Using Consumer Cloud Storage Services for Implicit File Synchronization

Abstract

People share and distribute data more than ever making it challenging to keep track of all the file copies and versions produced. Knowing where the latest version resides is also a problem when information is fragmented across multiple devices. In this thesis we focus on cloud storage services for inter-device file sharing as we are not interested in adopting revision control systems or sharing files by email or USB sticks. We provide a novel solution for dealing with some of the shortcomings that cloud storage services pose such as interoperability and strict file hierarchies. The solution we developed is called Cloudtips, a system that combines various functionalities like versioning, synchronization and conflict resolution to simplify the interactions required by end users to share data, manage it, and maintain it up to date across their multiple personal devices. Through an abstraction layer for cloud storage services and a user interface, we can easily upload files and folders online from anywhere in the file system. We do this without creating new physical copies, thereby reducing the user’s information fragmentation perception. Additionally, we offer a centralized file history service to keep track of distributed file versions, link copies together across multiple devices, and help the user know where his latest versions reside. Our system also monitors file changes and provides automatic update mechanisms with file-based synchronization possibilities and conflict resolution options. A formal evaluation of our prototype shows how our solution is better suited for both sharing files across multiple devices and automatically maintaining these up to date, when compared to the use of regular cloud storage services.