How to Make Gmail a Free Online Storage Drive

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Make Gmail a Free Online Storage Drive

Every since Google launched Gmail, they've been adding more free storage. Recent counts put the total space over 7GB. An online backup service can be pretty pricey, but if you're feeling adventurous you can actually convert your Gmail to an online backup service! Best of all, it's free.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Mozilla Firefox

Step 1

In order to mimic the upload and download functions of an online backup service, we're going to need the Gspace plug-in for Firefox. There is other software that will do this, but Gspace is cross-platform so it'll work on any system with Firefox installed. You can get it for free from GetGspace.com or by searching the Firefox add-on page.
Step 2

Using Gmail as an online backup service is a little messy, so you're going to want to sign up for a new Gmail account. Don't worry - Google doesn't mind you having several accounts. In fact, you could even sign up for a few extra accounts when you're done to get more storage.
Step 3

Once the plug-in is install and you have your new Gmail account, open Firefox. Go to "Tools" in the menubar and click "Gspace". Click on "Manage Accounts". Enter your email ID and password. Click the "Add" button to add the account to your online backup service list. If you made several accounts, you can repeat these steps to add them as well. Once you're done, click "Close". You'll now be able to select your email address from the drop down menu at the top of the screen...do so and click "Login".
Step 4

The interface works like an FTP program you'd use for a traditional online backup service. Now that you're logged in, you can click "Browse" in the left hand pane to open the "Choose Folder" menu. Use this to navigate to where your files are. When you've found the folder, click the "Open" button.
Step 5

Select item (or items) you want to copy and click the arrow button that points to the right. The transfer will begin. You can see the progress in the lower left hand corner. As with any online backup service, the time it takes to transfer depends on the size of the payload and your internet speed. They can take a while! Once the files are transferred online, you can download them using the arrow pointing left.

Comments

chenderson00 said

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on 7/2/2009 Never knew this. Awesome 5*s and rec. for you!

jennjessop said

on 7/2/2009 I had no clue you could do this with gmail. That is really cool! Great article, was easy to read and very clear instructions. Thanks! 5 stars!