Wuala: Online Backup and File Sharing

[Reid Kistler]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/what-do-you-get-if-you-combine-dropbox-and-mozy-wuala/' target='_blank'>http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/what-d...and-mozy-wuala/</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"<a href="http://www.wuala.com/" target="_blank">Wuala</a> is definitely one of the most under-reported start-ups, and there's no good reason for that. It takes the best features out of both Dropbox and Mozy to create a must-have online file storage service for anyone with a computer. Developed by Dominik Grolimund and Luzius Meisser, the technology behind Wuala is truly amazing. By using a &lsquo;grid' algorithm, Wuala can take advantage of unused disk space across its network of users in addition to data-centre storage."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1279755158.usr19541.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #d2d2bb;" /></p><p>Wuala presents an interesting option for online backup, storage, and file sharing, and the reviewer for Makeuseof.com certainly is impressed with the service, which is available for Windows (XP, Vista &amp; 7), Mac (OS X 10.4 or higher), and Linux systems. As with many online backup services, users are allocated a small amount of "Free" storage space (1 GB for Wuala), and have the option to purchase additional storage if needed. Wuala, however, adds two additional - and optional - ways to gain storage, as indicated in the above screen shot: 1) you can "trade" space on your computer, which will then be used by the Wuala Cloud to store other user's files, and 2) you can be awarded space by inviting others to join the service. Be certain to read both the linked review, as well as <a href="http://www.wuala.com/en" target="_blank">Wuala's own website</a>, for additional features - some of which are apparently reserved for "Pro Users" (those that Buy and/or Trade for additional storage).</p>

[Jason Dunn]

Quite an interesting idea! Myself, I'm now using Crashplan for friends/family, allowing them to back up to my computer. I'm using Mozy for my own data.

[Jon Childs]

Quite an interesting idea! Myself, I'm now using Crashplan for friends/family, allowing them to back up to my computer. I'm using Mozy for my own data.

Jason,

So with crashplan you can backup your stuff on someone elses computer without paying any monthly fees? I was looking for some software to do just this. My dad uses like 20GB of his 1TB hard drive so I figured if I could find some software that made it easy to backup remotely I would give it a try. I still haven't gotten onboard with giving all my data to some company on the internet.

[Jason Dunn]

So with crashplan you can backup your stuff on someone elses computer without paying any monthly fees?

Correct. It's free - I should really do a front-page post about this. Basically, you install Crashplan on your dad's computer. You back up all his info to an external hard drive. You take that hard drive, and you move the backup folder to your local hard drive. You install Crashplan on your computer, then you attach the folder (it's a function in the software) to your computer. Crashplan takes care of the rest, automatically linking your dad's computer to your computer for backups. You'll need to delete the local backup on your dad's computer though in Crashplan to sort of trick it into only doing the online backup. If this sounds a bit confusing, it sort of is - the Crashplan guys didn't do a great job of making the scenario very simple, but once you get it working, it's great.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Oh dear, it's close to an almost-vulgarity in a local dialect. Can't say it with a straight face. :D

[Reid Kistler]

I'm now using Crashplan for friends/family, allowing them to back up to my computer.

Jason:

Crashplan sounds interesting - and certainly the price (at least for "Personal Use") is right!

Your friends/family usage implies backing up over the internet ( - ?? - ): how well does that work?

(Thinking about time to back up / restore / local machine usage / Glitches in the process....)

Crashplan itself notes that "local" backups are significantly faster than remote ones.

Also noted that their online backup fees are competitive for a single system, but gain a decided price advantage when you have multiple machines to back up...

[Jason Dunn]

Your friends/family usage implies backing up over the internet ( - ?? - ): how well does that work?

Well, the key is doing that initial backup of many GB so that subsequent backups are small. If I had a relative like me - that added GB of new data every week - it wouldn't be a great solution. But most people add a few hundred MB from photos here and there every few weeks or months, so there's not much data to backup over the 'Net.

I've just started using it, so I haven't done any big restores yet. Single file restores work well. If there was a hard drive failure, I'd put the backup on a hard drive and bring it to their computer.

Also noted that their online backup fees are competitive for a single system, but gain a decided price advantage when you have multiple machines to back up...

Indeed, if you have multiple computers that you want online backup for, their prices are quite good. Myself, I'm content with Mozy backing up my one computer, because all my data is pushed/synced to that computer.

[Reid Kistler]

Now that we have two systems running Windows 7, and have added a third (Official) machine running Ubuntu - meaning it is in almost daily use, instead of the once-in-a-blue-moon usage that our Linux Notebook has seen - I find that we need to reassess some of our utility / network software.

One example: the "control" software for my WD External Backup HD does not work under 64bit Windows 7 - and apparently WD has no intention of issuing an update!

Now, to be fair, they DO permit using Seagate's software - and that does run with Win 7 - but you have to figure that out, download it, and put up with the different control set & loss of a couple of features.

In any event, we are (which mostly means "I am") in the process of trying to find a LAN file sync / backup solution that will work across Win 7, Ubuntu, and Win 2000 - and we will certainly give some consideration to one of the internet backup providers as well - although the LOCAL solution is the more pressing at the moment...