'Real time' syncing laptop & desktop - practical?

[Gavin James]

Sorry for the length, I just cannot make my mind up and I am nervous!

As background, I run a small business and use 1 laptop (not old and of reasonable spec). I hook it up to monitors in my home office, move it to the main house to work in the evenings, and spend time working on files (offline) when I travel by train around the country and (on and offline) when occasionally on client sites. I use Office 365 and files are under continuous backup via Backblaze.

I have hundreds of folders and thousands of files. Mainly usual Office-type files, but also some other elating to brochures, website designs etc. A key point is that I am often working on several files at once, and I adapting lots of different files over short periods of time. I simply close the laptop lid and continue working on them elsewhere wherever I might be as required.

The laptop (as have others been in the past) is just too slow and gets stuck often. So I am thinking I need to complement this with a robust desktop.

1. Practically, I think it's a given that I need to save (if not close) files before closing my laptop.

2. The above assume I use OneDrive of Dropbox to sync (I assume the latter would be preferred since I already have Office 365?). Do these work okay in your experience?

3. I have no worries about hard drive size and I am happy to have all files in the cloud and on either or both laptop and desktop LC at the same time. I do not want to go down the Mac route.

4. I mainly worry about updating a file on my Desktop at say 9am, then further updating the same document on my Laptop at 11am. What happens if an internet or service glitch means the 9am changes upload to the cloud after the 11am changes etc.

5. Perhaps I should just be considering an expensive powerful laptop?

Any pointers or experience most welcome....

Thank you

 

[arnydnxluk]

5. Perhaps I should just be considering an expensive powerful laptop?

This has been the workflow of choice for me over the past decade. It's just not worth dealing with two separate systems even with today's technology and internet connections, in my opinion of course. A laptop gives you a single environment which is the same wherever you go; a full working desktop solution at your desk and the exact same setup (albeit with less screen space) on the move. It seems you're already a fan of this setup and just need to invest in a decent machine. I would personally stick with it, I love this setup.

For reference I use a MacBook Pro and have never had issues with the system slowing down no matter what I throw at it (nothing too fancy although I do frequently run virtual machines on the system). The cost is usually in the £1000-1500 region but definitely a worthwhile investment for me. The Dell XPS line seems to be most recommended as the Windows equivalent to a MacBook's build quality.

What are the existing specs like? If you aren't using a Solid State Drive (SSD), then I would definitely recommend the upgrade. The performance gains are huge and it makes a real difference in day to day usage, plus your system won't slow down over time (a problem with the older spinning HDD's).

 

[Paul Murray]

This has been the workflow of choice for me over the past decade.

I do the same now, just hook up my Macbook to a widescreen monitor when I work from my office, or pick it up and take it with me when I work elsewhere. I used to use Dropbox to sync across two machines in a pretty basic way, but it didn't account for other things I may need to have shared across two machines (a local website development environment for example, or fonts).

I also had issues with some software not allowing me to share a single user license across two machines, which was bloody annoying!

I'd probably opt for a faster machine and a strict back-up procedure to avoid losing anything.

 

[ffox]

. I use Office 365 and files are under continuous backup via Backblaze.

Not quite sure what the issue is here. Using O365 with files and folders replicated across devices means that there is no delay synchronising so long as you have an Internet connection.

Only changes are synchronised and one drive sync will work fasted than you can create files (unless you have software that creates hundreds of new file automatically).
I can only assume that you issues arise from -

1. Frequent lack of Internet connection
2. Your habit of sleeping your laptop, rather than closing it down.

I would suggest that you relegate the old laptop to an office based role, either in your home office, or your main office. Get something lighter and faster for travel, like a tablet with keyboard or lightweight laptop. make sure that it has Solid State drive and is built for mobile connection.

PM me if you want advice on O365 sync.

 

[Gavin James]

Thank you for taking the time to respond..... (I think I'm leaning towards a new laptop with SSD - makes sense!)

 

[Paul Murray]

Thank you for taking the time to respond..... (I think I'm leaning towards a new laptop with SSD - makes sense!)

Once you go SSD you'll wonder how you ever did without it

 

[Karimbo]

Most online backup providers will do this. I use dropbox with syncs folder to the cloud and from the cloud syncs it to all other devices on the account as soon as they have internet access.

I am on the same situation as you, have a underpowered 12.5" screen mini laptop for emails and word processing and internet browsing. Then a proper desktop computer for all other work.

 

[Paul Carmen]

Any cloud based syncing/backup system works fine for the processes you describe.

If you buy Office 365, all variants come with either 1 Terabyte of OneDrive storage for personal, or 1Tb for each business user included in the price.

Essentially you can then create a OneDrive folder with sub folders for all of your data. You share this across all devices, & as long as you've got a regular internet connection, these folders are available across any device with OneDrive installed. We have several computers, laptops, an iPad & phones using OneDrive & the Office Apps with no problems.

 

[Chris Rickard]

I work between three devices, 2 x desktops and a laptop - Dropbox works absolutely fine for me.

But then I do always save stuff, except if I'm in a rush and then it's lid down on the laptop and off I go - but I try to minimise those occasions!

The biggest problem is when multiple users start working on files but then those are the seeds that begin the thoughts towards proper corporate networks and the like. (Or just managing files between users efficiently) .

Bear in mind if you start using OD or DB if you put all of your files in there then you might not need to keep paying for the backup solution as well

 

[ffox]

The biggest problem is when multiple users start working on files but then those are the seeds that begin the thoughts towards proper corporate networks and the like. (Or just managing files between users efficiently) .

Office 365 Business Premium, Business Essentials, E1, E3 or E5 will deliver full multi user capabilities.

I would still recommend full local backup of critical files.

 

[Chris Rickard]

Office 365 Business Premium, Business Essentials, E1, E3 or E5 will deliver full multi user capabilities.

I would still recommend full local backup of critical files.

I've become a bit ingrained in going the full MS server route - coming from a background of larger networks, but something I worry about is how cloud sync systems sync changes on files that are opened by more than one user at a time.

I assumed that some of them would be smart enough to merge changes - but you know how it goes when you assume things!

In any case I usually consider the locally held files themselves as a backup - since if you're using a system like that you'll have multiple local copies in theory.

If using a system that does not allow versioning there's a greater risk. I usually have clients (who feel they need it) keep a local copy of all files on a separate device

 

[ffox]

I worry about is how cloud sync systems sync changes on files that are opened by more than one user at a time.

Much depends on how the cloud system is deployed and used. If file changes, by one or multiple users, are made on local devices and the sync engine is relied on to track changes there can be issues. I always recommend, where possible, file editing should be launched from the cloud store, via the browser. That way there will be no conflict.
This is not always possible as users may want to update files when no Internet connection is available, so the method of use is always defined by the client's methods of work.
I agree that versioning is always a desired option and with most cloud systems the overhead of multiple versions is not a problem.

I find the best solution is invariably the use of SharePoint libraries. All the changes and audit trails are largely automatic.

The main reason I favour backup of critical files on a separate local device is to protect against malware, which can rip through a local file store and replicate to a cloud store very rapidly. The method I use takes scheduled critical file snapshot and then disconnects.

 

[Page]

What you need is some redundancy so that you can keep on working

If your current laptop is working but only just you are being daft not getting up to date with something decent - which nowadays is not to much dollar

You will get the money back in time saved

Then what you need to do is keep your older one also in the loop on installing windows updates etc and synching with your cloud etc

Once a fortnight or month should do it - it sits there just in case - your current one packs in - is lost etc

Then if the worst comes to the worst and your current machine crashes - you are not totally up swaney river

You should also have an offline/local back up system

Remember the your internet speed asynchronous unless you have paid for something special

So if you are making large changes just before you shut down then it will take a while before everything is uploaded to the cloud

What onedrive and drop box give you are very sophisticated mutli layered synching tools that work away in the background

So if you do shut down mid synch say when leaving work - then when you next switch on - say at home - any unfinished synching will continue away

 

[Nico Albrecht]

If you want something simple with auto folder sync built in for Windows and OS X, easy to use out of the box solution get yourself a WD NAS. They have support for auto folder sync built in and cater for different budgets speeds etc...

 

[The next Steve Jobs]

Grab a friend who totally understands computer specs and invest in a decent lap top and some USB 3 data sticks for backups

Latest Intel i7 with SSD ... QUAD core i5 minimum

Go for one that's good for games/video editing ...

The extra grunt will make u smile even if u think COD is a fish



Off the shelf lap tops come loaded with bloatware ... this makes them slow
get all the bloatware uninstalled / disabled by a professional.
Uninstalling bloatware is my first laptop task,
takes about 40 mins! Only has to be done once

I'll wager u have a bazillion apps running in device manager


If you can afford to buy 2 decent identical laptops then they will become your best freinds for the next decade

The quality remains long after the pain of purchase



If you don't need to use the cloud for backups DON'T use the cloud for backups

 

[Craig Bird]

The best solution is definitely to use OneDrive for Sync & Share - this works great and included in you Office365 subscription. This is not a backup solution - We provide clients with a fully managed backup solution that works with G Suite or Office365 to backup all Emails, Documents, Calendar's and Contacts. If you would like help with this feel free to reach out for further advice.

The backup is direct cloud to cloud so no need to install software on your machine, manually perform backup or leave your device on for backup purposes.