We now have many cloud storage services that offers online file storage and synchronization. Previously, there was only one worthwhile contender – Dropbox, but now we have many alternatives to choose from. These services provide different features and different price per GB. You can also take a look at comparison between different online storage services, in which we covered in detail about how these services differ from each other. If you are already an user of these cloud storage services then here’s a tutorial on how to assign drive letters to Google Drive, Dropbox, SkyDrive and SugarSync. Don’t worry, the process is very easy and anyone can follow it.
Many of these cloud hosting services create a folder which will be used to sync contents with the cloud. Some also allow you to pick a folder which will be used for syncing with the cloud and also to sync data with other computer and devices connected with it.
These services create shortcuts in My Documents, Desktop or in Favorites folder. No doubt these shortcuts are easy to access, but it would be more convenient to map this folder as a drive which can be accessed from Windows Explorer.
For creating a virtual drive, you can use the “substs” command from the command prompt. But not everyone is comfortable in using this command, therefore a better way is to use a GUI based program. That’s where Visual Subst, a program that runs the subst command comes to the rescue.
How to Map Drive Letter to Google Drive, Dropbox, SkyDrive & SugarSync
- Download Visual Subst. You can download the binary version which is portable, or you can also download the installer.
- Double-click on VSubst.exe. Firstly, select the drive letter from the drop-down menu that you want to assign to your cloud storage and then click on “magnifier” icon to browse to the exact path. Select the exact folder (which be your Google Drive, Dropbox, SkyDrive or SugarSync folder) and then click on “OK”.
- Check mark the box next to “Apply virtual drives on Windows startup” and then hit the green plus button to assign the drive.
- When the drive is assigned, the virtual drive will appear in the Visual Subst list.
That’s all you need to do. Now you can check out your Windows Explorer to see the new drive. Just in case if you want to delete this drive, then select it and then click on the red X button.
This is a very good method to map folders as drives. Those who are more comfortable with drives should try out this method to map various cloud storage services. Basically, this method can be used to map any folder that you are convenient with as a drive.
Also see: Add Google Drive, Dropbox and SkyDrive Shortcut to Right-Click “Send To” Menu
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