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Moving Out of Box: Graduation, Job Change, or a Closing Account

Move out of Box when the account closes

Box accounts disappear more often than people expect. A university closes graduating students' accounts.[1] A job hands you a departure date. A business stops paying for Box and the admin deletes the account on a schedule. One day the files are there, the next they are a support ticket.

The shape is consistent. Someone with a few hundred gigabytes in Box gets the deadline, asks around for the easiest way out, and the advice comes back as sign up for Google Drive or buy an external drive.[2] Both answers assume a manual download and re-upload, and neither one moves a folder tree. The tooling for the actual job is missing, and that is the job Blober is built for.

The manual route is a download-and-reupload chore

Section titled "The manual route is a download-and-reupload chore"

To move a Box account by hand you download each folder from the web client, then upload it to the new home. Box's web downloads are the hard part: select several files and Box builds a zip that takes a long time to prepare and can time out.[3] Then you are re-uploading the same data, which doubles the bandwidth you spend and the time you lose.

An external drive only helps if you have one, if it is big enough, and if you do not mind the data passing through it before it reaches its real destination.

Blober moves the folder tree, not a flat pile

Section titled "Blober moves the folder tree, not a flat pile"

Blober reads Box through the API and writes each file to the destination you choose, so the structure you see in Box is recreated where the files land:

  • pick Box as the source and pick the destination, which can be Google Drive, pCloud, a local disk, an external drive, a NAS, or an S3-compatible bucket;
  • the folder tree is rebuilt at the destination, so you are not left with one flat pile of files;
  • you can preview the selection and the destination paths before you run anything;
  • transfers resume on their own, so a dropout does not restart the account;
  • no browser zips, no temporary external drive, no script.

Connect Box, connect the destination, and run a workflow with Box as the source.

If your account has a deletion date

Section titled "If your account has a deletion date"

Give yourself room to check the result. The practical sequence is:

  1. run the transfer with the account still open;
  2. open a sample of files at the destination, especially the folders that matter most, and compare file counts between the two sides;
  3. only then close or forget the Box account.

Keep the old account until you have confirmed the copy. A deadline is exactly the situation where a resumable, per-file transfer beats a browser session.

Frequently asked questions

Section titled "Frequently asked questions"

Do I need an external drive to move out of Box?

No. Blober sends files from Box to the destination directly. A local or external drive is just one of the destination options, not a required stop.

Does the folder structure survive the move?

Yes. The folders you select in Box are recreated at the destination.

Can I go from Box to Google Drive, pCloud, or a NAS?

Yes. Any of those can be the destination in the same workflow.

What about Box file size limits?

You can transfer the files your Box account can hold. The limits that apply are your plan's terms, not a Blober restriction.

What if the transfer drops partway through?

Resume the task. Files already transferred stay done and the rest continue.

How do I verify the move before the account closes?

Open a sample of files at the destination and compare file counts for the folders you care about. Keep the Box account until you are satisfied.

Is there a subscription or per-GB fee?

No. Blober is a one-time purchase with a lifetime license.

Get Blober

Section titled "Get Blober"

Blober runs on Mac, Windows, and Linux. No subscription, no transfer fees, no per-GB cap.

Download Blober at blober.io

pCloud Uploads Are Slow. The Client, Not the Service, Is Usually Why.

pCloud uploads are slow because of the client, not the service

Slow pCloud uploads are routinely blamed on pCloud. The bottleneck is usually the desktop client, not the service. There are two paths into pCloud, and they behave very differently.

Where the slowness usually comes from

Section titled "Where the slowness usually comes from"

The pCloud desktop client, the thing that mounts a P: drive and syncs folders, does a lot of work per file. It stages uploads through a local cache, so the final stage of an upload touches disk on your machine.[1] It serializes work, so small files queue up and take a long time.[2] And it does not always recover cleanly, so people end up reinstalling it and testing their connection while the real cause sits in the app.[3]

The same account and the same connection produce two very different results depending on which path the bytes take. The client path crawls. The API path runs at the speed your connection allows.[4]

That split is why the common workaround is to zip a folder first, upload the one big file, then unzip it in the cloud. It is a workaround for the client's behavior with many small files, not for the service.

The API path is the fast path

Section titled "The API path is the fast path"

pCloud exposes a normal API. Files upload over it with a single request, and the API does not carry the client's cache or serialization. Terabyte-scale libraries move over that path at full connection speed. It is the same route Blober takes.

What Blober does differently

Section titled "What Blober does differently"

Blober is a desktop app, but it does not use the pCloud client or the P: drive mount. It talks to the pCloud API directly, without the command line:

  • you pick the source and destination in a file browser instead of typing rclone flags;
  • each file uploads as its own request with progress shown;
  • a file that fails on a transient error (pCloud returns 4xxx for throttling and 5xxx for temporary failures)[5] is retried automatically;
  • completed files stay done when a task is interrupted, so a dropped connection does not restart the whole job.

The guide on connecting pCloud covers the authorization, which takes seconds because Blober ships the public app keys.

What Blober does not change

Section titled "What Blober does not change"

Two limits stay honest. If pCloud is throttling a specific account or a busy network path, no tool changes that, and Blober does not pretend otherwise. And pCloud has no resumable upload for a single large file, so a multi-gigabyte file that fails retries from the start of that file.[6] The difference is that the rest of the task is untouched and the same file does not fail silently in a queue while you wait.

If uploads from the pCloud client have been the problem, try a Blober workflow before you abandon the plan. The files you are trying to upload will tell you whether the service or the client was the slow part.

Frequently asked questions

Section titled "Frequently asked questions"

Does Blober make pCloud upload faster?

It removes the desktop client's cache and serialization, which is the reported bottleneck. It does not override server-side throttling, so results depend on the account and the connection.

Do I still need to zip folders before uploading?

No. Zipping was a workaround for the client. Blober sends the files as they are.

What happens if a file fails mid-upload?

Blober retries the file and keeps the task going. Files already uploaded stay uploaded. A single large file that fails starts over because pCloud has no resumable upload, but nothing else in the job is redone.

Does Blober use the pCloud Drive cache on my disk?

No. It streams through the API, so it does not fill the local cache the desktop client uses.

I have a lifetime plan. Does that matter for uploads?

No. Blober connects to the account either way.

Is this the same as rclone?

The upload path is the same idea. Blober is the part rclone is not: a visual app where you browse both sides, build the workflow, and watch progress without editing a config file.

Get Blober

Section titled "Get Blober"

Blober is a one-time purchase with a lifetime license. No subscription, no transfer fees, no per-GB cap. It runs on Mac, Windows, and Linux.

Download Blober at blober.io

Treat pCloud Like an Archive, Not a Sync Drive

Treat pCloud like an archive, not a sync drive

pCloud is good at one thing and risky at another. The split matters more than the product marketing does, and it is worth being clear about which side you are on.

The good part is the archive. The use that works is treating pCloud like a cloud external drive: keep RAW photos, music libraries, documents, and other files off the laptop's SSD, upload them, and leave them there. It is a sensible use, and a lifetime plan makes it a good deal.

The risky part is sync. The failure reports people file follow a consistent pattern. Someone edits a file on one device while another device still holds the old version. The stale version syncs back and overwrites the newer work, and the person does not find out until it is gone. pCloud's own support tells people not to edit application-specific files directly on the pCloud Drive (P:) and to keep them in a local working folder instead.[1]

The danger is not pCloud the archive. It is treating the sync drive as a place to edit live files. pCloud sync does not always flag a conflict, name a conflicted copy, or tell you it happened. You only find out after the old version has overwritten the new one.[2]

Use pCloud as an archive, and back up to it deliberately

Section titled "Use pCloud as an archive, and back up to it deliberately"

The safe pattern is to keep pCloud as a destination you write to, not a drive you edit on. You decide what goes up, you see it go up, and you can verify the result. That is a copy operation, not a sync operation.

Blober fits that pattern exactly. It is a transfer tool, not a sync client. You pick a source folder, pick a pCloud folder, run the workflow, and the files land in pCloud with per-file progress and resume. Nothing syncs in the background, and nothing overwrites a file you did not ask to touch.

The pCloud guide shows the setup, which takes seconds because the app ships the public app keys.

Keep a second copy

Section titled "Keep a second copy"

There are two reasons a single pCloud account should not be your only copy.

The first is traffic. pCloud ties download traffic to plan size, so a large account can hit the limit fast if you pull data back down repeatedly.[3] If pCloud holds the only copy of your photos, every restore is a download against that cap. A second copy somewhere else means you only download from pCloud when you actually need to.

The second is the account itself. Accounts get revoked, plans lapse, support tickets sit for days, and pCloud has publicly handled account cancellations for policy reasons.[4] None of that has to be fatal if the files also live somewhere you control.

Blober mirrors an archive to another place in the same kind of workflow. Copy a pCloud folder to a local disk, a NAS, or a second cloud, and the pCloud copy stops being a single point of failure. The 3-2-1 rule of thumb applies here the same way it does everywhere else: one cloud account is one copy.

What Blober is not

Section titled "What Blober is not"

Blober does not do two-way sync, and it does not claim to. If you want live multi-device editing with conflict handling, you want a product built for that. Blober is for the deliberate jobs: fill the archive, organize it while it moves, keep a second copy, and leave pCloud as the safe archive it was bought to be.

Frequently asked questions

Section titled "Frequently asked questions"

Can I edit files directly on the pCloud drive?

pCloud's own guidance is to edit in a local working folder and sync after. Editing application or database files on the P: drive is where the data loss cases come from.[5]

What is the pCloud download traffic cap?

pCloud ties monthly download traffic to plan size on many plans. Blober cannot change that limit, which is why the practical answer is a second copy so you rarely need to download from pCloud at all.

Is my pCloud lifetime plan enough as my only copy?

A single account is a single point of failure, no matter how it is billed. Blober can keep a second copy on local storage, a NAS, or another cloud.

Does Blober sync my folders both ways?

No. Blober does deliberate copy and move workflows with visible progress and resume. It does not watch folders and reconcile changes in the background.

Can Blober copy from pCloud to a local drive or NAS?

Yes. pCloud works as a source in the same way it works as a destination. Select the folder, pick the local or NAS destination, and run it.

Get Blober

Section titled "Get Blober"

Blober is a one-time purchase with a lifetime license. No subscription, no transfer fees, no per-GB cap. It runs on Mac, Windows, and Linux.

Download Blober at blober.io

Transferring GoPro Footage to iCloud Drive on a Mac

GoPro footage transferred to the iCloud Drive folder on a Mac

Copying GoPro footage to iCloud Drive

Section titled "Copying GoPro footage to iCloud Drive"

You can transfer GoPro footage into the iCloud Drive folder on a Mac, and blober will mark the task complete with every file written. It is a reasonable option when you want the footage available across your Apple devices or viewable from iCloud.com. The main thing to understand is that iCloud Drive is a cloud folder, not an ordinary local one, so a few behaviors are worth knowing before you start.

What to expect

Section titled "What to expect"

When you choose iCloud Drive as the destination, blober writes the files to a folder at a hidden path (~/Library/Mobile Documents/com~apple~CloudDocs). Finder shows that folder in the sidebar as iCloud Drive. The files are real and appear on iCloud.com, but they do not show up in Home, Documents, or Downloads. Depending on your storage settings, macOS may keep only a cloud copy and download the file to the disk only when you open it.

How Optimize Mac Storage works

Section titled "How Optimize Mac Storage works"

macOS can remove the local copy of an iCloud Drive file and keep only the version in iCloud. With the Optimize Mac Storage setting on, it does this automatically when the internal disk runs low, starting with the files you have not opened recently.[1] The file is not deleted, it is re-downloaded the next time you open it.

You control this per file or folder in iCloud Drive. Choose Keep Downloaded to pin an item so macOS does not remove its local copy. It applies per device, and choosing it on a folder keeps the whole folder and anything you add to it local.[2] Choose Remove Download to free space on purpose, deleting only the local copy while the file stays in iCloud.

This is separate from the iCloud Photos optimize setting, which keeps smaller versions of photos and videos on the device and the originals in the cloud.

Finding the files after the transfer

Section titled "Finding the files after the transfer"
  1. Open iCloud Drive in Finder and look for the folder that mirrors your source. For a GoPro copy that is usually a date folder (such as 2025-12-01) containing HERO12 Black/videos/ and HERO12 Black/photos/.
  2. Check iCloud.com while signed in, under iCloud Drive.
  3. Search from the terminal to confirm the files exist and locate them:
    Terminal window
    find "$HOME/Library/Mobile Documents/com~apple~CloudDocs" \( -iname "*.MP4" -o -iname "*.JPG" \) 2>/dev/null
  4. To keep real local copies, right-click a file or folder and choose Download Now or Keep Downloaded.

Not sure the transfer worked? Test with a normal local folder

Section titled "Not sure the transfer worked? Test with a normal local folder"

If you want to check that blober transferred everything correctly, run the task again to a normal local folder such as Desktop or Downloads, then look for the files there:

Terminal window
find "$HOME/Desktop" \( -iname "*.MP4" -o -iname "*.JPG" \) 2>/dev/null

If the files show up on the Desktop, the transfer is fine and the earlier confusion was just iCloud Drive hiding the files, not a failed copy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Section titled "Frequently Asked Questions"

Why can't I find my files after the transfer? iCloud Drive is a cloud folder, so files you just transferred do not appear in the usual local spots. They are still there. Open iCloud Drive in Finder, or sign in at iCloud.com and look under iCloud Drive.

The files show a small cloud icon. What does that mean? The file is in iCloud but not downloaded to the disk yet. macOS offloads local copies to save space, usually only when the internal drive runs low. To keep a local copy, right-click and choose Keep Downloaded or Download Now.[3]

How do I stop macOS from offloading my footage? Right-click the folder or files in iCloud Drive in Finder and choose Keep Downloaded. This pins them so the local copies stay even when the disk is low. It applies per device, and pinning a folder keeps everything in it, including files you add later.[4]

I removed the local copy. Are the files gone? No. The Remove Download option deletes only the downloaded copy and keeps the file in iCloud. Choose Download Now to bring it back to the disk.[5]

The task finished, but one file is missing on iCloud.com. Uploading can lag. Large files upload over time, and a photo can trail a video even though blober wrote both at the same time. Watch the small info icon next to iCloud Drive in Finder for progress and give it a few minutes.

Will my GoPro footage fit in iCloud storage? You get 5 GB free, and GoPro files are large, so the account can fill up and syncing stalls.[6] Check used space in System Settings under Apple Account, then iCloud, before a big transfer, and free room or upgrade if needed.

If I save to Desktop or Documents, is that a local copy? Not always. macOS can sync your Desktop and Documents folders into iCloud Drive. If that toggle is on, a file saved there lives in iCloud and can be offloaded. Check System Settings under Apple Account, then iCloud, then Drive, for the Desktop & Documents Folders switch.

Will my photos go into the Photos app? No. iCloud Photos keeps media in the Photos library, while files in iCloud Drive stay as files. Your JPGs stay in the Drive folder and do not join the Photos app on their own.

Does iCloud support all GoPro formats? Apple's published list covers HEVC, MP4, and JPEG, but not GoPro's GPR RAW or 360 project formats.[7] If your camera uses an unusual format, test a real sample before moving a whole library.

Other folders to use for a local copy

Section titled "Other folders to use for a local copy"

If you want the footage stored physically on the Mac, pick a folder that is not synced to iCloud. Turn off the Desktop & Documents Folders switch in System Settings under Apple Account, then iCloud, then Drive, or use a folder outside those two. Desktop, Documents, and Downloads work well once they are not synced. Otherwise, move the files out of iCloud Drive after the transfer.

Section titled "Related Guides"

Get Blober

Section titled "Get Blober"

Blober is the only desktop app that connects to GoPro Cloud and moves your footage where you want it. One-time purchase, no subscription, no per-GB fees.

Download Blober at blober.io

How to back up OneDrive to Backblaze B2

Backing up OneDrive directly to Backblaze B2

OneDrive is good at keeping files available across your devices. It is not a separate backup. A deleted folder, a compromised account, or a bad sync can reach every device connected to the same account.

Backblaze B2 gives you a copy outside Microsoft's ecosystem. Blober can now read OneDrive through Microsoft Graph and write those files directly to B2, so you do not need to download the whole library first.

Why the desktop folder is a poor backup source

Section titled "Why the desktop folder is a poor backup source"

OneDrive Files On-Demand keeps online-only files as placeholders on your disk. They look like ordinary files in Finder or File Explorer, but the content stays in Microsoft's cloud until something opens the file.

That saves disk space. It also means a backup tool that reads only the local OneDrive folder may see a placeholder instead of the file itself. The usual workaround is to select "Always keep on this device" and wait for OneDrive to download everything. For a large account, that can take hours and may not fit on the computer at all.

Blober avoids the local folder. It requests each file from OneDrive through Microsoft Graph, then streams it to Backblaze B2 through your computer. Files On-Demand does not enter the path.

Why use B2 for a OneDrive backup

Section titled "Why use B2 for a OneDrive backup"

The useful part is separation. Your working files stay in OneDrive, while the backup lives under a different provider and account. B2 also uses S3-compatible object storage, which suits archives that you expect to keep longer than you actively edit them.

This transfer copies files and folders. It does not reproduce Microsoft sharing permissions, version history, comments, or recycle-bin contents.

How to copy OneDrive to Backblaze B2

Section titled "How to copy OneDrive to Backblaze B2"
  1. Connect Microsoft OneDrive in Blober.
  2. Connect Backblaze B2 with your key ID, application key, and bucket.
  3. Create a workflow with OneDrive as the source and B2 as the destination.
  4. Choose the OneDrive folder and the destination path in your bucket.
  5. Start the workflow and keep Blober open until it finishes.

Blober recreates the folder structure in B2. The data passes through the computer running Blober, but it is not staged as a second full copy on disk.

What the OneDrive connection can see

Section titled "What the OneDrive connection can see"

Blober reads the signed-in user's default OneDrive. That includes ordinary files and folders in "My files." It does not include "Shared with me," SharePoint or Teams libraries, OneNote notebooks, Personal Vault, or shortcuts to another drive.

If a shared file must be part of the backup, first download it and upload it to your own OneDrive as an ordinary file. An "Add shortcut to My files" shortcut is still a reference to another drive, so Blober skips it.

Frequently asked questions

Section titled "Frequently asked questions"

Do I need to mark every OneDrive file "Always keep on this device"?

No. Blober reads the cloud copy through Microsoft Graph rather than backing up the local OneDrive sync folder.

Does the transfer need free disk space equal to my OneDrive library?

No. Files stream through the computer running Blober and are not stored there as a complete intermediate copy.

Is Backblaze B2 a full OneDrive clone?

No. It receives the files and folder structure. OneDrive permissions, links, comments, version history, and deleted items do not transfer.

Can Blober include files shared with me?

Not from OneDrive. Microsoft's old "Shared with me" Graph endpoint is deprecated, requires broader access to read remote items, and will stop returning data after November 2026. Blober keeps the narrower Files.ReadWrite permission and reads only the signed-in user's drive.

Section titled "Related guides"

Get Blober

Section titled "Get Blober"

Move your OneDrive files to Backblaze B2 without first filling your disk.

Download Blober at blober.io