I’m getting a new computer soon, and the computer I’m looking at buying doesn’t offer a large storage space internally. I have an external hard drive that I have to plug into my computer everytime I want to connect it. I don’t like doing this everytime I want to retrieve a file.
So my question is, with the WD Cloud storage, can I access my files like I would a cloud service such as Google Drive or DropBox? I currently use both, and I have an icon on my desktop. To put files on those cloud services, I simply click and drag files into those folders and it updates to my cloud. Is this how the WD cloud works? Hope someone can answer my question! Thanks!
On your local network, the MyCloud can simply be mapped into the computer’s file system, on PC, Mac and tablets, and appear like any other drive.
It’s a lot slower than a USB drive, though, and the only reasons to use a NAS over a permanently-connected USB HDD is if you want an always-on file and media server available to all devices on your network, and if you want remote (‘cloud’) access.
In my opinion the convenience of having an always-on connection to my file server outweighs the loss of speed of a directly connected hard drive. You need to do your assessment of this. If you need to upload/download multiple large files frequently then it might not be very practical. Personally, I like having all my data on the MyCloud, which I can routinely backup to a HDD connected to the USB port on the MyCloud.
It will be more inconvenient to back up your data if you just opt for a USB drive connected to your laptop.
Having said all that, there is a steep learning curve with the MyCloud and you may have to SSH into the device to get it to work reliably…
One other way of creating an always-on drive is to investigate the facilities of your router; many have a USB port that will create a network file server and media server using an attached disk.
So my question is, with the WD Cloud storage, can I access my files like I would a cloud service such as Google Drive or DropBox? I currently use both, and I have an icon on my desktop. To put files on those cloud services, I simply click and drag files into those folders and it updates to my cloud. Is this how the WD cloud works? Hope someone can answer my question! Thanks!
I use MC as a home file server as well as backup for Win 7, Linux, and MAC Book Pro. I find that having a central storage place in my home that is accessible via wifi by all the computers is extremely beneficial. I do NOT use remote access outside my secured wifi network. If I’m planning on extensive photo editing I don’t use MC, but rather copy the files to whichever device I’m planning on using. For instance I found that Photoshop Elements catalog was MUCH too slow to be used when stored on MC.
