Windows My Briefcase folders were a very convenient way to keep files in sync between multiple computers or a computer and an external drive like a USB stick or hard drive in the past. My Windows Briefcase is a function designed to work with the files in either of the two locations and then synchronize all the changes with a single click. In this way, there is always a backup of the files and it was also easy to work on multiple computers.
But My Windows Briefcase no longer exists. A very useful feature that has been removed from Windows 10 since OS build 14942. We can no longer access this tool but, luckily, we have options and alternatives to replace it and achieve something similar in current versions of Windows.
In the first versions of Windows 10 it was possible to activate My Briefcase by creating a folder with the name Briefcase. {85BBD920-42A0-1069-A2E4-08002B30309D}, but nowadays this no longer works so we have to find an alternative. And as usually happens in these cases, the alternative goes through third-party software that fulfills the function. In this case, the FreeFileSync program as we will explain in the next few paragraphs.
Microsoft decided to withdraw this function due to the appearance of more modern alternatives that allow you to easily work with files in several locations, either with the online version of Office or with Google Docs that allow several people to work in real time or using clouds to store the files. files such as OneDrive, Dropbox, Box or any other cloud that synchronizes files in various locations automatically and through the Internet.
But although the reality is that many people prefer to use more modern options than the classic My Briefcase, users who miss this option and that is why I want to recommend an alternative to the function that Windows previously incorporated natively.
Specialized programs: FreeFileSync
FreeFileSync is software that has a similar function to My Briefcase, keeping two folders in sync. In addition, this software offers other more advanced features such as the possibility of applying rules, excluding files from synchronization, etc, etc … Once downloaded from its official website and installed on the PC, the way to use this application is very simple.
The first thing is to create a sync or backup job. To do this, you must click on the New button in the upper left corner of the application window, assign it a name and then select the source folder of the data in the central part of the application.
Once done, you must select the destination folder for the copy on the right side. This folder can be on the same drive, on a network drive connected to the computer or on a different drive (another partition, an external hard drive, a USB stick, cloud …).
Now click on the Compare button and the program will start to analyze the source and destination files. When finished, arrows will appear in the middle of the screen that will indicate the status of each file . The green arrow means that the file will be updated, the green arrow with the + symbol that the file is new and will be synchronized for the first time, the = that there are no changes and does not need to be copied, etc, etc …
Once you have reviewed how the synchronization will be carried out, the last step is to click on the Synchronize button and then confirm that you want to start it at that moment. The software will get to work. When finished, it will alert you that the process has finished and all files are synchronized.
As you can see, it is a very easy to use application that can easily replace My Briefcase . In addition, you can also use it to make backup copies of another type and it even has more advanced options such as the possibility of scheduling tasks to run every so often or synchronization with cloud services, among others.
Cloud storage
We may already be quite clear what My Briefcase was for: it allows us to have files synchronized between several computers. And today, if you think about it, it’s something we do almost without wondering how. It can be done easily with cloud storage programs that synchronize documents or files between various devices. Not only do you get synchronization between two specific computers, but you can basically access your documents from any computer in the worldwith an Internet connection, from a mobile phone, from a tablet … There are many storage options in the cloud depending on the space we need or the use we are going to give it. Some of the most common are Dropbox, Google Drive or MEGA and they allow us to have a series of gigabytes uploaded to the Internet to access from anywhere.
Another completely recommended alternative if what we want to have are synchronized documents is to use the Google suite, practically identical to Office in functions and in interface. We can have all our text documents, files and spreadsheets associated or linked to our Google account and it is enough to log in from any computer or mobile phone to access. In addition, as you well know, it will not simply allow you to access it, but Google sheets allow us to work collaboratively with colleagues from the university, office, etc. Everyone can contribute their ideas or edit the same document.
Symbolic links
Another of the best alternatives to My Windows Briefcase is to create symbolic links. Especially if you want to synchronize between documents or folders on your computer and documents or folders on the hard drive or pendrive. It allows to make automatic backups without worrying about making them manually. A file that is in two different locations is synchronized so that you never lose the information or do not have to be aware of copying and pasting.
To create the files or symbolic links, follow these steps:
- Press Win + R on your computer keyboard
- Type system32 and hit enter to confirm
- Open System32
- Search CMD
- Run as administrator
Write the routes to create the codes as you see in the attached image.
Mklink / D “path where we want to create the link” “file source path”
