Reliable information storage is the most important requirement of our time. But the proliferation of computers and mobile gadgets with Internet access has led to the emergence of another problem - ensuring the availability of data. What if you need to have access to the same files from your home computer, from a worker, or from a smartphone or tablet? All the time to copy them to different devices - not an option. Moreover, flash-cards cannot provide sufficient reliability of data storage and often information on them is lost irretrievably. In this case, the ideal solution is to store files somewhere on a remote server. Then you can connect to it from any computer or other device, read or modify documents, and save in the same place. And since the data on the servers are repeatedly duplicated, the risk of losing them is almost nil. Such services are called cloud, and now they are very common, due to convenience.

Instructions for working with Dropbox.

Dropbox - what is it and what is this program for?

Dropbox cloud storage is just one of the services that allows you to store any files on a remote server. Simply put, this is cloud storage. Why do I need Dropbox as a regular user? To access files from any device. Since they are not on a regular home computer, it is enough to connect to the server, and you can immediately see all your folders, documents, photos, videos, and everything else that was stored in this cloud. The second thing you need is Dropbox - file sharing. The service allows you to get a link to any file. Then you can send this link to the right person or share it on social networks, and other people will be able to download this file to themselves. The service has a web interface, that is, you can enter and perform all actions directly on the site, in your account. But if you want to use it actively, then you need a Dropbox program, which can be downloaded there and installed on a computer or smartphone. This program eliminates the need to enter the site and makes access to the storage and management of it much easier. It also automatically uploads files to the cloud if placed in a specific folder.

Account creation

Before you start working with Dropbox, you need to register on this service. To do this, go to the official website dropbox.com and fill in the data on the right side. There you need to enter a first name, last name, your email and a strong password. Then you need to tick the agreement with the rules and click on the "Register" button. After that, you will immediately receive a personal space on the server disk with a capacity of 2 GB. This volume is issued free of charge to all, for an additional fee it can be increased to 1 or 2 TB. You will also be offered to download and install a special program. It comes in a variety of ways - for Windows, for Android, for iOS. What is quite rare - there is a client for Linux, which is far from all cloud storage can take. Using the program greatly simplifies the use of storage, so we recommend to do it.

How to install on a computer and how to use Dropbox

Installing Dropbox on a computer is easy. You need to run the downloaded installer, and it will download the rest of the program. After installing it, a special Dropbox folder will appear. On MacOS, it will appear in the Favorites folder, and on Windows, in My Documents. This folder is the main tool. If you create another folder in it, the same will appear in the storage on the server. If you transfer a file to it, it will be automatically copied to the cloud. That is, the Dropbox folder on the computer is a copy of the vault, and the program synchronizes their contents automatically. If you change something in this folder or on the server through the site, after some time their contents will be aligned. Installing Dropbox for laptops is no different. Everything is also easy and simple.

Customization

Setting the parameters of Dropbox is made on the website, in your account. To do this, click on the profile avatar in the right side of the screen and select “Settings” in the drop-down menu. A page will open with several tabs:

• "General issues". Here you can change your profile information - first name, last name, photo, set language. Here you can also completely delete your profile if you no longer want to use this cloud storage. But remember that this will also delete all files stored there.
• "Tariff plan". This tab shows how much disk space is available to you and how much is used. The "Expand capabilities" button allows you to select a paid rate and increase the available space in Dropbox to 1 or 2 TB. Here you can send an invitation to a friend, and if he accepts it, you will add another 500 MB - this is another way to expand your place in Dropbox, and it's free.
• "Security". Here you can change your password and make your account protection more reliable.
• "Notifications". On this tab, a tick can be noted the situation when the service will send alerts to the mail. For example, when there is little space.
• "Connected applications". Here you can allow access to cloud storage for different programs. For example, if you have a website, then you can allow it to save its backup here.

Setting Dropbox options is simple and usually not required at all. But if you want to increase the available space or change your password, this is done here.

Adding Files

Upload your files to Dropbox is very simple, and you can do it in two ways - through the web interface on the site, and using the application. On the site it is done like this:

• Log in to your Dropbox account.
• On the left side of the page, click on the "Files" menu. Now you are in the root folder of your repository.
• On the right side there is a button “Upload file”. If you click on it, another menu will open with the items “Upload file” and “Upload folder”. Select the desired item and the standard file or folder selection window will appear.

With the help of the application, everything is even easier. To do this, simply transfer the necessary files to the Dropbox folder, which in Windows is in “My Documents”. The application itself synchronizes this folder with the cloud storage, that is, it will copy these files into it if the Internet is connected. In addition, in the context menu that appears when you right-click on a file, there is an item for quick transfer of this file to the cloud - this is another way. Dropbox allows you to add music to the cloud just like any other file. But downloaded files with the mp3 extension, you can listen directly to Dropbox, if you go to the folder from the browser. Images, by the way, can also be viewed, and entered into the archives, as in ordinary folders.

File sharing function

Cloud storage is convenient to use as a small file sharing. If you add some files to it, you can give a link to them to other people, and they will be able to download these files. You can also share not a single file, but a whole folder at once. How to share a folder in Dropbox? It's simple:

• Log in to your account on the site.
• Go to "My Files" and find the folder you want to share.
• Hovering the mouse over this folder, you will see the “Share” button opposite it. Click on it. If this folder cannot be shared, then the button will not appear.
• A window will appear where you will be asked to generate a link for this folder.
• Another window will inform you that the link has been generated and will offer to copy it.

The copied link can be used to transfer to other people. According to it, they will go directly to the repository and will be able to download this folder or copy it into your Dropbox account, if they have one. They will not see any other folders and files except those inside the allowed one.

What are the benefits and disadvantages of Dropbox?

In general, this cloud storage is not bad. It is quite convenient to use it. Provided and sharing group of users. But there are also disadvantages, because of which many prefer to use other similar services:

• Free is given too little space - only 2 GB. For each attracted user, 500 MB is added, which is also very little. Competitors - Yandex-Disk, Mail.ru, Google-disk, initially offering much more space for free, and more pleasant bonuses.
• Paid tariffs are expensive for most - to get 1 TB of space, you have to pay $ 9.99 a month. The closest competitors have significantly less prices, although for many, the free rate is enough.
• There are complaints about security.

The biggest drawback is a small amount of disk space, and pushes away most users. Now, when even smartphones have memory in several gigabytes, 2 GB look absolutely frivolous. Even Yandex initially issues 10 GB, which can be easily increased by 32 GB by simply installing the application on a smartphone or presenting a student card. There are other promotions. Mail.ru at registration provides 8 GB of space, which is easily increased for a small amount - an additional 8 GB costs only 29 p / month. Also, there are various promotions - at one time, everyone was given 1 TB of a disk for free and indefinitely. Dropbox is very conservative in this respect. No shares are held, opportunities to increase the place, except for the purchase of expensive paid tariff, is not provided. Attracting other users for 500 MB of space is the only such tool.

How to completely remove Dropbox?

If you do not want to use this cloud, you can opt out of it at any time. To do this, the first step is to remove the Dropbox application from the computer - this is done in the standard way, via the Control Panel. But this only disables file synchronization with the repository. How to delete a Dropbox account completely? This is done on the website, in your account, in “Settings”, on the “General Questions” tab - there is a link “Delete Account” below. Remember that deleting an account will also delete all files stored in it!

How can I unsubscribe from Dropbox if you want to get rid of it completely? If the account is deleted, the service is automatically disabled, and you will no longer receive notifications. To start using it again, you will have to register again.