Synchronizing Files
Whether you're archiving or backing up, there are better options than doing the common (MacOs) Finder / Windows (Explorer) copy which I will call "basic". Let's explore some options.
There are a few reasons why you'd want to use other software.
- Faster Speed. Using a differential copy means only the changes will be copied which can save quite a bit of time especially if the quantity of files is large and/or their sizes are large.
- Verified Copies. Sometimes the destination drive can have errors so verifying the copy makes sure it arrived ok. This takes twice the time as it has to read the file after it's arrived at the destination. On more advanced software it can make reports. This is good for D.I.T.s.
- Direction. Sometimes you may want a synchronization direction to be specific. e.g A to B, B to A, or Bidirectional meaning whatever isn't on either drive is copied over.
- Scheduling. Sometimes you want an immediate sync, a timed sync, or manual triggering.
Here's some software which I use and recommend. Check to see if each has what you need in terms of features.
As the name suggests it's free and is for MacOs, Windows, and Linux. This is one of the more basic programs. It is differential, can choose direction, and has basic verification (which I generally don't use as this level).
Also a free option. It's for MacOs and Windows. It has many algorithims you can choose for verification, has task queueing, and can configure which metadata you want to preserve, to name a few standout features.
If you want some scheduling for MacOs only, I recommend this software. It can also deal with Cloud storage. Usually on long photo / video DIT sessions, it can be set to do hourly backups and I can manually sync to various client drives.
The Standard version (and Mac version) is free and there are different Windows only paid tiers depending what you need. This has a lot of features besides syning the others don't have which include partition/system cloning, disk cloning, system migration (like to a larger drive upgrade).
Dropbox (For General Cloud Workflow)
This is great if you want to keep simultaneous copies of files on multiple computers and choose what folders to include. If people need to send me files but don't have their own cloud storage, I can make file request folders. The main problem with people using their own servers / services besides dropbox e.g. google drive, is it can be annoying to download all files easily.