Egnyte HybridCloud review

That's not the limit of the way that files can be accessed, either. The web interface is a simple but effective way to access storage from anywhere, providing both a standard HTML uploader for single files and a Java-based one for multiple files. This interface lets you preview files using the web interface or open them locally on your computer. If you do open a file a warning pops up telling you that you have to upload the file again if you make any changes, as edits aren't automatically uploaded as they are with Trend Micro SafeSync.

Users can send shared links to files or folders either through the web interface or the right-click menu in Windows.

On top of this, the Map Drive application adds a drive letter to Windows, so you can browse the online storage as though it was stored locally. It works well, but large file uploads will tend to timeout before completing, so you're better off using a different upload method, such as the built-in FTP support. This is brilliant for sending large files or for sharing resources with a partner, where you can create them a Standard User account for access to files you need to share with them.

For Power Users on the move, there are apps for iOS, Android and, bizarrely, WebOS rather than Windows Phone 7. It works in pretty much the same way as DropBox for Mobile, giving users access to their files from anywhere, plus the ability to upload new documents and share links.

If that wasn't enough, users can also send shared links to files or folders either through the web interface or the right-click menu in Windows. Anything shared by a link can either be made Public (anyone can access it) or Private (an Egnyte login is required), plus it can be set to time out after a set period or specified number of clicks. It's refreshing to see that the administrator can put a default timeout on shared links, to reduce the chance of a data leak.

Our one minor complaint is that we'd like the form for link sharing to have a username lookup for other users inside the same Egnyte organisation, rather than having to manually enter email addresses.

So what's our verdict?

Verdict

The simple fact is that Egynte is both powerful, easy to use and has a wide range of access options to suit any business. Given this flexibility and control it's the best online synchronisation service for businesses.

Requires broadband internet connection.