are a ton of options out there, haven't really been on the up and up lately though. I need to set up a "cloud drive" that allows files to be checked in/out between multiple locations... or at least have a mechanism to prevent people from overwriting each others changes. No need for a ton of space, mostly shared excel files and simple documents.

I set up a folder on Google Drive, but they want to work directly out of the folder. I know dropbox can work like that, but do they have the ability to warn when others are using a file or something like that?

[SRTie4k]

Sounds vaguely like Sharepoint is what you need. It's been a while since I used it myself, not sure if there is "revision control" like software development uses, but that's what you're looking for as far as people checking in/out.

[aldend123]

What you're asking for goes beyond file sharing, and is typically called 'content management' or 'collaboration'. By work out of a folder, do you mean a locally mapped directory in the file system, e.g. Z:\OurFileShare\Example.doc? I'd think MS Office's OneDrive integration would cover this, though I haven't tried it.

What type of content are they editing? For some cases, Word/Excel get used because they are familiar but they're really avoiding switching to a solution more tailored for specific use.

[jasnmar]

If you could talk them into using google docs rather than office, multiple people can actually work on the file at the same time. No need to worry about "locking".

[jasnmar]

If they have to use office, the Microsoft One drive can be used with newer versions of Office and allow simultaneous editing as well.

[Not Sure]

If you could talk them into using google docs rather than office, multiple people can actually work on the file at the same time. No need to worry about "locking".

Has changed our lives here.

[RyanNicholson]

What you're asking for goes beyond file sharing, and is typically called 'content management' or 'collaboration'. By work out of a folder, do you mean a locally mapped directory in the file system, e.g. Z:\OurFileShare\Example.doc? I'd think MS Office's OneDrive integration would cover this, though I haven't tried it.

What type of content are they editing? For some cases, Word/Excel get used because they are familiar but they're really avoiding switching to a solution more tailored for specific use.

Yea I was just thinking about having it show up as a "drive" when you go to save a file, I've only ever done that with dropbox. Most of the files will be excel sheets, but with like 5 or 6 people all working off of the same file. Personally I suggested other apps designed to do what they're doing (mostly just basic project management / task tracking / status updates, etc) but they're pretty old school and not very tech savvy, wanting to stick with what they know... so I'm just trying to do what I'm told at this point.

If they have to use office, the Microsoft One drive can be used with newer versions of Office and allow simultaneous editing as well.

That would make my life so much easier. Playing with OneDrive now, thanks!

[Tekime]

OneDrive supports versioning and collaboration, with real-time info on active collaborators, and desktop-sync capability.

It costs $$$ but for around $12/mo/user you get the entire suite of MS Office apps and 1TB of space.

Actually, with Office 365 Personal I believe you get up to 5 users for about $12/mo, with all the same collab/sharing/sync functionality.