OneDrive vs. SolarWinds Serv-U

I'll start with what I would not use OneDrive for! I would not use it as a primary source for code repository, there are other more robust tools out there that can help you with storing and making available code repos. Where I would use OneDrive is in a platform for managing files, and with that I mean any file that can be saved offline and access a OneDrive access point, share, or mount. This could be personal, business, or data from a system that is saved in a standard file format. The OneDrive platform is great for documents collaboration as well, with the ability to allow for share and links to be provided to for easy access and collaboration. I would also recommend if you are someone who likes to use cloud services and rely less and less on offline storage. OneDrive excels in this area!

For anyone who needs to receive/send files between themselves and others, in an organized fashion, I would strongly recommend Serv-U as a great tool at a sensible cost. In our line of work, we can get several customers signed in at once, each sending in hundreds of Megabytes of data simultaneously. Serv-U has never struggled with this. We don't use the Quota set up for sending/receiving data but I can see it is useful where an exchange of information is the point.

• Sync functions allow to access work virtually anywhere
• Collaboration options make working with others easier, increasing productivity
• It works seamlessly in different devices
• The one drive online functions allows to use office programs like work and excel without having them installed in a device

Incentivized

• The Wizard allows us to create new user accounts very easily and quickly. We do not have a formal IT department so those of us "mere mortals" can use this easily.
• Using the Web Client has made it very simple to set up and instruct our customers on getting to the server from any device with a minimum of fuss. We have many customers with ESL, and school students including middle and high school. Most of them are not computer experts, just regular users so the simplicity allows to do the whole setup over the phone in minutes.
• The newer version of Serv-U does not appear to be very resource-hungry so our computer runs nice and fast, without having to be a top of the range powerbox. We concentrated on large storage to cope with the file sizes we receive daily.

• I wish OneDrive would allow you to sync multiple personal/individual accounts to your computer. At this time, you can only sync one account at a time. That means that my personal OneDrive and individual corporate OneDrive can't be synced to my computer at the same time.
• OneDrive has a file size limitation of 15 GB. I know that that is a very large amount, but I have several files that are larger than 15 GB that I wish I could get to sync. I'm hoping that file size limitation changes in the future.

Incentivized

• The user interface on large screens becomes tiny and nearly unreadable without the aid of Windows Magnifier.
• Active Directory integration is either absent or not straightforward.
• Settings and configuration aren't always intuitive.

Due to its tight integration into the Microsoft ecosystem and its bundling into the Office 365 service, continued use of the product is all but guaranteed. Unless there's a shift away from Microsoft, I can see no competing product offering the same ease of use and integrations taking the place of OneDrive

Incentivized

Using OneDrive is very intuitive and has been improved over the years. It's just like using native file management on either your Mac or PC. It's drag and drop functionality is easy and it clearly shows when files are uploaded to the cloud or if there are errors

Incentivized

It has a good performance, the pages load normally, access to the files, management, reports, everything is working well. With regard to integration with other systems, we have not done so yet.

It's a Microsoft product so there is a wealth of information online both from Microsoft directly and from millions of users but as a corporate user we also have access to direct Microsoft support through a variety of avenues (phone, email, etc.). This makes finding answers to issues more accessible, however, it does also mean that any new feature requests will get buried.

Incentivized

Support was the biggest hurdle for us. It definitely needs improvement, but not to the point of being a deal breaker.

Incentivized

Box is another file-sharing application that is very similar to OneDrive. Box falls short of OneDrive in its syncing capabilities. OneDrive is very quick with syncing so you never have to be concerned that you are not using the most up-to-date materials. Box was always a bit delayed and did not always accurately sync across systems. OneDrive benefits from being backed by Microsoft, so you expect the connection across applications that it allows. OneDrive also provides consistency for use and intuitive understanding because of that Microsoft consistency. I'd prefer OneDrive over Box.

Incentivized

Previously we have used FileZilla and Microsoft FTP services, but neither out-performed Serv-U. although it was easy to use, FileZilla required constant attention from IT staff and did not live up to security protocol in place. The Windows Server FTP was difficult to configure for clients due to the tight integration with Active Directory. This also limited who could help administer the server.

• OneDrive allows us to save much time on creating and archiving backup copies of our data. Microsoft gives a guarantee on the possibility of recovery of files or folders even from 30 days ago. It provides a great comfort of work.

Incentivized

• I have been using it for over 10 years so the ROI was there for sure.
• It is not a constant attention needing program.
• Set up and it does its job.