GoodSync Review (Mac OS X Syncing & Backup)
Written by John Thompson on August 3, 2010 · Filed under Review, Software
GoodSync is a backup and sync utility, originally for Windows owners. It has recently made its way to Mac OS X, however, so that Mac users can now enjoy all the benefits of backing up and syncing files with a dedicated utility to both local and online storage.
When you activate GoodSync on your Mac, your serial will be verified and you’ll be asked to enter your personal details. For me, this isn’t a sterling first impression, as I don’t like giving details such as my address and e-mail to third party companies, although there didn’t appear to be any validation in place to ensure that the details being entered were relevant to the fields.
Once you’re passed this stage, you can create a new job. This can be to either sync files between two locations, or backup a set of folders, or your entire system, to another drive.The flexibility offered here is seldom seen on similar applications, so it was good to see that there are options to backup using different forms of media and services. Also, when backing up data, you can choose between a forced copy or verified copy. You’re also given the choice of reading only the source side of the backup, so everything is copied over.
I decided to test the sync abilities of GoodSync with the Dropbox folder on my MacBook Pro. I use my Dropbox to house important files, so there’s no risk of using my USB memory stick when storing these files on the go.
Being able to sync the contents of my Dropbox file sync folder to another local folder is great, because it means that I can use files, such as a coding project that I’m working on, from the same folder whilst ensuring that a bang up-to-date copy is also maintained in my online storage. Of course there are many scenarios where GoodSync’s syncing ability is welcome, but it’s perfect for situations such as this for Dropbox users.
When creating a new sync job, you’re given a split-view window, with different panes representing different folders. On the left is the first folder you wish to sync, and on the right, the second folder that you wish to keep in sync with the first. Anything in each of these folders that isn’t present in the other, or is outdated, will be transferred across to be kept up to date. When your two folders are chosen and ready to go, you can choose to analyse the information in both directories, to check if there’s any outdated or missing files that need to be outdated. Once the analysis is completed, you can choose to sync the folders.
The backing up process is extremely similar to the syncing process in that you have a split window made up of a left and right folder for backing up purposes. You can choose to backup to an external hard disk drive, or choose a web enabled drive, such as an FTP address or Amazon’s S3 backup service. Once everything is set up, your files will be kept backed up and up to date, so you don’t have to worry about losing any files.
GoodSync for Mac is a great application, and well worth the £19.99 for the Pro version. If you want to download it, you can do so from the GoodSync website.
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