The Types of Things People are Using SYNC for

[dmason]

I'm basically using it as a replacment for a Dropbox for Teams account. I have a Debian Wheezy computer always on and with the x64 build running to emulate the always-on cloud component.

I also use BitTorret sync with friends in conjunction with Samba. This lets us all get content to our OpenELEC Raspberry Pi machines.

[OderWat]

One thing I use now is a "protected" folder by using encfs on my imac which then is synced to an external hosting provider where I have some GB free. This is also synced into a windows and macbook pro machine of coworkers which both have the password for that encfs. This way we have an "sharepoint" for all of us similar to dropbox but encrypted at the third party system. Basically we just share small documents there. This works very well so far! Still I wait for "tresorit" to have their mac client finished.

[timecott01]

Usage here:

Used to sync user data (all emails) folders of two MDaemon Mail Servers (Windows). Works perfectly, and enables realtime sync of two mail servers for resilience purposes.

!!WISHLIST: To have BTSync as a Windows Service. Currently we get round this by having a scheduled task to start BTSync when the PC/Server is booted.

Great piece of software.

[fa2k]

I'm mainly using it to sync pictures off my phone and my shopping list to my phone. This is the first time I've used an automatic sync tool for pictures, and it's fantastic (before I used FolderSync with SSH, but didn't set up frequent sync for pictures). I've also used it as a backup tool -- there was a lightning storm and I synced my working directory to my phone, which wasn't connected to anything physically. If my computer was hit by lightning, I'd at least get to keep all my files, up to the last time I saved. I'm running btsync as a separate user to mitigate the risk of compromise of the BT server, but if it's open sourced and proven over time, I can run it as my own user, and that will be a lot easier. (I had a similar setup with FolderSync because I needed to store the SSH password on the phone, which is easily lost etc, so I used an "intermediate" user)

Still using Unison for syncing home directory, music and work files between computers, BT sync doesn't really bring anything new that Unison won't do, discrete syncs is totally fine.

[lou5]

I'd been hitting the storage limit on my dropbox so I looked in to setting up my own cloud storage.

I share a music folder with ~8 people for DJing, with music files whose metadata is constantly being updated.

I looked into ownCloud and it seemed up to snuff. Purchased a domain and shared hosting from dreamhost -- setup was simple enough. But damn, the Windows client was buggy and borderline unusable. The only way to tell if you were uploading was from the taskbar icon changing color. There was no way to see what files you were uploading, how much data you were using, etc. I looked on github and this issue has been open for 6 months...

So I gave BTSync and try and holy shit it's exactly what we need. I'm looking forward to more of the fubctionalities dropbox has, but this program seems to be pretty stable for the ~1200 files we have.

I'm not too technically inclined, so I don't know if this is already possible or just imfeasible, but it'd be cool I'd you could add a server (shared hosting) and there was a web gui to access your files from anywhere, share links to files, versioning, etc.

BTsync is the dropbox killer app... Inherently free and scalable. Good work!

With our last release there is a SyncArchive that holds previous versions of your files. In case you need it, it is there - just hidden. Also, we are working on a new GUI to address your needs.

[oskwish]

I'm using it to sync my work machine (PC) to my home machine (MBP). For the most part trying to figure out syncing my music library at work with my library at home. I'm syncing my work music library to my "Automatically Add to iTunes" folder on my home Mac but there seems to be a bit of a timing issue there. I think my "Automatically Add to iTunes" folder is scanning that folder too quickly and moving my audio files to "Not Added". The files are getting created as "x_song.mp3.!sync" on my home machine. Anybody else trying to do a similar thing?

I'm having the exact same problem as you. Would really like to solve this!

[alecperkins]

I find the idea of using BT Sync for applications that aren’t directly about transferring files compelling. The potentially asymmetrical sharing and inherent distributed nature open up a lot of possibilities, on top of the relatively straightforward API that is manipulating the filesystem. (Programmatic creation and management of shares would expand on these possibilities dramatically.) I started playing with the idea of using BT Sync to power a simple, reasonably secure messaging system, and it’s turned out to be more intriguing than I expected. The nature of the underlying mechanism makes for some interesting qualities, positive and negative.

Edit: just discovered Vole!

[rysliv]

I have one server that has all my Dropbox, Copy, Skydrive, GDrive accounts synced to it, I just created a sync folder for each one of them and now I can be in sync with all services only having btsync running. I also have a folder for everything else, mostly .nef / RAW files from my camera.

[wmb]

In addition to my usual sync of documents (with my Synology NAS acting as a server) I just began to use the combination of DS photo+ and Bittorrent Sync. It's a more flexible alternative to Photostream.

The picture I take on the iPhone is being immetiadely synced to the NAS via photo+ (will probably be replaced by Bittorrent Sync in the future, once released). On the NAS (DS213j) there's BTSync running and syncing the picture folders (albums) to my computers.

It's locally faster than Photostream (uses Wifi at home, 3G on the go), more private, cross platform and doesn't depend on Apple services or iPhoto/Aperture.

[caruccio]

I have this startup (getupcloud.com), we are a Public PaaS based on OpenShift Origin (an auto-scalable, language agnostic and fully OSS PaaS implementation, check it out!)

Now there is a huge demand on a shared, secure and real-time persistent filesystem for our users.

It may be the case to use BTSync, so we are going to put it on tests. First we need to understand some points of the tool and address some issues, but I thinks it is a real option for us.

Once tests are finished, I will post here what/how we did it.

Thanks!

[mtucker]

The company I work for has 32 satellite locations and no real servers anywhere but HQ. We recently shipped out a set of identical computers, one to each location, so I snuck a 1TB drive into all of them to store "local" copies of large installers like Office. Just after they shipped I happened to run across BTSync, so I took remote control of the computers at satellite locations and used BTSync as a service to keep my satellite install shares synchronized with our main install share here at the HQ.

Finished the first "test" system on Friday, added a second system today and it's pulling data from both "original" locations as it should, even with the satellites setup in read only.

[nweeks]

Hi All,

I'm tinkering with btsync for a few scenarios:

I do some animations with Blender, and using btsync on the render nodes means that when a job is submitted to the master node, the slaves no longer have to pull their work files from the single master - as each slave obtains part of the work files, it automatically shares it with the other slaves.

(Means I didn't have to put a 10Gb NIC in the master...)

I'm also tinkering with syncing a TrueCrypt volume across several machines. This is yielding some headaches, as once a change is made, btsync looks like it has to transfer the entire volume. I guess this is because the checksum of the encrypted volume has changed, and any sliding window-based checksumming would also think that each and every block has changed?

Also, on the destination machines, the volume file is appended with the '.~sync', which never disappears.

It's looking promising, though!!

Nige.

[Llamnuds]

hi, how do you setup the "zombie" computers of family members? I am planning to do the same, but would like neither SW of that comp. to scan such folders, nor family members to accidentally get on files content. [e.g. surprise photo books ]

I think he just installs and configures BTsync on their machines without telling them, and hopes they don't find it or his data. :-)

[manifold]

I use sync for:

• Managing the media content on my Cell Phone (my cell phone media folder is a backup of folder on my computer)
  
• Backup ALL my data on a second computer continiously
  
• Use it as Dropbox replacement
  

Wishes to make it even better.:

• Better error handeling (files security needs to be improved)
  
• Versioning
  
• Sym-Links
  

[deadserious]

I started playing with the idea of using BT Sync to power a simple, reasonably secure messaging system, and it’s turned out to be more intriguing than I expected.

Would love your feedback here:

http://forum.bittorrent.com/topic/22994-nonsa-encrypted-communication-via-btsync/

[mtucker]

I'm also tinkering with syncing a TrueCrypt volume across several machines. This is yielding some headaches, as once a change is made, btsync looks like it has to transfer the entire volume. I guess this is because the checksum of the encrypted volume has changed, and any sliding window-based checksumming would also think that each and every block has changed?

If I remember correctly the TrueCrypt volume is an encrypted virtual disk that mounts to a folder or drive letter. If this is the case you would probably want to aim BTSync at the mount point rather than the virtual disk file.

[deadserious]

If I remember correctly the TrueCrypt volume is an encrypted virtual disk that mounts to a folder or drive letter. If this is the case you would probably want to aim BTSync at the mount point rather than the virtual disk file.

That would completely defeat the point of using TrueCrypt.

[mtucker]

In what way? The only problem I see with my plan is that synchronization would only occur while the volume is mounted. If the volume is unmounted the sync would simply fail to find it's destination. If the objective is to have encrypted files staying synchronized between locations then file-based rather than volume-based encryption would be the way to go.

[deadserious]

In what way? The only problem I see with my plan is that synchronization would only occur while the volume is mounted. If the volume is unmounted the sync would simply fail to find it's destination. If the objective is to have encrypted files staying synchronized between locations then file-based rather than volume-based encryption would be the way to go.

Your suggestion would be sending unencrypted files through the sync process rather than the entirety of the encrypted volume. Should sync become compromised in some way, the attacker would be getting the unencrypted data that you worked to protect with TrueCrypt..

[mtucker]

Your suggestion would be sending unencrypted files through the sync process rather than the entirety of the encrypted volume. Should sync become compromised in some way, the attacker would be getting the unencrypted data that you worked to protect with TrueCrypt..

So, if worried about the tunnel being compromised then file-based encryption rather than volume based would definitely be the way to go.

[deadserious]

So, if worried about the tunnel being compromised then file-based encryption rather than volume based would definitely be the way to go.

Not if the volume is a true crypt volume.

[goli]

Well, you're becoming off topic. But to give a quick response ...

I don't want to repeate myselfe, especially because this thread is going hell off topic.

You might want to participate here?

Regards,

Stephan.

[peter.m.calloway]

To sync my Aperture library (100 GB) and replace dropbox.

[Osiris]

Syncing 10 TB of media files with other nas devices at my sisters & mothers.

Very sweet app.

 

I can configure & sync the nas on my lan, then move the nas to another network with firewalls, routers, port forwarding setups ... and I don't have to reconfigure anything. It just tunnels through.

Loving that.

[chrsmrrtt]

Where possible, synchronising save game files for games which lack Steam Cloud integration.