Surface Pro 2 - best ways to transfer files with desktop

[chmilz]

I've been a PC guy forever, but I've never dealt with more that one simultaneously. Since the Pro 2 is a real computer, what's the easiest way to transfer files between the Surface Pro 2 and my desktop? Also, what is the easiest way to sync common files - specifically my ripped music collection?

I don't have a Surface Pro 2 yet, however I'm tired of the limited nature of Android and will probably be getting one soon enough, as long as it's less hassle than Android.

Thanks!

 

[jnjroach]

OneDrive...

 

[benjitek]

OneDrive

 

[sharpuser]

Hi, chmilz,

It is easy to be overwhelmed with too many options to shop from for what you need. Here is what I suggest, though:

OneDrive

Yes, that's what I recommend. I have years of SecondCopy, SyncPro, Dropbox, SugarSync, and several others, syncing to several locations (outside my network) and to PCs and Mac computers, servers, and smartphones. Some of these were scheduled syncs, some 24/7 syncs (like Dropbox), and some were on-demand.

But I think OneDrive does it right. I think three things will save Microsoft: Xbox, Surface, and OneDrive. Office will sustain them, but these things will save them.

The best thing to do is to make sure your documents to sync (share), are under the Documents location of your PC and your Surface Pro 2. Then, if both computers are configured to logon to OneDrive, the files will sync. To add your music collection (MP3, WMA, etc.), copy or move them to your Music location under Documents.

By the way, you can right-click on the Documents location, and choose "Location", to specify where you want all your main data files (not software, but data). I have all mine on a 64GB SD card on my Surface, and on the C:\Documents folder on my PC. My music collection is 180 GB (really), and I don't sync it between PCs, but I do on my Mac computers.

Here is some information about OneDrive that should be helpful.

 

[chmilz]

Can I choose to not sync folders in my Documents folder? I wouldn't want to sync my video folder for example.

 

[sharpuser]

Yes, you can exclude the entire structure. The better solution is for you to have Videos you don't want to sync stored somewhere else. For example, C:\data\Videos and C:\data\Music

 

[chmilz]

Already installed OneDrive on my PC, android phone, and android tablet. It's much more versatile than Google Drive, and I simply don't trust Google.

Ok, so I have 45gb worth of music. Let's say I get a 64gb SD card. If OneDrive is only good for 7 or 10gb or whatever, will it simply sync that folder across all devices, and not on the cloud? How do I set what stays in the cloud and what simply syncs across all OneDrive devices?

 

[84-b]

Easy computer sync. lets you sync computers, specific files, or just transfer what you want. I have photo programs on a windows 7 desktop and on the SP2. in the field I load photos onto SP2 using a usb 3 card reader, if I massage them in, say, Lightroom 5, then when home I transfer them to the desktop to where I want them on that computer. Once the transfer is complete, I delete the photos on the SP2. I bought the " Plugable easy transfer cable ", then downloaded the program for free. I leave the cable hooked up to the desktop all the time, and just plug in the SP2 when needed.
I don't do anything in the cloud world.

 

[chmilz]

I don't care about the cloud. Cloud does nothing for me when I'm on flights or in places with crappy internet. I just want simple syncing so I don't have to run around updating multiple devices every time I make a change on my computer.

 

[jnjroach]

If you purchased a new Surface Pro 2 you should have a code for 200GB of OneDrive Storage.

 

[kozak79]

With any file or folder that you create in your OneDrive folder, you can right click and select make available offline. This will sync it to all your Computers with OneDrive. It will start syncing as soon as it is done uploading. I usually put any work files there and it syncs them between my SP2 and my laptop and my server.

 

[keylight]

Syncing withOUT Cloud

I don't care about the cloud. Cloud does nothing for me when I'm on flights or in places with crappy internet. I just want simple syncing so I don't have to run around updating multiple devices every time I make a change on my computer.

You might take a look at this:

How to Sync Files Between Computers Without Storing Them in the Cloud

I'm going to setup the last item (sparkleshare) on my primary computer and the Surface should stay in sync. For a large music (or photo/video) collection it's probably best to put that on a microSD card rather than sync it. But for all those other files you want to keep in sync, it should be a nice offline (er, not cloud) solution.