Google announced on its G Suite Updates blog that on June 28, 2017, they will be launching a new tool to help everyday consumer users to back up files and photos from their computers so they are safe and accessible from anywhere. The new tool will be called Backup and Sync from Google, which will be the latest version of Google Drive for both Windows and PC.
Two things that Back and Sync from Google does will be different from Google Drive:
- It can back up any folders on your computer, not just the single folder you assigned in Google Drive.
- It will be integrated with Google Photo desktop uploader.
Also, according to Google, Backup and Sync from Google is primarily intended for consumer users. G Suite users should continue to use Drive for Mac/PC until their new enterprise-focused solution, Drive File Stream, is made generally available for all G Suite users later this year. Drive File Stream is a feature similar to OneDrive’s Files on-Demand that allows users to access huge data sets without taking up the equivalent space on the local drive.
This sounds very interesting to me since I have been very impressed by Google Photos the day I started using it. Extending the service and offering to back up anything on your computer is very tempting to end users. But I am very curious to see how Sync and access from anywhere work with this new Backup and Sync from Google tool.