One big vs. many small folders

[ynamite]

Hi

I'm sure this has been asked before, but I couldn't find an answer, so here I go

What is Resilios recommendation in regards to folder structure, from a purely technical standpoint? Is it better to sync many small folders (a few files, a few subdirectories) vs. syncing one large folder (many files, many subdirectories)? I realize this depends heavily on the intended use case, but disregarding that for a moment, which is better for Resilio?

In my case, I'm using Resilio to sync my own personal project files between my laptop, work computer and my NAS. I simply want to have the exact same files at home as I do at work. I used to have one folder called "Work" where I'd have up to 100 project folders, each with many subdirectories and files. That folder was about 16 GB in about 67000 files (many of them quite small, I'm a web dev). When trying Resilio, before setting everything up I archived many old projects and brought the contents of my "Work" folder down to 3.5 GB in about 13500 files in it. Resilio is now syncing that whole folder without a hitch.

Is this wise though? Should I rather sync each project on its own? And if there's no argument against sharing one large folder, could I have shared the original 16 GB folder just as easily or would that have been risky?

I'm the only one that has and is going to have access to this folder, so sharing specific folders and whatnot with someone else is never going to be an issue (and even if it does become an issue, I can always just create a share within a share).

One other question, I read that Resilio creates versions of files when they're changed/deleted. Where exactly are these files stored? The main sync folder in Resilios preferences doesn't exist on my system ~/Users/myuser/Resilio Sync it's called, but again, that one doesn't exist. Also, does it just create versions of files or of whole folders as well (when a folder is deleted, for instance)?

By the way, I absolutely love Resilio thus far! Great piece of software!

Thanks a lot!

Edited October 19, 2016 by ynamite
typos, clarification

[Helen]

each option has their pros and cons
Big shares may take long to be indexed. And if you have a lot of nested folders there, not all notifications about file update may reach Sync, especially if the updated files are located deeply inside. 
Also, database on these shares will grow big, especially if you sync a project which is likely to be generating a lot of temp files. This will result in more RAM required . 

Small shares may take long to load in UI on start, since each of them needs to be read and loaded separately. Also, if you ever decide to reinstall Sync, you'll need to reconnect each share again, may be time consuming. 

On 10/19/2016 at 0:13 PM, ynamite said:

brought the contents of my "Work" folder down to 3.5 GB in about 13500 files in it.

this is not that big. We've seen shares way heavier. So if this works for you, I'd rather you don't change it. 

 

On 10/19/2016 at 0:13 PM, ynamite said:

One other question, I read that Resilio creates versions of files when they're changed/deleted. Where exactly are these files stored?

In Archive, which is located in .sync in root of you share. See details about archive here. It creates the version of the whole subfolder as well. 

[ynamite]

Hi Helen

Thank you for your thorough answer.

So impressed by Resilio, great piece of software.

[Helen]

Thanks! Pleased to hear that