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I have the same problem. I basically use Dropbox as my work folder and put all my files in there. As a developer I have millions of small files. It takes 2-3 we

I have the same problem. I basically use Dropbox as my work folder and put all my files in there. As a developer I have millions of small files. It takes 2-3 weeks to sync the dropbox from scratch (currently 285gb of dropbox files). And my CPU is regularly pegged at 100%. I basically have to switch Dropbox off when I'm not plugged into power on my Macbook Pro in order to conserve battery. I've contacted support several times, and their response was basically "don't". I'm on one of their top plans (2TB). What's the point in having such large plans when the number of files you have causes the whole service to break down? Been searching for a good alternative to Dropbox. Something that would be CPU efficient, safe, secure and reliable. I also use their packrat plan (saves a history of every file ever), which is nice too. Any other HN readers have any alternatives? I really just want a plug and play solution, and not have to roll my own. I don't trust Apple iCloud for one bit as they've been quite inept at running cloud services. I've tried Google drive with poor results too.

mgirdley 9y ago
I eventually settled on Apple Time Machine. It backs up to a home NAS and a handful of drives at each office. The NAS can be configured to back up to S3 automatically.
brianwawok 9y ago
Yes, why not use git for the code files? I have a single command on alias that goes and checks out all my git projects, and does a bit pull on any existing. Can switch between Computers in like 30 seconds. And it's all free git on bitbucket. Git is much better way to deal with small files. Dropbox is ok for large files or nontechnical users.
kijin 9y ago
I think all the consumer-grade backup and sync services are designed for a relatively small number of large files, such as high-res photos, songs and videos. I have about 300K files (250GB total) in my 1TB SpiderOak account. The UI has always been atrociously slow, but backup speeds are okay when most files are static. Things get more interesting when I check out another branch in git and touch a few thousand files at a time. As for sync, well, I've all but given up on editing a file on my desktop, opening my laptop, and expecting the updated file to appear anytime soon. If I really need to sync a file immediately, I put in in my Dropbox (free account, almost empty).
jpalomaki 9y ago
The initial sync really sucks. With smart sync things are much better, because you can easily pickup projects to download to your machine. With large amount of files and folders the regular selective sync has quite bad ux. Unfortunately smart sync is only available for business subscriptions (probably because it makes it easy to put more stuff to Dropbox than you have disk space)
antaviana 9y ago
I use an AWS Windows instance as a VDI. CodeCommit/SVN for code history and AWS snapshots for backup. This allows me to hop from physical computer to physical computer knowing that I always have everything with me. My physical computers are normally Macs but I mostly only use them for web browsing and as RDP client. What I like most of this VDI setup is that, since it is a thin client setup, my computers last many years without becoming obsolete.

mgirdley 9y ago

I eventually settled on Apple Time Machine. It backs up to a home NAS and a handful of drives at each office. The NAS can be configured to back up to S3 automatically.

brianwawok 9y ago

Yes, why not use git for the code files? I have a single command on alias that goes and checks out all my git projects, and does a bit pull on any existing. Can switch between Computers in like 30 seconds. And it's all free git on bitbucket. Git is much better way to deal with small files. Dropbox is ok for large files or nontechnical users.

kijin 9y ago

I think all the consumer-grade backup and sync services are designed for a relatively small number of large files, such as high-res photos, songs and videos. I have about 300K files (250GB total) in my 1TB SpiderOak account. The UI has always been atrociously slow, but backup speeds are okay when most files are static. Things get more interesting when I check out another branch in git and touch a few thousand files at a time. As for sync, well, I've all but given up on editing a file on my desktop, opening my laptop, and expecting the updated file to appear anytime soon. If I really need to sync a file immediately, I put in in my Dropbox (free account, almost empty).

jpalomaki 9y ago

The initial sync really sucks. With smart sync things are much better, because you can easily pickup projects to download to your machine. With large amount of files and folders the regular selective sync has quite bad ux. Unfortunately smart sync is only available for business subscriptions (probably because it makes it easy to put more stuff to Dropbox than you have disk space)

antaviana 9y ago

I use an AWS Windows instance as a VDI. CodeCommit/SVN for code history and AWS snapshots for backup. This allows me to hop from physical computer to physical computer knowing that I always have everything with me. My physical computers are normally Macs but I mostly only use them for web browsing and as RDP client. What I like most of this VDI setup is that, since it is a thin client setup, my computers last many years without becoming obsolete.