Even though I posted a four-part series on “The Cloud” back in April of 2019, I still find people confused about what it is. Often, we get inquiries in Remote Technical Support about a pop-up that says, “Sign in to OneDrive.” Customers log in because they have no idea what OneDrive is or they do actually use it and don’t understand why they have to sign in again.
I could ask you to click on the link above (“The Cloud”) and read all four parts. Instead, I’ll just give you a quick rundown here.
- “The Cloud” is just a server (actually multiple servers) which is connected to the Internet and doesn’t reside in your home or office.
- The cloud services that many home users would recognize include: OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox and Google Drive.
- Technically, these services are known as file-sharing products. The idea is that you can store your data in the cloud and easily access it from multiple computing devices.
- OneDrive is the Microsoft cloud service. It comes with all current Windows devices. You must have a Microsoft account (free) to use the service. You receive 5GB of free space with options to purchase additional space. If you purchase Office 365, you’ll receive 1TB of space with your account.
- iCloud is the Apple cloud service. You must have an Apple account (free) to use the service. Like OneDrive, it comes with 5GB of free storage with options to purchase additional space at a very reasonable rate.
- Google Drive is, of course, Google’s cloud storage. You must have a Google account (free) to use the service. Google gives you 15GB of free space; however, that space includes your Gmail and your Google Photos.
- Dropbox is an independent company. Like others, you need a Dropbox account (free) to use their service. They offer 2GB of free space with options to purchase additional space at a competitive cost.
- There are a few other file-sharing services but most charge a lot more for space once you get past the free option.
- CAUTION: Be careful about deleting files from cloud storage. Often, when you delete a file from one device, it is deleted from all devices and may be gone forever.
If you have more questions about “The Cloud,” feel free to use the comment area.