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BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

torrentfreak.com

41–50 of 291 posts

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#41
post #9

Really nice, but the thing is... Dropbox has gone beyond just file sharing. One example: I used to use Flickr for photo sharing, but cameras got better, images got bigger, and I have a lot of photos. I moved from Flickr to Picasa as it could cope with the directories full of photos and I didn't have to manually upload them and Google's storage space was cheaper. Then I ran out of space... over 100GB of photos, where…

The only things that really keeps me from sharing photos via dropbox is

a) I use my picassa photo albums for big dumps of regular photos I take when out and about, the storage is big enough I don't have to pay anything (yet) and I have thousands upon thousands of photos there

b) I use my flickr account (paid so unlimited) to put up photos I've curated and cleaned up and processed and stuck on a map someplace and given a detailed description of...basically I use it as a detailed travelog of places I've been. I'm about 4 years behind on it to be honest, but the flickr uploadr let's me bulk upload and getting things into the account currently isn't the bottleneck in my proces

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#42
post #32
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're probably right... the bittorrent speciality. I guess the marketing is to provide them with a nice level of deniability. It's not a Dropbox competitor, it's just encrypted folder sharing.

And here I am, just 4 points shy of being able to downvote this.

you sir, just won my first ever comment upvote (well, probably not the first ever)

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#43
P2P Protocol

BitTorrent Sync synchronizes your files using a peer-to-peer (P2P) protocol. This protocol is very effective for transferring large files across multiple devices, and is very similar to the powerful protocol used by applications like µTorrent and BitTorrent. The data is transferred in pieces from each of the syncing devices, and BitTorrent Sync chooses the optimal algorithm to make sure you have a maximum download and upload speed during the process.

The devices you setup to sync are connected directly using UDP, NAT traversal and UPnP port mapping. We also provide such additional methods of ensuring connectivity as relay and tracker servers. If your devices are on the same local network, BitTorrent Sync will use your LAN for faster synchronization.

http://labs.bittorrent.com/experiments/sync/technology.html

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#44
post #9

Really nice, but the thing is... Dropbox has gone beyond just file sharing. One example: I used to use Flickr for photo sharing, but cameras got better, images got bigger, and I have a lot of photos. I moved from Flickr to Picasa as it could cope with the directories full of photos and I didn't have to manually upload them and Google's storage space was cheaper. Then I ran out of space... over 100GB of photos, where…

100Gb of Dropbox costs $10/month, BitTorrent Sync is free.

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#45
post #4

Since there is no central server, doesn't that mean that one device will have to be always on? That would add a degree of overhead and complication that services like Dropbox don't have.

The data source must be online.

"We also provide such additional methods of ensuring connectivity as relay and tracker servers."

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#46
post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From the article: > While Sync uses BitTorrent technology, people’s files are not accessible to outsiders. Only those who have the unique private key can access the shared folder. > > “All the traffic is encrypted using a private key derived from the shared secret. Your files can be viewed and received only by the people with whom you share your private secret,” BitTorrent explains.

I read the page, but that doesn't seem clear to me. If they have encrypted versions of my files, they still don't technically have access to them.

No. Only key holders have access to the data being shared. It is up to you to authorize every share with a key. Single use keys can also be generated.

There are relays if you need them due to firewalls:

"We also provide such additional methods of ensuring connectivity as relay and tracker servers."

But you can opt out of this config.

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#47
post #9

Really nice, but the thing is... Dropbox has gone beyond just file sharing. One example: I used to use Flickr for photo sharing, but cameras got better, images got bigger, and I have a lot of photos. I moved from Flickr to Picasa as it could cope with the directories full of photos and I didn't have to manually upload them and Google's storage space was cheaper. Then I ran out of space... over 100GB of photos, where…

Nice bike.

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#48
post #15

We're looking at AeroFS and BitTorrent Sync for sharing sensitive files with our team members. We're leaning towards BS mainly because this feels completely P2P, whereas AeroFS may become useless if the company shuts down. Is that right? I'd love to hear from someone who has used both of these about stability, sync conflicts, CPU load etc. Also would love to hear about plans to open source BS.

Did you also look at SparkleShare?

I wish it would work with HTTP.

Re: BitTorrent’s Secure Dropbox Alternative Goes Public

#50
post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would respectfully disagree with what you seem to be implying. This service would mostly be used by us who are wary about trusting Google/Microsoft/Dropbox and the judgement of their automated decision systems with our life . Yesterday there was a HN story about a guy who got kicked off Google Docs because an automated program was trolling/mining through their users files and its judgement was not to be questioned…

Drop a TrueCrypt partition into your Dropbox [1], and you get the Dropbox QoS as well as the encryption for your kids' swimming pool photos. Plus, for non-swimming photos, you can just use the regular Dropbox folder. [1] http://tonyonsecurity.com/2012/08/05/securing-your-data-on-d...

Nonono. You shouldn't have to guess which photos will be flagged by some drone and put them in a special locker.
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