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Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

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Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#4
btsync is really nice, just install the software, no account creation needed, and if you just want to sync computers on a LAN, no internet connection needed. I was worried about btsync being closed source but when I looked at alternatives like dropbox and spideroak I noticed they weren't open either and you have to sign up for an account and give them personal information to get serious amounts of storage.

Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#5
post #4

btsync is really nice, just install the software, no account creation needed, and if you just want to sync computers on a LAN, no internet connection needed. I was worried about btsync being closed source but when I looked at alternatives like dropbox and spideroak I noticed they weren't open either and you have to sign up for an account and give them personal information to get serious amounts of storage.

Even if it's nice, I won't recommend it to anyone. If it becomes big, I don't want the next Edward Snowden to tell me it's been used by .gov in the future.

Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#6
post #4

btsync is really nice, just install the software, no account creation needed, and if you just want to sync computers on a LAN, no internet connection needed. I was worried about btsync being closed source but when I looked at alternatives like dropbox and spideroak I noticed they weren't open either and you have to sign up for an account and give them personal information to get serious amounts of storage.

No but the way Dropbox and btsync work are way way different.

> BitTorrent Sync synchronizes your files using a peer-to-peer (P2P) protocol.

Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#7
Hi, I'm doing something similar, but instead of BTsync, I use ssh & unison/rsync.

The remote pi calls back the main pi by ssh. The main pi uses this connection to sync files. So the remote pi can be behind a firewall and no issue.

Im interesting in sharing the setup - and improving it, if anyone interested let me know. Im at padrone.nl

Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#8
post #4

btsync is really nice, just install the software, no account creation needed, and if you just want to sync computers on a LAN, no internet connection needed. I was worried about btsync being closed source but when I looked at alternatives like dropbox and spideroak I noticed they weren't open either and you have to sign up for an account and give them personal information to get serious amounts of storage.

Then there are git-annex assistant (No Windows version) and SparkleShare, which are both Open Source and should be able to do the same.

Missing from both though is a mobile version. I quite like my Elements (A text editor for Dropbox files).

Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#9
How well does BTSync work in terms of a large team collaborating together? Dropbox has a habit of just working, with surprisingly few hiccups (none so far except during massive folder migrations). Does BTSync work that well with a team of 10? 20? 30? that work on the same set of documents (though not on the same document simultaneously, so no need for e.g. git).

Re: Clone Dropbox with a Raspberry Pi and BTSync

#10
post #9

How well does BTSync work in terms of a large team collaborating together? Dropbox has a habit of just working, with surprisingly few hiccups (none so far except during massive folder migrations). Does BTSync work that well with a team of 10? 20? 30? that work on the same set of documents (though not on the same document simultaneously, so no need for e.g. git).

Given that it's using the Bittorrent protocol (Basically) to handle the actual transfers, yes it will work; the issue you may run into is that there can be a lot of files and data available in the share and every client will try to download all files.
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