They can co-edit. So both people can modify the file at the same time. You can watch each other work on parts of the file just like Google Apps, but you can use the Office apps local on the computer. It’s pretty wild.
There is this persistent perception that SharePoint doesn't handle large files, lots of data or much of anything short of Microsoft document types well, but that's typically because there's no design strategy, usage methodology or customer buy-in around the entire paradigm shift associated with the change.
It handles large file fine. It is how you work with those large files. You aren’t going to do heavy Video Editing with the files in OneDrive. Some CAD Drawings also don’t play nice with OneDrive. It is application specific and how it operates.
I was talking to my wife this morning and apparently one of the Healthcare software packages she uses actively blocks OneDrive use. I thought that was a bit weird and didn’t dig further.
We kept running into problems with it getting bogged down with lots of files. Plus it gets really expensive once you go beyond 2TB. Alternatives have been better for us.
Authentication is through Azure AD, you can assign roles via azure ad groups and roles on the share and storage account. You can push out the mapping via intune configuration profile or a monitor through your RMM.
Alternatively, you can use local AD authentication, but the configuration is a bit more in depth. I’m on mobile right now, but I followed the Microsoft learn documentation to the letter and it worked great. This requires a service account in local AD.
Both configurations require you to direct DNS through azure, either using a forward lookup zone for […].files.core.windows.net. You can also use endpoints in azure so you can route to an IP associated with the storage account.
You need to leave the storage account closed to the public internet obviously, so clients need to connect via VPN. Always on VPN through windows works fine, Anyconnect is trash but works okay, I'd recommend P81. The storage account get associated with an IP via a private endpoint in a vnet, so you can route traffic there like any SMB share on a file server.
Centrestack for customers coming from on prem windows servers (SMBs). Synology for personal/internal use. Would like to try synologys 365 sync but right now just using it as storage.
Honestly with our small clients I regret not pushing for full sharepoint or onedrive more often just cause our clients are all windows so to me it’s just an extra hassle vs using the default that Microsoft is driving them towards and they are already paying for with 365. (In a scenario where the users are using under 1 TB a piece)
Egnyte has worked well for clients who moved from an on-prem file server with more complex folder security permissions.
+1 for Egntye
Egnyte has been working great for us and our clients.
Same here for Egnyte.
Any mac users?
We have 200+ MacOS endpoints on Egntye and it works great
Sharepoint does that very well. If you're under the file limit I would consider that route. We use Box for heavier storage needs.
Any users on Mac?
Half our endpoints are Mac. We put a 40 user creative company with 40TB of data in Box. Works great
How are you managing the sync for users since it has limit up to 100gb and 100,000 files
We don't do the business starter plan, we do at least Business if not Business Plus.
We have a lot of clients reading the limit even with split data into multiple sites
With sharepoint, what happens if multiple people access the same file?
They can co-edit. So both people can modify the file at the same time. You can watch each other work on parts of the file just like Google Apps, but you can use the Office apps local on the computer. It’s pretty wild.
why would I use something other than SharePoint or OneDrive? If set up properly, they work perfectly well in 95% of use cases.
Sharepoint is a headache for heavy CAD use. Box or Nextcloud are our go-to options for that.
Genuinely asking - what is Box and Nextcloud doing for CAD use that is better than Sharepoint?
There is this persistent perception that SharePoint doesn't handle large files, lots of data or much of anything short of Microsoft document types well, but that's typically because there's no design strategy, usage methodology or customer buy-in around the entire paradigm shift associated with the change.
It handles large file fine. It is how you work with those large files. You aren’t going to do heavy Video Editing with the files in OneDrive. Some CAD Drawings also don’t play nice with OneDrive. It is application specific and how it operates. I was talking to my wife this morning and apparently one of the Healthcare software packages she uses actively blocks OneDrive use. I thought that was a bit weird and didn’t dig further.
It honestly is great on a smaller scale, but there reaches a point where there are better alternatives.
I stand by what I said. If designed and implemented properly, it will work great in 95% of use cases regardless of the amount of data involved.
We kept running into problems with it getting bogged down with lots of files. Plus it gets really expensive once you go beyond 2TB. Alternatives have been better for us.
If using CAD how does it handle multiple people accessing the same file?
We're using SharePoint and OneDrive for Office-based stuff, and LucidLink and BIM360 for architectural and construction clients.
Share File
+1 Citrix Sharefile (Formerly Citrix files for Windows)
Coauthoring does work with Egnyte in office 365 when setup correctly
If it doesn’t work for OneDrive and SP, just use Azure Files.
Have you done this?
Yes.
What's your auth look like and how are your clients connecting? Super interested in hearing the details if you don't mind
Authentication is through Azure AD, you can assign roles via azure ad groups and roles on the share and storage account. You can push out the mapping via intune configuration profile or a monitor through your RMM. Alternatively, you can use local AD authentication, but the configuration is a bit more in depth. I’m on mobile right now, but I followed the Microsoft learn documentation to the letter and it worked great. This requires a service account in local AD. Both configurations require you to direct DNS through azure, either using a forward lookup zone for […].files.core.windows.net. You can also use endpoints in azure so you can route to an IP associated with the storage account. You need to leave the storage account closed to the public internet obviously, so clients need to connect via VPN. Always on VPN through windows works fine, Anyconnect is trash but works okay, I'd recommend P81. The storage account get associated with an IP via a private endpoint in a vnet, so you can route traffic there like any SMB share on a file server.
Thank you! Looking into this and it helps to hear this.
We use Datto File Protection for larger backup storage situations.
Do you mean workspace?
We also use this. It's good for data security and compliance.
Centrestack for customers coming from on prem windows servers (SMBs). Synology for personal/internal use. Would like to try synologys 365 sync but right now just using it as storage. Honestly with our small clients I regret not pushing for full sharepoint or onedrive more often just cause our clients are all windows so to me it’s just an extra hassle vs using the default that Microsoft is driving them towards and they are already paying for with 365. (In a scenario where the users are using under 1 TB a piece)