File Sharing and Cloud Storage

[LordEntrails]

So I'm looking at file sharing and cloud storage options for a small group of people for collaboration. (No, not for FG Data folders!)

Two questions;
First, am I missing some better option than the big names (DropBox, Google Drive, OneDrive)? Like some other service or a remote server that is cheaper, has more storage, and can be accessed and synced in a similar way?
Second, Any strong opinions on the big names? I'm thinking Google Drive.

Things that would be nice;
- access control by folder to named users
- version control/history

[MarianDz]

Hi LordEntrails,
last month I was configuring home NAS server from Synology!
It was basic model DS218 which could meet all your requirements.
Is accessible from outside of your network, has good user management with quotes, space limits for concrete users, etc...
And easy management. I think own server is own server and as I say my last expericences was great with this kind of device
easy configurable.

[mrrockitt]

Hi.

I've not got any really strong opinions on each, in fact I use them all! (OneDrive through my work).
However I would probably say Google Drive too as there are quite a lot of gaming/special interest groups who seem to use Google Drive, at least in my experience, (I get the latest MPMB characters sheets synchronised straight to my Google Drive for example).

But, I would also like to second the NAS idea! I use a QNAP 269L (bit old now though probably). Bit more expensive up front of course but I guess cheaper in the long run than a monthly cloud-based service.

[damned]

I use OneDrive and DropBox. Ive moved most of my sstuff over to OneDrive - as an entire system/platform Office 365 is streets ahead of Google Apps. I think they are both very affordable and provide value for money.

[TMO]

So I'm looking at file sharing and cloud storage options for a small group of people for collaboration. (No, not for FG Data folders!)

Two questions;
First, am I missing some better option than the big names (DropBox, Google Drive, OneDrive)? Like some other service or a remote server that is cheaper, has more storage, and can be accessed and synced in a similar way?
Second, Any strong opinions on the big names? I'm thinking Google Drive.

Things that would be nice;
- access control by folder to named users
- version control/history

Like many others, I have used and continue to use all of the options mentioned (including my own private NAS).

If you intend to do collaboration then you should stick with a cloud solution that is easy for others to access (like OneDrive, Dropbox, etc.)

Google Drive/Apps is okay if you want a single solution provider that gives you cloud storage and document collaboration. Personally, Google is my least favorite service. Google Drive is slow, clunky, and their web UI is un-intuitive.

OneDrive is baked into Windows and is free to download for other OS environments, so it's an easy cloud storage solution. Plus, Microsoft Office apps will save your documents automatically into the cloud and provide collaboration capabilities. OneDrive is my second favorite cloud storage solution but Microsoft Office is by far my favorite document/content tool.

Dropbox is my favorite cloud storage solution for speed, great web UI, and features that are targeted toward creatives and content producers. Dropbox also integrates well with Microsoft Office via a plug-in.

While technically a part of Office, people often forget about OneNote. This free tool allows collaboration and is quite flexible for storing and embedding content of various kinds...including files like images, PDFs, links, etc.

Finally, consider starting up a Discord server, Slack team, or a Microsoft Teams so you can collaborate through their messaging backbone. All of these include limited ability to store and transfer content between members of the same team. Each one has its strengths and weaknesses. Discord is optimized for gaming, but not collaborative work. Slack is optimized for collaboration and team communication. Microsoft Teams works similar to Slack, but has been improving its feature sets so you can also edit Office content directly in their UI making it a true one-stop-shop for all of your collaboration needs.

[LordEntrails]

Thanks everyone.

I think I will put the private NAS on the back burner for now. Need to do it for disaster recovery, but don't have the time to do it now.

Still torn between Dropbox and Google Drive, just don't know how much space I will need and if I would use it for anything else. Anyways I'll decide this weekend and just start moving forward.

I've got a Discord server setup already. I do appreciate the mention of the various IM/comm applications. I think since its game related most people will already have and use that and wouldn't wan them to have to install another app just for this project.

[Andraax]

For future reference, if you want a private NAS, go Drobo.