What interesting types of things can Dropbox be used for?

What interesting types of things can Dropbox be used for?
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I use Dropbox for relatively simple tasks, such as sharing mp3 files between my home PC and work laptop. What types of clever things can I use this software for? I imagine it could be quite powerful as a collaboration tool.
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edited Jul 16 '09 at 0:52


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Andrew

deleted by Diago Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

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up vote 53 down vote


uTorrent can monitor a folder for .torrent files. If you have a home computer that's always on, you could drop torrent files into a dropbox synced folder that uTorrent watches and will start downloading automatically.

I can't take credit for coming up with this idea, I got it from here
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 15 '09 at 23:54


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Glenn Slaven




Cute. I don't use torrents, but the principle is very usable in some other areas as well ... – ldigas Jan 12 '10 at 19:47
up vote 33 down vote


I use it to share files with my parents which are not that tech savvy of course.

I have created a dropbox account for them and then on their home computer I have created a "From Kristof" folder that is basically a shortcut to the folder shared between our dropbox accounts.

So basically if I have a file that I want to share with them I put is in the shared folder in my dropbox and it automatically appears on their desktop "From Kristof" folder. Easy for them and saves me from answering questions like: "How do I download that attachement?" "where is is saved?" "how do I find it?" etc
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

edited Sep 29 '09 at 10:37


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kristof




Wow, absolutely brilliant! I have to do this too. – Torben Gundtofte-Bruun Sep 28 '09 at 15:08
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Funny, I've had the exact opposite experience with a tech-savvy relative. He insists that Dropbox is too strange, and prefers email attachments for everything. You can't blame him, though: he used Pine up until a few years ago. – Yar May 25 '10 at 9:29



@Yar, Hmmm, he's "tech savvy" but thinks DropBox is "too strange". Are you sure he knows as much as you think? – Ash Jun 2 '10 at 4:18



@ashh, yes he does, but we deal with huge numbers of files and that, so trading via email -- where you can actually just include the file -- has some advantages. – Yar Jun 2 '10 at 20:42



Yar: Yeah, and people then don't delete their e-mail attachments and then start to wonder why their e-mail program loads slower (desktop) or why their inbox size is full (web). – Tom Wijsman Jul 13 '10 at 14:42
up vote 23 down vote


Storing a list of all your usernames+passwords. This file needs to be available on all the PCs you use, and should be encrypted with something like truecrypt of course. You are using different strong passwords for everything, right?

edit: I now use KeePass + Dropbox in this way, instead of TrueCrypt + Dropbox. Keepass has some good features for password management like password generation, copy/paste with automatic clipboard clearing, etcetera.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

edited Jul 13 '10 at 10:47


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wcoenen




Yep. One easy version of this would be to use Password Safe (Windows) and/or Password Gorilla (Linux). They can open/edit the same password database file, and it's encrypted with your master password. – Nathan Long Jul 16 '09 at 16:05



I do that too, Joel suggested it in an artcle last year: joelonsoftware.com/items/2008/09/11b.html – boutta Jul 18 '09 at 9:57
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You could even use a password management program like KeePass and keep the database in your dropbox folder, eliminating the need to carry it with you on a USB drive. – Jared Harley Jul 27 '09 at 3:29
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What happens with syncing the database file if you have it opened on two machines at the same time? – dwj Aug 8 '09 at 18:24
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Dropbox picks one, and renames the other version of the file. – wcoenen Aug 10 '09 at 0:37
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up vote 22 down vote


You can use it as an image-hosting service for sourcing images for posting on message boards, etc.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 15 '09 at 23:59


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dulaneyb




I do this one all the time, it's really handy – Glenn Slaven Jul 16 '09 at 0:02
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Are there any bandwidth restrictions? – Travis Jul 16 '09 at 18:34
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Quoted from DropBox's support page: "There are currently no hard limits on public bandwidth usage. We do, however, have an automated system for detecting unusually abusive amounts of bandwidth usage (and send email notifications when an account is flagged). Upon flagging, public links will be temporarily disabled (and result in 404 error pages)." I haven't personally run into this "cap," but I am curious as to what they consider to be an "abusive" amount. – dulaneyb Jul 16 '09 at 19:54



Yes, yes. I do it all the time! It's also great because if you don't want the image to be posted anymore all you have to do is rename or delete it. – rodey Jan 12 '10 at 20:19
up vote 16 down vote


Find out what the IP address of your home machine without purchasing a domain name. Use a simple script to get your external IP address and put it into a file in your dropbox ever hour.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 20 '09 at 13:58


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Mutewinter




Clever! In my case though I can log into my ISPs account page and it tells you the IP address. – Matthew Lock Aug 24 '09 at 9:39



Actually, this is just a reimplementation of Dynamic DNS (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_DNS), which is also available for free. Still a nifty idea... – sleske Mar 22 '10 at 10:34
up vote 16 down vote


I mainly use it in the standard fashion to sync files between several systems, but with a twist: I create a folder in Dropbox and add the files I want to keep synced, then I create a symlink to the folder (I'm using Vista and Win7 - instructions) elsewhere on my system. This allows me to have sync'd folders anywhere on my system.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

edited Jul 20 '09 at 13:21


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Charles Roper




+1 very neat, and solves a long-standing problem of mine – Joe Schmoe Jul 20 '09 at 13:25



Just to add that LifeHacker has an <a href="lifehacker.com/5063176/…; detailing how to share your passwords across multiple machines using DropBox. – MagicAndi Aug 13 '09 at 10:38
up vote 14 down vote


Automated server backup for my personal shared webhost:

First, set up Dropbox as described here (Installation in an Entirely Text Based Linux Environment)

I thought my host wouldn't appricated me running Dropbox constantly (and it doesn't need to), so I set up a new cron job:

# run dropbox from 4:30-5AM
30 4 * * * ~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd
0 5 * * * killall -u fmystic dropbox

There are a lot of other neat uses on the Tips and Tricks page of the Dropbox Wiki
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Aug 8 '09 at 17:37


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Factor Mystic

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+1 for link to the Tips and Tricks page. Very nice. – nagul Aug 8 '09 at 18:28



Why the killall? ~/.dropbox-dist/dropbox stop would suffice, and seems safer. – wcoenen Jul 13 '10 at 10:54



+1 very nice. I´m going to use this if you don´t mind ;-) – Diskilla Sep 18 '10 at 5:47
up vote 9 down vote


You can share browser favorite (well in Firefox I do it) between 2 desktops (example Work and Home).
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 15 '09 at 23:45


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Daok

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You could use Xmarks for this for firefox www.xmarks.com But it would be a nice trick for Chrome, thanks +1 – kristof Jul 20 '09 at 13:33



Mozilla's Weave for Firefox solves this more elegantly. – Rich Bradshaw Aug 24 '09 at 12:43
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Wait, and Chrome has native bookmark syncing now... – Rich Bradshaw Aug 24 '09 at 12:45
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The question is about what you can do with DropBox, so am I answering. You can almost do everything without DropBox and find alternative :) – Daok Aug 24 '09 at 12:52



I use Mozilla's Weave for that. Works quite better. – Shiki May 22 '10 at 12:51
up vote 9 down vote


Hosting web pages in your public folder.

edit: just put an HTML file in the Public folder which exists in your dropbox folder. Then use the dropbox context menu on that HTML file to copy its public URL to the clipboard.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

edited Jul 16 '09 at 15:42


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wcoenen




how to do that? do you have an example? – Amr ElGarhy Jul 16 '09 at 8:06



I made an example page in response to another Super User question - files.getdropbox.com/u/1007507/static-website/… – Alasdair Jul 19 '09 at 21:44
up vote 8 down vote


Instead of using a USB drive to store portable apps, I store them in Dropbox. This gives me a whole suite of apps wherever I go, plus it makes it super-easy to install all of those apps on a new system: just install Dropbox and down they come ready for use.

This doesn't work so well with apps that generate large files that change frequently, like Firefox.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

edited Jul 20 '09 at 13:56


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Charles Roper

up vote 7 down vote


I have started dropping in my C Programming Projects which I can work at home. Saves me from having to remember to email it back and forth etc
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 24 '09 at 9:55


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Paul Woodward

up vote 5 down vote


I used Dropbox to keep my AutoHotkey macros synchronised between my work, laptop and home machines. It makes me much more keen to create AutoHotkey macros if I know they are available on all the machines I use
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Aug 24 '09 at 9:35


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Matthew Lock

up vote 5 down vote


Use it as a "cyberdrop" for secret messages between you and your other "spy" buddies. ;-)
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Aug 8 '09 at 15:36


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KPWINC

up vote 5 down vote


I have heard of it being used to host a git repository that the user then used to keep his to-do lists and whatnot synchronized between all of his different computers.

tl;dr - hosting a repository
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 16 '09 at 0:01


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dulaneyb

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Why do you need to host a Git repository in a Dropbox folder, when you can just manage text files in a Dropbox folder, and let Dropbox manage your versions? – Jeff Fritz Jul 16 '09 at 1:48



I think git was tightly integrated with what the guy was using, but my memory isn't great. – dulaneyb Jul 16 '09 at 6:46
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From Dropbox: "...beginning August 1st, our new policy will be to keep 30 days of undo history. If you'd like to have unlimited undo history, then you need to upgrade to one of our paid accounts." A git repository will keep deleted file history forever – Dan Seaver Jul 17 '09 at 16:01
up vote 4 down vote


Storing my:

    gpg & ssh keys,
    vim configurations & plugins i use and
    "local" git repositories.

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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Aug 8 '09 at 15:32


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rasjani

up vote 3 down vote


You can use it for making notes with Microsoft OneNote and sharing them across pcs. Have a look at this howto-article
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 24 '09 at 7:55


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pavsaund




What especially great about this is that OneNote does not keep the file locked so it allows Dropbox to sync back changes right after they happen. And OneNote watches the file for changes and picks them up in realtime. Multiple users editing the same OneNote file on a samba share is a supported scenario and this is pretty much the same thing. – Kalmi Dec 16 '09 at 11:45
up vote 3 down vote


I use this technique with my E Text Editor custom bundles, but it can also be used with any other app that has config files you'd like to keep in sync across systems:

    Move your config files folder into a folder within your Dropbox
    In the folder where you moved your config files from, create a symlink to the folder you created in Dropbox.
    Remove the config files from subsequent computers, and create the symlink as in step 2

Now your app should keep its config files nicely in sync.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 20 '09 at 13:17


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Charles Roper

up vote 3 down vote


To work around harsh governments which block other forms of communication after a disputed election! http://blog.dropbox.com/?p=33
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Dec 7 '09 at 1:43


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Matthew Lock

up vote 2 down vote


I have a small TrueCrypt volume that contains my Keepass file and a few other bits of data important to me. Only drawback is the volume has to be small as the whole volume gets uploaded every time the contents are modified.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Aug 8 '09 at 18:31


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nagul




Really? I thought Dropbox only uploaded the differences like rsync? – Matthew Lock Aug 24 '09 at 9:35
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Yes, it uploads in changed blocks: serverfault.com/questions/52861/… However, it did take ages to upload my TrueCrypt volume whenever it changed. I'm not sure if the change in the volume affected a large number of blocks. I'll probably try it again and see if I can spot anything interesting. – nagul Aug 24 '09 at 9:52
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Great. Found a page on the Dropbox Wiki outlining Dropbox and Truecrypt usage: wiki.getdropbox.com/TipsAndTricks/IncreasePrivacyAndSafety "you must unmount the volume before it can be uploaded by Dropbox" – Matthew Lock Aug 25 '09 at 0:58



Nice work. I definitely did not do that (unmount the volume). – nagul Aug 25 '09 at 6:55
up vote 2 down vote


I've got UniServer, a standalone WAMP server on there, along with some websites and whatnot.

That's good for development, be it on my workstation, notebook, or home. Then on the server I've got one of the dirs symbolic linked into the same directory. So I can test live pretty much simultaneously.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Sep 24 '09 at 0:17


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Dean

up vote 2 down vote


If you spend a little more money on it...

a media center.

My roomates and I share music and movies from my dropbox :)
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 15 '09 at 23:55


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codingbear




RIAA: Loves hearing that.... – RSolberg Jul 16 '09 at 15:48
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@RSolberg: at least, I buy all my music. :D – codingbear Jul 16 '09 at 16:49
up vote 2 down vote


I have 1Password Pro on my MacBook and iPhone that I use for all my Password, Certificate, other authentication stuff storage. The database it uses is stored inside my Dropbox on the Macbook. A cool feature they implemented in the latest version is that you can directly access the database on a Windows PC and it opens in a javascript driven website. This way I can access all my stuff from any PC, actually any device that can connect to the internet and run the page straight from the browser (after I authenticate with Dropbox). The name of this feature is 1PasswordAnywhere, learn more about it here.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jan 12 '10 at 19:43


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Marcin

up vote 2 down vote


Among other uses, I use it as sort of a family photo "approval" workflow. :)

Whenever I come back with a bunch of photos, I dump it into the respective shared folder of me and my family. For example, take the case of a shared folder with my wife. I put my common trip photos there. She weeds out the ones of her which she doesn't like to be published. I upload the rest.

This same workflow can probably be used for file-based collaborative projects too.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 13 '10 at 14:09


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Sandip Bhattacharya

up vote 1 down vote


I use it to mirror Mercurial repositories for personal projects.

I configured Mercurial to push to the repository in Dropbox after each commit. It's nice to have the source code backup.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 25 '10 at 16:36


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tomp

up vote 1 down vote


I use dropbox to keep my laptop theft ready. At any point, assuming the computer has been locked, the computer could be stolen without too much concern. I did a lot of traveling over the summer and one of the goals was to get the machine ready for such an event.

Dropbox is used to keep files backed up. Within dropbox I use truecrypt to create encrypted drives with sensitive data (codes/quicken files/KeepPass exe and db/ etc). The rest of the machine is 'public' data. (Also the machine is insured as its a nice desktop replacement)

Additionally the shared folders work really well for group projects in a college setting. We have tried some of the MS solutions (Groove?), but dropbox is easier to get fellow students to use.

I also keep a virtual pc in there. It's my 'light' linux system that can compile my research codes. I use a share between the host and guest OS to bring the dropbox folder within the virtual machine. With my code and vm in dropbox I can work just about anyway (maybe that's not such a good thing).
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Sep 10 '10 at 22:43


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ccook

up vote 1 down vote


This is not an answer to the question, exactly, as there are a lot of good ones already.

Using DropBox as a Backup System

DropBox does not let you go back to an earlier version of a folder. It only works with files. Therefore, I use DropBox to backup GIT "bundles" and not GIT repositories because if you have any problem at all, that problem is automatically synchronized to all relevant machines. You will need to roll back one file at a time.

My git-backup script for OSX (so use git backup for any GIT repo):

#!/usr/bin/env ruby
if __FILE__ == $0
        bundle_name = ARGV[0] if (ARGV[0])
        bundle_name = `pwd`.split('/').last.chomp if bundle_name.nil?
        bundle_name += ".git.bundle"
        puts "Backing up to bundle #{bundle_name}"
        `git bundle create /data/Dropbox/backup/git-repos/#{bundle_name} --all`
end

In general, if you have your stuff in bigger chunks, you are safe if something goes wrong.

I also shut off my Dropbox on startup, so I can choose when to use it.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered May 25 '10 at 9:36


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Yar

up vote 1 down vote


I'm using it to manage passwords with the technique Joel describes here: http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2008/09/11b.html

I have two password files, one for personal stuff shared between my computers, and another for server passwords shared with our IT guy.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jul 16 '09 at 15:57


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Matt Miller




This works great until you are on a friend's computer and want to log in to your banking web site. – Graeme Perrow Aug 24 '09 at 12:51
up vote 1 down vote


1)I use it to store some configuration files of the Apps that I use both at work and at home in order to have the same configuration settings. Works perfectly.
2)Besides you can publish HTML+JavaScript based Web sites in a public folder and don't need to buy domain.
3)And finally I use it to share some files with my friends, so that I don't have problem with sending big files to my friends. I just upload files I want to share into the Dropbox folder and give access to my friends to download it without and speed limitations or waiting (like in rapidshare or stuff like that)
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered May 25 '10 at 13:24


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Bakhtiyor




I also use it for file sharing with friends, but also for sharing documents with colleagues. This works very well. I have set up some shared folders so the "target" will be notified of incoming data. – Martin May 25 '10 at 14:32
up vote 0 down vote


i use it for having all my business files exist between home and work office without needing to use flash or send by email or any other ways
really it's a great simple tool
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered May 22 '10 at 10:54


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Space Cracker




That's exactly what was described as a "regular use", in the question. Answers here should be about more unusual and interesting uses of it. – Gnoupi May 22 '10 at 12:25
up vote 0 down vote


You can use it for case of two computers usage, I work at school on my projects on my laptop but when i am at home i work on my desktop (more powerfull and confortable).. Files are always up to date..
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Oct 4 '09 at 0:21


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bAN
0 down vote


I link my school documents folder from my MacBook using symlinks

ln -s ~/Documents/School ~/Dropbox/School

Now I don't have to worry about leaving the usb stick at home for reports and presentations ;)

Sidenote: Google docs integration should be imminent with the new feature that lets you store any file on google docs.
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deleted by owner Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jan 12 '10 at 20:01


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P.Bjorklund

up vote 0 down vote


For using the same accounting files on multiple computers. I use GnuCash at home (Ubuntu), and have the data files stored in the Dropbox folder. Since GnuCash is open sourced and multi-platformed, I can just download it and work on the files on any computer I'm working on.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered May 25 '10 at 5:41


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lamcro

up vote 0 down vote


As a cheap replacement for sharepoint or other company file share services. I have setup a dropbox account under a dedicated email at my company and shared a folder with everyone. It has some drawbacks but at $20 a month for 100gb the price is right for a startup.
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2 revs, 2 users 67%
beggs

up vote 0 down vote


You can use it for case of two computers usage, I work at school on my projects on my laptop but when i am at home i work on my desktop (more powerfull and confortable).. Files are always up to date..
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Oct 4 '09 at 0:21


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bAN

up vote 0 down vote


I use it as an additional backup. I have a cronjob which mirrors specific directories (using rsync) to my Dropbox folder.
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deleted Nov 26 '10 at 8:42

answered Jan 12 '10 at 20:09


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Doug Harris

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Check my answer: basically backups of directories are not so good, because you cannot roll back a directory on Dropbox. – Yar May 25 '10 at 9:41