Synchronisation over the internet began with FolderShare, acquired with Byte Taxi in 2005, which evolved into Windows Live Sync and then Windows Live Mesh, Ray Ozzie’s pet project back in 2008 when he was Microsoft’s chief software architect. Then there is SyncToy, a free tool that has not been updated since 2009, but which still has fans. Remember Briefcase, a feature of Windows 95 and later, which syncs files between two folders, one of which can be on a removableīriefcase was mostly replaced by offline network shares that synchronise local and server copies, a feature which remains in Windows today.
Microsoft and synchronisation go back a long way.
