Sync, clients & file access
How this is scored
How files reach the people who work with them: desktop clients for Windows, macOS and Linux, files on demand (virtual drive) and selective sync, offline access, mobile apps with camera upload and offline folders, a web interface, block-level or delta sync for large files, sync of folders outside the main folder, file size limits, preview of common formats, full-text search, and access through open protocols (WebDAV, SFTP, S3) or a mounted network drive.
0 — Not a file storage or sync product; files cannot be stored and synced with it.
3 — A web interface and apps for some platforms to upload and download files; desktop sync, files on demand, offline access and limits are basic or not described.
5 — Desktop sync clients for Windows and macOS, files on demand or selective sync, mobile apps with offline files and camera upload, a web interface with previews, file size limits stated, and search by file name.
8 — Clients for Windows, macOS and Linux, a virtual drive with files on demand, block-level or delta sync documented, full-text search inside documents, access via WebDAV, SFTP or S3, large-file handling stated, and LAN sync or a performance figure for big folders.
10 — File access that a whole organisation runs on: every platform covered with feature parity stated, sync conflicts and their resolution documented, open protocols and a mountable drive on every desktop, search across content and metadata with OCR, and sync behaviour and limits published in technical documentation.
The Architecture Practice Partner
Desktop sync clients for Windows, Mac and Linux are documented, down to a headless install for servers, folders can be mounted as a network drive, and iOS and Android apps exist; selective sync is described only as skipping the default directory during setup. For our multi-gigabyte BIM models I found no public information on files on demand, delta or block-level sync, file size limits, offline folders or camera upload on the phones, previews or search. 10 9 2 1