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Sharing or syncing home folders between Macs

Sharing or syncing home folders between Macs

I've had a Macbook for some time, and recently got a Mac Mini too (both as desktop & media player computer). When setting up the Mini, I copied mostly everything (in target disk mode) from Macbook to it; that was a really smooth way to get up and running.

Asked by: Guest | Views: 161
Total answers/comments: 2
Guest [Entry]

"Depending on what files you are wanting to syncronize in your home folder you could get away using Dropbox and symlinks.

The new LAN sync feature on newer versions (the 0.7.x line) will make syncing faster as well since it doesn't need to sync to Dropbox's servers and then back down to your other computer before the files are available.

If Dropbox or other online synchronization methods aren't good enough (or you have privacy fears) there is the option of using Mac OS X Server on the Mac mini and setting up the MacBook to use a portable home directory and then your home folder will be exactly the same on both. It's definitely a much more pricey option ($500USD for server) and has a bit more overhead but if you have multiple computers and a decent network (namely not 802.11g or 10base ethernet) it's pretty solid (I've got a client who does this between his two iMacs and his iBook for himself, his wife and two kids).

It is possible however to set up a remote home directory without Mac OS X Server: SuperUser Question: 16129, How to configure a remote home directory on Mac OS X?"
Guest [Entry]

I use Folders Synchronizer from SoftBe and find it to be excellent.