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  1. Stackups
  2. Application & Data
  3. Infrastructure as a Service
  4. File Storage
  5. Syncthing vs iCloud

Syncthing vs iCloud

OverviewComparisonAlternatives

Overview

iCloud
iCloud
Stacks92
Followers83
Votes0
Syncthing
Syncthing
Stacks48
Followers78
Votes2
GitHub Stars77.3K
Forks4.8K

Syncthing vs iCloud: What are the differences?

## Introduction
Here are the key differences between Syncthing and iCloud:

1. **Syncing Mechanism**: Syncthing uses a peer-to-peer synchronization model, allowing direct synchronization between devices without relying on a central server. On the other hand, iCloud relies on Apple's cloud servers to sync data across devices, which might raise concerns about privacy and security. 
   
2. **Cross-platform Compatibility**: Syncthing offers cross-platform compatibility, supporting various operating systems such as Windows, macOS, and Linux. In contrast, iCloud is primarily designed for Apple devices, limiting its use on non-Apple platforms. 

3. **Cost**: Syncthing is an open-source software that is free to use without any subscription fees. In comparison, iCloud offers limited free storage and requires a paid subscription for additional storage, which might be a deciding factor for users based on their budget and storage needs.

4. **File Limits**: Syncthing does not impose any file size limits on the data that can be synced between devices, allowing users to transfer larger files seamlessly. On the contrary, iCloud has file size limits for data syncing, which can hinder the sharing of larger files across devices.

5. **Privacy Control**: Syncthing puts a strong emphasis on privacy and security, giving users control over their data by enabling end-to-end encryption. In comparison, iCloud's encryption methods, although secure, are ultimately controlled by Apple, raising concerns about data privacy.

6. **Customization Options**: Syncthing offers advanced customization options and settings, allowing users to tailor the synchronization process according to their specific needs. In contrast, iCloud provides a more user-friendly interface with limited customization options, which may be preferred by users looking for simplicity over customization.

In Summary, Syncthing and iCloud differ in their syncing mechanism, cross-platform compatibility, cost, file limits, privacy control, and customization options.

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Detailed Comparison

iCloud
iCloud
Syncthing
Syncthing

Sign in to iCloud to access your photos, videos, documents, notes, contacts, and more. Use your Apple ID or create a new account to start using Apple services.

It is a continuous file synchronization program. It synchronizes files between two or more computers and replaces proprietary sync and cloud services with something open, trustworthy and decentralized. Your data is your data alone and you deserve to choose where it is stored, if it is shared with some third party and how it's transmitted over the internet.

-
Configure and monitor Syncthing via a responsive and powerful interface accessible via your browser; Portable; Synchronize as many folders as you need with different people
Statistics
GitHub Stars
-
GitHub Stars
77.3K
GitHub Forks
-
GitHub Forks
4.8K
Stacks
92
Stacks
48
Followers
83
Followers
78
Votes
0
Votes
2
Pros & Cons
No community feedback yet
Pros
  • 1
    Offline
  • 1
    Convenient to use
Cons
  • 1
    Not intuitive how to set up on a headless machine
Integrations
No integrations available
Linux
Linux
OpenBSD
OpenBSD
Windows
Windows
Mac OS X
Mac OS X
FreeBSD
FreeBSD

What are some alternatives to iCloud, Syncthing?

Google Drive

Google Drive

Keep photos, stories, designs, drawings, recordings, videos, and more. Your first 15 GB of storage are free with a Google Account. Your files in Drive can be reached from any smartphone, tablet, or computer.

Amazon S3

Amazon S3

Amazon Simple Storage Service provides a fully redundant data storage infrastructure for storing and retrieving any amount of data, at any time, from anywhere on the web

Dropbox

Dropbox

Harness the power of Dropbox. Connect to an account, upload, download, search, and more.

Amazon EBS

Amazon EBS

Amazon EBS volumes are network-attached, and persist independently from the life of an instance. Amazon EBS provides highly available, highly reliable, predictable storage volumes that can be attached to a running Amazon EC2 instance and exposed as a device within the instance. Amazon EBS is particularly suited for applications that require a database, file system, or access to raw block level storage.

Google Cloud Storage

Google Cloud Storage

Google Cloud Storage allows world-wide storing and retrieval of any amount of data and at any time. It provides a simple programming interface which enables developers to take advantage of Google's own reliable and fast networking infrastructure to perform data operations in a secure and cost effective manner. If expansion needs arise, developers can benefit from the scalability provided by Google's infrastructure.

Azure Storage

Azure Storage

Azure Storage provides the flexibility to store and retrieve large amounts of unstructured data, such as documents and media files with Azure Blobs; structured nosql based data with Azure Tables; reliable messages with Azure Queues, and use SMB based Azure Files for migrating on-premises applications to the cloud.

Box

Box

The Box API gives you access to the content management features you see in our web app and lets you extend them for use in your own app. It strives to be RESTful and is organized around the main resources you’re familiar with from the Box web interface.

Minio

Minio

Minio is an object storage server compatible with Amazon S3 and licensed under Apache 2.0 License

OpenEBS

OpenEBS

OpenEBS allows you to treat your persistent workload containers, such as DBs on containers, just like other containers. OpenEBS itself is deployed as just another container on your host.

Rackspace Cloud Files

Rackspace Cloud Files

Cloud Files, powered by OpenStack®, provides an easy to use online storage for files and media which can be delivered globally at blazing speeds over Akamai's content delivery network (CDN).

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