Online File Sharing Services
Why Use an Online File Sharing Service?
Sharing files online is commonly known by people as attaching and sending files through e-mail as the easiest and fastest way of making sure that the recipients, especially your clients or bosses gets the reports or request that you worked on or any other form of information. Sharing files is limited especially when you need to share large files wherein most e-mail accounts has limitations in terms of file size as well as the number of files that you need to share. In short, e-mail is good for small-scale file sharing only. What if your business needs to share huge data files to work on or to collaborate with together neither with your boss, nor clients? Then what you need is online file sharing services.
Online file sharing services are businesses that have web server plants for internet hosting services. This service gives you an account that allows you to publish data files to their web servers which then can be accessed by your clients, boss, or co-workers via provided downloadable link.
These are platforms wherein you can invite your customers, co-workers, and even friends for collaboration and work on a specific folder or file where everyone could revise, communicate concepts within system or add data files within the given platform. This service also serves as secured back-up system for your data files by maintaining copies on their web servers not only for 90 days, but stores your data indefinitely.
Many of the online file sharing services offers more than one programs. These are the Free Plan, Single-User, and the Business Plan. These Plans varies depending on how much storage and bandwidth you need each month. 2GB of storage is commonly given for Free Plan which works for personal use which is very limited together with its bandwidth. While the Single-User and Business Plan are both fit for professionals, businesses or companies that need a bigger storage and bandwidth to perfectly work and share files online.
Share & Access Features
The level of data that you can share and receive for your account’s monthly bandwidth consumption is one of the most essential file sharing functions to consider. As such, the best file sharing sites offer unlimited bandwidth unlike other sites that are limited to 20GB and 7TB per month which is not cost efficient. But to give you an idea on how to manage your bandwidth usage and why unlimited bandwidth is mostly recommended, businesses that consider data files, information or even virtual files such as videos and the like, as the main life of their businesses, unlimited bandwidth can give you a peace of mind and a worry-free operating business.
File sharing services, as compared to simple e-mail, has the capacity to share and work together on huge data files without worries. This is one of the reasons why file sharing service is highlighted. But the utmost file size that you can share varies a lot from website to website. There are some services that max out at 3GB, while others can share files as big as 12GB, and others are unlimited.
After evaluating file size and bandwidth limitations, we should also consider sharing and accessibility functions that make the service perfect for online sharing. File sharing sites that provides more than online links are the best one. Through secured file sharing or complex digital workspaces, these websites comes with interfaces designed according to online association with customers and co-workers.
Security
One of the most important things in an online world is security, wherein some dubious people are trying to steal information online. As such, we have evaluated the protection protocols to identify which websites has the most protected file sharing services. It starts with 256-bit security for when the file is being transferred and when it’s being stored and on idle status on the servers. Security is your protective shell around data so that a hackers will not be able look at the material if they identify it at any point. Incorporated security includes fire walls and virus scanners to protect the servers from external, as well as internal attacks.
One other very important function is the distant clean wherein you have an option of activating to delete data files remotely from any system synced to your item. One example is, if your employee leaves your business or loses a smartphone and other tools that are synced to your consideration, the distant clean function will allow you to delete all the information even without the physical system. This also includes password protection tool which ensures that only selected people you want to access the data files can go though it with no worries.
File-Tracking Controls
Monitoring your data files is similar to monitoring your business finances. You have to track the movement of the data including the number of times you have shared it, to whom you have shared it with, track the dates of sharing, as well as the bandwidth usage along with it. With regards to that, the service includes comprehensive audit logs, directory authorizations, identity verification, file locking and file-access expiration settings which allows you to control how you want to monitor the data files which includes hyperlinks age and availability.
File versioning is one of the most basic functions but also serves as one of the best because it allows you to reverse errors and undesirable changes. Without overwriting the previous edition, but creating a new version and keeps the earlier version.
Help & Support
FAQs page are available to discuss customer forums and access tutorials and videos. These are helpful tips you can use even though most of the online file sharing services are easy to use.