Developer(s) | Microsoft |
---|---|
Stable release | Wave 5 (v16.2.2907.1020) / November 29, 2011 |
Type | Data synchronization service |
Website | Archived official website at the Wayback Machine (archive index) |
Windows Live Devices was an online device management service as part of Windows Live which will allow users to centrally access and manage the synchronization of files stored on their computers, mobile devices, as well as other peripherals such as digital photo frames. Windows Live Devices also allows users to remotely access their computers from the internet using a web browser.
This service integrates tightly with Windows Live Mesh to allow files and folders between two or more computers be in sync with each other, as well as to be in sync with files and folders stored on the cloud with SkyDrive. (Now OneDrive) [1] The combination of the three services: Windows Live Devices, Windows Live Mesh, and SkyDrive are very similar to the previous Live Mesh technology preview platform offering from Microsoft, and are based on the same underlying technology. [2]
Windows Live Devices was released on June 24, 2010, as part of Windows Live Wave 4 suite of services.
Microsoft released their Live Mesh software as a service platform on April 23, 2008 that enabled PCs and other devices to connect with each other through the internet using FeedSync technologies. Live Mesh allows applications, files and folders to be synchronized across multiple devices. Live Mesh was initially released as a technology preview, however, it was shortly updated to Beta on October 30, 2008 and at the same time incorporated as part of the Azure Services Platform - a "cloud" platform hosted at Microsoft data centers. Live Mesh consisted of the following four elements:
In January 2009, the Live Mesh team was merged into the unified Windows Live team at Microsoft such that its incubation technologies will be integrated into Windows Live services. [3] As a result, Live Framework, the developer framework for Live Mesh, was discontinued on September 8, 2009 and was incorporated into Live Services - the developer resources central for all Windows Live services. As part of the merge, the Mesh Operating Environment, or simply the Live Mesh software, is replaced by Windows Live Mesh to support PC-to-PC as well as PC-to-cloud file synchronisation, and the online cloud storage service for Live Mesh - Live Desktop - is replaced by SkyDrive synchronised storage. Windows Live Devices will serve the purposes of managing and providing access to all devices in the synchronization relationship, as well as replacing the Live Mesh Remote Desktop to provide remote access functions to any devices in a synchronization relationship.
The Live Mesh technology preview platform supported the management and synchronisation of data between Windows and Mac OS X computers, mobiles devices, Windows Home Server, Xbox, Zune, Car Automation System, [4] as well as other computer devices and peripherals such as printers, digital cameras, and digital photo frames. [5] These capabilities of Live Mesh are expected to be integrated into Windows Live Devices and Windows Live Mesh in future releases.
Microsoft Outlook is a personal information manager software system from Microsoft, available as a part of the Microsoft Office and Microsoft 365 software suites. Though primarily an email client, Outlook also includes such functions as calendaring, task managing, contact managing, note-taking, journal logging and web browsing. And has also become a popular email client for many businesses.
ActiveSync is a mobile data synchronization app developed by Microsoft, originally released in 1996. It synchronizes data with handheld devices and desktop computers. In the Windows Task Manager, the associated process is called wcescomm.exe.
Nokia PC Suite is a discontinued software package used to establish an interface between Nokia mobile devices and computers that run the Microsoft Windows operating system. Its first release was in 1997, originally called Nokia Data Suite. It was replaced by Nokia Suite and integrated into the Ovi service suite.
Windows Live Mesh is a discontinued free-to-use Internet-based file synchronization application by Microsoft designed to allow files and folders between two or more computers to be in sync with each other on Windows and Mac OS X computers or the Web via SkyDrive. Windows Live Mesh also enabled remote desktop access via the Internet.
SugarSync is a cloud service that enables active synchronization of files across computers and other devices for file backup, access, syncing, and sharing from a variety of operating systems, such as Android, iOS, Mac OS X, and Windows devices. For Linux, only a discontinued unofficial third-party client is available.
In computing, a shared resource, or network share, is a computer resource made available from one host to other hosts on a computer network. It is a device or piece of information on a computer that can be remotely accessed from another computer transparently as if it were a resource in the local machine. Network sharing is made possible by inter-process communication over the network.
Windows Home Server is a home server operating system from Microsoft. It was announced on 7 January 2007 at the Consumer Electronics Show by Bill Gates, released to manufacturing on 16 July 2007 and officially released on 4 November 2007.
SyncToy was a freeware tool in Microsoft's PowerToys series that provided an easy-to-use graphical user interface for synchronizing files and folders in Windows versions XP, Vista, 7 and 10. It was written using Microsoft's .NET Framework and used the Microsoft Sync Framework.
Microsoft OneDrive is a file hosting service operated by Microsoft. First launched in August 2007, it enables registered users to share and synchronize their files. OneDrive also works as the storage backend of the web version of Microsoft Office. OneDrive offers 5 GB of storage space free of charge, with 100 GB, 1 TB, and 6 TB storage options available either separately or with Microsoft 365 subscriptions.
In Microsoft Windows, the Briefcase is a special folder that supports a simple two-way file synchronization between itself and another folder. The Briefcase is designed for mobile PC users so that they may transfer it to a removable drive and have it synchronize with the computer to which the removable drive is attached. It follows the same metaphor as the file and file folder and then, while the file management tasks are performed by Windows Explorer, the briefcase behaves just like another folder, i.e. with support for copy-paste and drag-and-drop. It has additional functions and toolbar buttons for updating out-of-sync files. The Windows Briefcase was introduced in Windows 95 and was deprecated in Windows 8 and completely disabled in Windows 10 until it was finally removed in Windows 10 build 14942.
MediaFire is a file hosting, file synchronization, and cloud storage service based in Shenandoah, Texas, United States. Founded in June 2006 by Derek Labian and Tom Langridge, the company provides client software for Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, BlackBerry 10, and web browsers. MediaFire has 43 million registered users and attracted 1.3 billion unique visitors to its domains in 2012.
This is a comparison of online backup services.
Gladinet, Inc. is an American corporation co-founded by Jerry Huang and Franklyn Peart in 2008 in Lake Worth, Florida. The company provides cloud computing software, including an on-premises, enterprise file synchronization and sharing (EFSS) platform. The on-premises version of the platform is available for service providers and enterprises. There is also a team edition.
Dmailer was a French company which specialized in portable backup and synchronization software for devices, including USB flash drives, memory cards, external hard disk drives, MP3 players, embedded phone memories, SIM cards and flash-based memory cards for mobile phones.
ZumoDrive is a defunct cloud-based file hosting service operated by Zecter, Inc. On December 22, 2010, Zecter announced its acquisition by Motorola Mobility. The service enabled users to store and sync files online, and also between computers using their HybridCloud storage solution; the latter functionality stopped working in approximately September 2011, while the former was undergoing formal takedown on May 1, 2012. ZumoDrive had a cross-platform client that enabled users to copy any file or folder into the ZumoDrive virtual disk that was then synced to the web and the users' other computers and hand-held devices. Files in the ZumoDrive virtual disk could be shared with other ZumoDrive users or accessed from the web. Users could also upload files manually through a web browser interface. A free ZumoDrive account offered 2 GB of storage, and users could upgrade to paid plans ranging from 10 GB to 500 GB for a monthly subscription fee. The ZumoDrive service was integrated into Yahoo! Mail, allowing users to send or receive any file on their ZumoDrive, and powers HP's recent CloudDrive technology, bundled on all new HP Mini netbooks.
Exchange ActiveSync is a proprietary protocol designed for the synchronization of email, contacts, calendar, tasks, and notes from a messaging server to a smartphone or other mobile devices. The protocol also provides mobile device management and policy controls. The protocol is based on XML. The mobile device communicates over HTTP or HTTPS.
Syncdocs is backup and file synchronization software for Google Drive. Syncdocs uses cloud computing to enable users to back up and synchronize Windows computer files to Google Documents and Google Drive accounts.
Synkron is an open-source multiplatform utility designed for file synchronization of two or more folders, supporting synchs across computers. It is written in C++ and uses the Qt4 libraries. Synkron is distributed under the terms of the GPL v2.
ownCloud is an open-source software product for sharing and syncing of files in distributed and federated enterprise scenarios. It allows companies and remote end-users to organize their documents on servers, computers and mobile devices and work with them collaboratively, while keeping a centrally organized and synchronized state. ownCloud supports extensions like online document editing, calendar and contact synchronization. Users can work with documents from a browser, and there are clients for a variety of operating systems as well as mobile clients for Android and iPhone.
Resilio Sync by Resilio, Inc. is a proprietary peer-to-peer file synchronization tool available for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, Windows Phone, Amazon Kindle Fire and BSD. It can sync files between devices on a local network, or between remote devices over the Internet via a modified version of the BitTorrent protocol.