Geek Posted November 3, 2011 Posted November 3, 2011 <div class="KonaBody"><p><img src="http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/sync-files-between-macs.jpg" alt="Sync files between Macs with iCloud" title="sync-files-between-macs" width="582" height="256" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-23315" /></p> <p>You can sync files across iCloud-equipped Macs by using an unofficial feature tied to a little known folder hidden in OS X. We’ll walk you through exactly how to get this set up, allowing you to sync files and folders across Macs seamlessly, but first make sure you meet some basic system requirements.</p> <p><strong>Requirements:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Macs must have <a href="http://osxdaily.com/2011/10/12/mac-os-x-10-7-2-download/">OS X 10.7.2</a> (or greater) installed</li> <li><a href="http://osxdaily.com/2011/10/12/how-to-setup-icloud/">iCloud enabled and set up</a> on each Mac, using the same iCloud account</li> </ul> <p>After you’ve sure you have the latest version of OS X installed and iCloud configured to use the same account on all Macs you want to sync between, you can proceed. This is a great little trick that was first noticed by a reader submitted tip to a sister publication of <a href="http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20111029203029574&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter#bit.ly&utm_source=Feedburner?referrer=OSXDaily?rss=YHN&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter#bit.ly&utm_source=Feedburner?referrer=OSXDaily?rss=YHN&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter#bit.ly&utm_source=Feedburner?referrer=OSXDaily?rss=YHN&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter#bit.ly&utm_source=Feedburner?referrer=OSXDaily?rss=YHN&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter#bit.ly&utm_source=Feedburner?referrer=OSXDaily?rss=YHN&utm_source=bit.ly&utm_medium=twitter#YaHooNews">MacWorld</a>, but oddly they didn’t bother to test the tip to make sure it works. Nonetheless we and others did test it and can confirm it syncs files and folders perfectly. </p> <h2 style="font-size:1.2em;">Share & Sync Files Using iCloud Between Macs</h2> <p>Complete the following steps on <em>all Macs you intend to sync files with</em>:</p> <ul> <li>Open “System Preferences” on all Macs from the Apple menu</li> <li>Click on “iCloud” and be sure the checkbox next to “Documents & Data” is checked</li> <p><img src="http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/icloud-file-syncing-mac.jpg" alt="iCloud File Syncing in Mac OS X" title="icloud-file-syncing-mac" width="447" height="56" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-23314" /></p> <li>Go to the Mac OS X Desktop and enter into ~/Library/ either by holding Option and clicking on the “Go” menu or using another method <a href="http://osxdaily.com/2011/07/22/access-user-library-folder-in-os-x-lion/">to access user library</a></li> <li>Locate the folder named “Mobile Documents” and right-click on it, choosing “Make Alias”</li> <p><img src="http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/alias-mobile-documents-folder-for-easy-mac-file-syncing.jpg" alt="Create alias of Mobile Documents for Easy File Syncing with iCloud " title="alias-mobile-documents-folder-for-easy-mac-file-syncing" width="582" height="283" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-23317" /></p> <li>Copy the alias of that folder to the OS X Desktop</li> <p><img src="http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/icloud-mac-file-sync.jpg" alt="iCloud file syncing with Macs" title="icloud-mac-file-sync" width="484" height="127" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-23316" /></p> <li>Test iCloud syncing by dragging a file into that directory</li> </ul> <p>Wait a few seconds, and check the same directory on the other Mac, you should see the files.</p> <p><strong>Officially Unsupported</strong> Keep in mind this is currently an unsupported feature of iCloud and Mac OS X, so you shouldn’t rely on this 100% to sync files reliably. You’ll want to keep a copy of files elsewhere and then copy them into that folder so you can prevent any potential data loss. It does work, but until it’s officially supported you should be wary of depending on the feature.</p> <p><strong>Syncing with GoodReader & iOS</strong> Testing was also done by <a href="http://www.macstories.net/reviews/icloud-mobile-documents-sync-and-goodreader/">MacStories</a>, who discovered a variation of the trick can be used to sync things between Macs and an iPhone or iPad with the iOS app GoodReader. If that interests you, check it out.</p> <p><strong>DropBox Competitor?</strong> This whole thing was initially noticed after <a href="http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Is-Apple-Preparing-An-AllOut-siliconalley-752622579.html?x=0&_v=1">Yahoo/Business Insider</a> found it and went on to assume that Apple might be prepping a competitor to DropBox. This is a possibility, and Apple did attempt unsuccessfully to buy DropBox years ago, but more likely this is just a feature of iCloud that hasn’t found it’s way into an official feature list yet, for whatever reason. </p> </div> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/6QMo8-T0oltpLE0289bRB2z6StI/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/6QMo8-T0oltpLE0289bRB2z6StI/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/6QMo8-T0oltpLE0289bRB2z6StI/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/6QMo8-T0oltpLE0289bRB2z6StI/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?a=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?a=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?i=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?a=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:D7DqB2pKExk"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?i=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:D7DqB2pKExk" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?a=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:7Q72WNTAKBA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?d=7Q72WNTAKBA" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?a=27JQC5coacA:V1yNXZIcrks:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/osxdaily?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/osxdaily/~4/27JQC5coacA" height="1" width="1"/> View the full article
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