How to Turn iCloud Into a Dropbox-like Syncing Service
While iCloud brought many long-awaiting features to iOS and OS X, many users were still holding out for Dropbox-like syncing service. Though Apple didn’t go this direction with the official release, there is actually a way to trick iCloud into syncing files and folders between Macs, just like Dropbox. Read on and we’ll show you exactly how to use this hidden functionality of iCloud.
1. Enable iCloud Document Storage
To begin, head to System Preferences > iCloud and check the box beside "Documents & Data." This will enable the syncing of documents to and from your Mac and iOS devices (currently supported by the mobile Pages, Keynote, and Numbers applications).
2. Find the Syncing Folder
Once you have enabled Documents & Data syncing in iCloud, open a new Finder window and press Command + Shift + G, and type (or copy/paste) the following directory: ~/Library/Mobile Documents. When you are finished, click Go.
Inside this Mobile Documents folder, you will find various folders. These are folders for the applications that are currently using your iCloud data storage. Don’t mess with any of the folders in this area.
3. Auto-sync
To sync files between your Macs, simply drag and drop any file or folder into the Mobile Documents folder. Any Mac that has the iCloud "Documents & Data" feature enabled will automatically have the added files and folders pushed to it, making the Mobile Documents folder act similar to Dropbox.
Follow this article’s author, Cory Bohon on Twitter.
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snwombat
December 08, 2011 at 12:01pm
I was excited to give this a try as a solution to replacing my iDisk, so I dropped a 3GB folder into the Mobile Documents folder per these instructions. 48 hours later, I was notified by my internet host that my MetroE line had been uploading 12Mbit for two days straight (almost 200GB of data). I deleted the folder and usage went back to normal. Clearly, putting items in this folder is not something Apple has sanctioned.
innertron
November 30, 2011 at 2:19pm
Creating folders in this directory, even when sync is on does not appear when one goes back intro the cloud. This entire story/tutorial needs to be done again showing the END. They kept the end out because when he goes back up onto the iCloud - nothing work!
malc5sTgF
November 29, 2011 at 3:38am
Is it possible to share files using the public folders "drop box" ?, if so how does the preferred recipient access it ?
csullivan1980
November 24, 2011 at 3:39am
Tried this, but can't access my files through iCloud. I don't own any of the iWorks programs so am I at a loss?
josh.smith1678
November 23, 2011 at 10:07pm
Is it possible to access this information on Apple's iCloud website?
oziled88
November 23, 2011 at 1:38am
If we put a document in the mobile document folder, does it appear in our ios iworks apps too?
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