THE TOOLS TO MANAGE YOUR DATA ACROSS CLOUDS

http://blog.grexit.com/manage-data-across-clouds/

That the average small business uses a cloud service to enable collaboration and backup is pretty much a foregone conclusion. But what’s also rather common is the practice of using multiple cloud accounts to enable better sharing either within the organization, or with clients and vendors. This is where the default apps provided by your cloud service usually fall down – Most don’t even support logging into multiple accounts of the same service, let alone support for accounts from different services. Installing separate clients may work for some, but that doesn’t really help solve the issues you face when sharing information. Eventually, what you land up with is data spread across cloud services with no easy way to manage it.

But with the use of third-party services, it’s possible to use advanced syncing and sharing, making cloud storage a great enabler of collaboration. Whether it’s working on a document with a co-worker, combining your email inboxes into a single interface, sending a phone notification when a client adds a document to a shared folder, or even saving critical information to multiple services, it’s possible with a third-party service of app. Here are some cloud management tools and services that should make it easier for administrators and IT managers to enable better syncing and collaboration in a business environment:

IFTTT

Popular for its D-I-Y philosophy, IFTTT is a general purpose tool that makes it easy to share information between services. IFTT supports many web apps and SAAS provides, including email accounts, note-taking apps, social networking,  mobile push, and of course, cloud storage. The best part of IFTTT is that it’s free, and you can easily use existing ‘recipes’ to connect your accounts. You can also make your own ‘recipes’ to customize syncs  – choose a ‘trigger’, the ‘connector’ for a cloud service of your choice, and create the action you want done. Want all Gmail attachments saved to Google Drive or Dropbox? Save starred emails to Evernote? Use IFTTT.

Zapier

A business-oriented service, Zapier is much more than a simple data transfer tool - it’s actually a comprehensive web app automation servicethat can link a very wide range of services, apps, and even devices. In a nutshell, you choose a trigger, which then sets off an action. It's akin to IFTTT, but a lot more powerful and user-friendly. It also includes support for phone push notifications and for services a business user might find valuable (for example, Salesforce and MailChimp).  Pricing ranges from free to $1089 a year for accounts with premium features and priority support.

StorageMadeEasy

Another cloud sync service aimed at the business user, StorageMadeEasymight not seem very user-friendly at first glance, but it makes up for this with a packed feature set. Choose between US- and EU-based servers, link up to 30 different cloud providers, set specific accounts as backups for your main cloud storage, and use the web tool to transfer data across accounts on different services. Windows and Mac users also have native client applications that support scheduled syncing. SME also supports access from generic WebDAV clients and offers sync logging. Pricing ranges from $59 one-time (with a small annual fee from the second year), to $5 and $8 a month for enterprise-friendly accounts.

Otixo

Best suited for personal usage, Otixo has an attractive web interface, along with Windows RT, iOS, Android and Windows Phone 8 apps. Their Photixo service, for uploading cell phone photos to cloud storage, makes this especially attractive for individuals, professionals or SOHO users. Pricing ranges from $39 one-time for the web app, to $95.90 annually, for access to all apps.

GoodSync

A backup and file transfer application with support for WebDAV ,FTP, SFTP, Google Drive, SkyDrive, Amazon S3, and Azure, GoodSync is available for Windows, OS X and Linux. Enterprise users are also catered for with server and workstation versions. Pricing ranges between $29-$39 for the desktop versions.

Cloudfuze

With Web, Windows, iOS and Android apps, CloudFuze ($ 49 a year) is an easy-to-use service, but supports only Google Drive, DropBox and SugarSync. However, you do get FTP support, which might be useful for some businesses.

Mover.io

Not strictly a cloud data management service, Mover.io is more of an account transfer and migration tool. Select a source account, the destination, choose the folder you’d like transferred, and you’re good to go. There’s a pay-as-you-go plan ($1 a GB) but the enterprise plans might make more sense for heavy users.

Syncdocs

A Windows application for Google Drive, Syncdocs includes support for multiple accounts, scheduled backups, encryption, and the ability to sync any folder on your local drive. At $19.95, it’s a good choice for business users who depend heavily on Google Drive.

InSync

The official GDrive sync tool only lets you log in to one account at a time, but with InSync, you can sync with multiple accounts – and also choose specific local folders for the sync partnerships. An added bonus is support for not just Windows and Mac, but also Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. Pricing ranges from $15 lifetime per account, to $15 annually for three Google Drive accounts.

CloudHQ

Another service that seems a good fit for the business user is CloudHQ. Apart from the usual storage integration, there’s also support for Gmail, Google Apps and Evernote. Annual pricing ranges from $99 to $299.

Primadesk

It might be yet another offering in a rather crowded cloud sync space, but Primadesk has another trick up its sleeve – the ability to combine your disparate mail accounts into a unified interface, apart from transferring data across accounts. Primadesk, available for Web, iOS and Android, costs $50 annually.

FolderSync

An excellent sync tool for mobile devices, FolderSync lets you sync data to and from your Android phone or tablet. It supports a very wide range of services, including Ubuntu One, and also includes Samba/SMB sharing if you’re on your workplace network. Best of all, it’s also compatible with Tasker. Try the free version and if you like it, pick up the paid version at just $2.95.

Zapstitch

Zapstitch is another app for syncing business data on cloud, but with a focus on ecommerce and accounting/finance apps. It helps small-to-medium businesses to integrate and synchronise data back and forth between softwares like Shopify, Magento, Quickbooks and Freshdesk.  It's a certified app on Shopify and QuickBooks app stores. They have a free version and the paid plans start from $20.

Even if you've never really felt limited by the default client for the cloud service you use, trying out one of these cloud account management tools might just bring up some new ways of boosting efficiency through better collaboration and sharing.

7 Cloud Storage Managers For Multiple Cloud Storage Services

So how many of you faithfully only use one single cloud storage service? Anyone? Hello?

Guess we are not the only people then.

Fact of the matter is, we all use more than just Dropbox or SugarSync. A vast majority of us among cloud storage service users almost always have accounts with several cloud storage providers, and use them too. At the very least, we have both Dropbox and Google Drive. If you are like one of our teammate, Samuel, then you are probably using more than 9 cloud storage services for different purposes. He uses Google Drive for all kind of documents, Dropbox and SugarSync general-purpose syncing, Wuala for sensitive documents, Box for business usage, and a bunch of others that everyone else here at BestBackup don’t use. Yup, totally a cloud storage ADHD guy!

However, we also realize that this is a new norm. With more than 20 or so cloud storage services, it is only normal that we use multiple of those services. Most of them also come withfree storage space so some users will even use multiple services just to enjoy the free storage without ever paying a dime. This is achievable if you store different types of data on each of them. Then all you need to remember is what type of document is stored on which service.

However, with such a trend, managing all files on each and every cloud storage service becomes a nightmare. Fortunately for us, we now have a few cloud storage managers that will help us do just that. Here in this article, we will be briefly reviewing 9 of them. Check them out after the break.

1. Otixo

Otixo is the only service that supports widest array of cloud storage services and apps in every solutions we have reviewed. The cloud manager’s dashboard will let you have access to all of your files from connected services, and let you transfer files between each at ease. All you have to do is drag and drop the files and folders you want to move onto an icon of another connected service. That easy! You can even access your files using WebDAV via Otixo so you really don’t have to install all the apps on your computer. Otixo’s specific feature called Space will let you collaborate with other users so that you can work with your team without moving files across different cloud storage services. You will have to shell out $4.99 a month or $47.90 per year to enjoy all the features. You can try out the service using 14-day free trial though. Supported services are as followed:

• Dropbox
• Google Docs
• Box
• SkyDrive
• SugarSync
• Picasa
• iCloud
• Amazon S3
• Facebook
• Picasa
• CX.com
• Alfresco
• Huddle
• MyDrive
• CloudMe
• GMX
• Strato
• GoDaddy
• Ubuntu One
• DigitalBucket
• FTP
• WebDAV
• HiDrive
• FilesAnywhere

Visit Otixo

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2. Primadesk – From Free

Primadesk is only second to Otixo when it comes to supported services. The free account will let you connect up to 10 cloud storage accounts, while it also gives you 1GB of cloud backup with limited ability to share. However, if you are willing to shell out $5 a month, then you will get 10GB storage and ability to connect unlimited accounts. You can share unlimited files too. If you need to sync more files than 10GB limit, then premium account which allows you to transfer 30GB will cost $10 a month. They support including but not limited to the following lists of services:

• 23Photos
• 4Shared
• Adrive
• Box
• Cubby
• Dropbox
• Evernote
• Facebook
• FTP
• Google Drive
• IDrive
• Mydrive
• Pogoplug
• Sharefile
• Skydrive Docs
• Skydrive Photos
• SugarSync
• YouSendIt

Visit Primadesk

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3. cloudHQ – From Free

cloudHQ’s free plan will only let you sync two cloud storage services with limit to 50 files syncing. So if you have more than 50 files (don’t we all?) then you will have to upgrade to one of its paid plans. Personal plan costs $9.90 a month and let you do 3 sync pairs for unlimited files. It will also let you only have one account on each cloud storage services. Premium plan, however, will remove all those limitations and will let you have 10 sync pairs with multiple accounts on each storage service. It will cost you $11.90 a month though. Currently it supports the following services:

• Google Drive
• Dropbox
• SkyDrive
• SugarSync
• Evernote
• Box
• Basecamp
• Evernote Business

When a co-founder of WordPress is a fan of cloudHQ and already praising about it, that tells a lot about this service. We still think the sync pair limits are a bit annoying though.

Visit Cloud HQ

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4. Mover – From Free

Mover is a company behind BackupBox which is soon to be merged with Mover. They let you copy, merge or transfer files between each cloud storage services they already support. Free plan is limited in the way of how many GB of files you can move around, while paid plans are a tad expensive but totally worth it if you also have databases and want to move files between cloud storage services and a server with (S)FTP protocol support. Now you can even move files from your FTP server to a cloud storage service, and vice versa. How cool is that? Here is a list of services they support:

• Dropbox
• Amazon S3
• Google Drive
• Box
• SkyDrive
• (S)FTP servers
• MySQL databases
• MEGA (still in work)

Visit Mover

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5. CloudKafe – From Free

With CloudKafe, they probably take the “free” to a whole new level. While other cloud storage managers charge us a monthly fee, CloudKafe won’t. Instead, the service is completely free. You can sign up using Facebook Connect or just enter separate username and password. The app allows you to not just move and sync files between different services you use, but it also lets you search contents on any of connected services. However, as with any new services, CloudKafe sometimes has bugs that won’t let you pull your files from one service to another. That doesn’t happen often and there is no data loss but still annoying for us. We love the fact that they support video and audio services like YouTube, Vimeo and Catch. Here is a full list of services they support:

• Dropbox
• Google Drive
• Skydrive
• SugarSync
• CX.com
• Facebook
• YouTube
• Box
• Picasa
• Instagram
• Flicker
• SmugMug
• Evernote
• Catch
• Vimeo
• Yahoo

Visit CloudKafe

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6. CarotDV – Free

While not exactly a web app, CarotDV is Windows-only desktop client app that lets you manage multiple cloud storage services as well as WebDAV and FTP servers. It also lets you move files among those services. We found the application to be really small and don’t leave a lot of memory footprint but mighty powerful. Too bad that it’s only for Windows since our team mainly uses Mac and Linux. You can use CarotDV for free for both personal and commercial uses but the developer also accepts donations. The app supports:

• FTP
• SkyDrive
• Dropbox
• Google Drive
• Box
• SugarSync

Visit CarotDV

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7. IFTTT – Free

If you haven’t heard of IFTTT already, then you have probably been traveling back in time to Stone Age or asleep for the past few years. IFTTT is all the rage now! Basically, IFTTT (If This Then That) lets you create connections between a myriad array of web services of all kinds. When something happens (a trigger) at “this” service, then do “that” at another service is the main concept behind IFTTT. Using this, you can connect a large number of services and perform things you have never imagined possible. Sure, you could do them manually but that will just take so much time. Using IFTTT, you can easily just connect between Dropbox, Google Drive, Box and a bunch of others and sync files between, and whole loads of other things. Seriously, why are you still reading here? Just go and try it out already!

Visit IFTTT

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Conclusion

While we know that some of you won’t feel comfortable letting another third-party company manage your files, we cannot deny that these cloud storage management apps are really powerful. Sure, we can manage all our storage accounts manually but that will take a lot of time. On top of that, scenarios like downloading a work document we saved at home on our personal Dropbox.com and uploading it again to our work Box account will be a lot faster if we can automate it using a company like Otixo or CloudKafe. All they are doing is initiating the transfer between two services so it doesn’t rely on our Internet connections. If you are concerned about the privacy issues, then you will have to read each company’s terms of services to see if they cache any data and whatnot. For now though, all we can do is watch this space and see a new industry grows.

Five tools to help sync more than one cloud storage service

There are plenty of available tools to help you easily manage those cloud storage services. Jack Wallen lists his favorites. 

As the cloud grows, and more people wind up managing more and more cloud storage services, the necessity to more easily manage those cloud services increases. I bounce around from three to five such services, and if it weren't for the right tools, I'd be scrambling around like a rat in a maze. Thankfully there are plenty of available tools that can help you easily manage those services.

This blog post is also available as a TechRepublic Screenshot Gallery.

Of course, not all such tools are created equal. Some are web-based, some are desktop based, some can help you manage what seems like an endless stream of services, and some are limited to a few. Let's take a look at five such apps/sites that can help you keep your sanity with regards to syncing all of your cloud storage services. In order to make this list, each app needed to be able to sync (or backup) multiple cloud storage services, be easy to use, and be cost-effective.

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Five Apps

1. Otixo

Otixo is a web-based tool for serious cloud users. Think of Otixo as a file manager for all of your cloud services and even your social networking accounts. Supported services include: Dropbox, Box, Google Drive, SugarSync, CX, Facebook, SkyDrive, Amazon S3, and many more. One of the best features of this great service is the ability to quickly copy and paste between services. With this handy web-based tool, you can access all of your configured cloud services with a single password. You can also launch files directly from Otixo and use the built-in previewer tool. Cost of Otixo is $4.99 USD per month.

2. Hojoki

Hojoki is an Android- and IOS-based team-building, collaborative tool that allows you to manage and collaborate in over thirty different cloud-based services (including Basecamp, Box, Dropbox, Evernote,  Google Drive, SkyDrive, Twitter). Hojoki also allows you to do messaging between collaborators, manage tasks, get notifications from your connected applications, create workspaces, and see everything in one, easy to use dashboard. Hojoki offers two plans: Free (up to five workspace members) and Premium ($5.00/month USD for unlimited workspace members).

 

3. Primadesk

Primadesk allows you to manage your accounts from your mobile device or you desktop web browser and supports plenty of services (4Shared, Adrive, AOL, Box, Comcast Mail, Cubby, Dropbox, Evernote, Google Drive, Skydrive, Sugarsync, Twitter, and many more). With the web-based dashboard you can check email, check the status of your backed up cloud services, check the status of your shares, enable one-click sign-on, and much more. The free account allows you to manage ten services and gives you 1GB of backup storage. The Pro account ($5.00/month) allows you to manage unlimited services and gives you 10GB of backup storage. The Premium account ($10.00/month) allows you to manage unlimited services and gives you 30GB of storage space.

 

4. Cloudfuze

Cloudfuze is a desktop app that offers a single sign-on for your cloud-based services. Cloudfuze can connect Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, SugarSync and even FTP together. With these services in sync, you can edit, rename, create folders, drag and drop between your desktop and the Cloudfuze file manager, and share their contents. One handy feature is that Cloudfuze allows you to selectively sync files and folders across your cloud services. Cloudfuze is free and available for Windows XP, 7, and Windows Server 2008.

5. GoodSync

GoodSync works as a file manager and allows you to not only sync computers and folders, but cloud services and folders in one, easy to use, interface. GoodSync can help you to backup: Windows shares, FTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, SFTP, Google Drive, Windows Azure, Amazon Cloud Drive, SkyDrive, and WinMobile. You can copy/paste between accounts (though you cannot drag and drop). You can create as many connections as you like with GoodSync. The application runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and IOS. The app costs $29.95 for Windows, and $39.95 for all other platforms (including a portable Windows version).

Bottom line

Whether you are looking for a desktop app, a web-based app, or a mobile app, it is possible to more easily manage your various cloud-based storage services with the help of one of these tools. Each tool listed is either free or offers a free trial, so you can quickly find out which best meets your specific needs.

Software as a Service offers irresistible benefits for organizations of all sizes - from cost savings to scalability to mobile accessibility. We offer guidance on avoiding the pitfalls of the cloud and choosing your SaaS partners well.

Also read:

• Five cloud sync apps that rise above the rest
• Five helpful cloud-based apps to boost your productivity
• Manage cloud services from your Android tablet with SME Cloud File Manager