Your workflow is unique 👨💻 - tell us how you use Dropbox here.
Forum Discussion
Dropbox Desktop vs CloudMounter, Cyberduck, Mountain Duck for Multiple Accounts - which is better?
Hey,
I just joined the Dropbox Forum and need some advice from experienced users. I really hope someone has some tips.
I’ve got two Dropbox accounts (personal + work) and I’m thinking whether to stick with the native Dropbox client or switch to a cloud manager, since I might add Google Drive later. I want everything to show up like normal folders in Finder/Explorer, avoid syncing the entire cloud to my disk, survive sleep/reconnects, and not lose share permissions when moving files between accounts. If you’ve done this, is it smarter to keep the Dropbox app if you only use Dropbox, or go with a manager from the start? Curious about real-world differences in speed, caching, stability and security — short tips or quick examples would be much appreciated.
4 Replies
If you’re trying to decide, think about what you actually need day to day. The Dropbox desktop app is simple: it integrates tightly with Finder/Explorer, shows file status badges, and gives you online‑only options so items don’t eat your local disk. It also handles one personal and one work account pretty smoothly, so if that matches your setup you get a low‑fuss solution that just blends into your workflow. Use selective sync or the online‑only features to keep only the folders you work with locally, and check the desktop client’s bandwidth and sleep/reconnect settings if you move large amounts of data.
On the other hand, if you plan to add more providers later or want everything under one roof, a cloud manager can save you from installing a client per service. Many guys single out CloudMounter as the go‑to option. For multiple personal accounts people often end up using the web interface or separate OS user profiles for the extras, since the native client doesn’t cover multiple personal logins. Whatever path you pick, run a real test first: pick a 1–2 GB folder with mixed file sizes and try copying, opening and deleting so you see how responsiveness and indexing behave. Also be careful when moving shared folders between accounts—links and version history can behave differently—so copy a few important folders first and confirm permissions before doing bulk moves.One specific thing to watch out for is file timestamps. When you move files between accounts ( regardless of the method), the "Date Created" usually resets to the moment of transfer.
It can really mess up your sorting if you rely on dates to organize your work files. I learned that the hard way after migrating a bunch of project folders.Thank you for your suggestion!
- Dell_Dropbox
Community Manager
"and not lose share permissions when moving files between accounts."
Welcome to the community flymenta. I can't speak to the broader conversation of cloud managers, but in regard to the quoted section:
Sharing permissions generally will not carry over if you move or copy files from one Dropbox account to another, since they become new items under a different owner. If you need collaboration to stay intact, the safest approach is to work in a shared folder instead of transferring files between accounts.
