Free Online Storage With Box.net

Box.net - Online Storage Options

There are many options for storing your data in the cloud. Box.net is one of the leading solutions for business and enterprise customers. The company boasts that 82 percent of the Fortune 500 (over 100,000 companies) use Box.net. But the business-oriented Box also offers free online storage and paid services for individuals as well.

A basic free Box.net account for one user comes with 5 GB of storage space, and an individual file size limit of 25 MB. You can think of online storage as a hard drive in the cloud. If you travel, and need access to important files while you're away from home or office, a service like Box saves you the hassle of loading your stuff to a flash drive, CD, or a laptop - all of which can be lost or stolen.

You can securely store and sync files on Box with any type of device: desktop or laptop computer, iPad, iPhone, Android phone or tablet, Blackberry, etc. Share a file with someone else by emailing a link to its Box.net location. You can also give friends, family, or co-workers access to your Box folders.

If collaborating with a group of people is important to you, Box has the ability to send real-time updates that will let you know when someone else has viewed, edited or commented on your file. The latest version of the file will always be there in your Box.net folder, eliminating one of the biggest hassles of workgroup collaboration.

Upgrades for Personal and Business Users

If you need more space and more generous file size limits, Box.net offers two options. For $9.99 per month, you get 25 GB of space with up to 1 GB per file. $19.99 gets you 50 GB and 1 GB per file. But even paid personal accounts don't include features aimed at business users.

Advanced features include things like password-protected sharing, accelerated uploading, full-text search of stored files, document version history, and Google Apps integration. Box.net has plans designed for small businesses and enterprises.

The small business plan costs $15 per user per month, and supports 3 to 500 users. Each account gets 1 TB (that's 1000 GB) of storage space with a 2 GB limit per file. Enterprise plans are negotiable; they come with enhanced administration features and unlimited storage and file sizes.

Enterprise-oriented Box.net features include an administrative console that provides very fine control over permissions and sharing privileges, detailed auditing, and lots of reporting options. Encrypted storage is also part of the Box.net enterprise package, as is telephone support.

No matter which you choose, a free account or the upgraded commercial options, Box is a secure online storage solution. SSL with 256-bit encryption is used when files are transmitted between your computer and the cloud, and files are stored with 256-bit AES encryption. Box monitors their servers and network with constant intrusion detection and penetration testing, to prevent any unauthorized access.

Not The Only Whale in the Fish Tank

Other free online storage services include DropBox, Google Docs, SkyDrive and Mozy. See my related articles Should I Use Free Online Storage? and Free Online File Sharing With Dropbox to learn more about these options.

Box.net is popular among the Fortune 500, but it's not the largest cloud storage service in terms of user accounts. Microsoft's Sharepoint boasts over 100 million users. DropBox claims 45 million users, while Box.net says it has about 8 million. But Box.net has attracted over $168 million in venture capital, and a lot of buzz in the trade press.

For consumers seeking free online storage, Box.net has little to offer that other cloud storage companies don't. But in the business and enterprise markets, Box.net is an up-and-coming contender you should consider.

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