I’m tracking ways to create a simple personal cloud – mycloud – mydata. So a post about Lima caught my attention. Lima will allow you to access all your files from anywhere. Imagine all data files on your computer being available now on your phone or tablet or device of your choice. iCloud doesn’t do this. Other services don’t necessarily offer encryption, or will cost you more to execute. Lima has had a successful launch on Kickstarter raising almost $1m so far with delivery planned for December. There’s a number of promises, and performance will depend on your network at home. Lima addresses some key things users like me want…
- Access to mydata everywhere on any device.
- A lower cost mycloud solution than paying for a full hosted cloud solution.
- Hardware under your control and security and privacy controlled by you.
Even just on media files this could be useful. I’m currently using iCloud and iTunes Match on approx 140gb of music to get my music anywhere. That costs $25/year for limited utility. Dropbox costs more etc. Lima will cost nothing, after you’ve bought the hardware.
Moreover, Lima claims to provide the opportunity to backup your data to a second Lima – for eg. at work rather than the home. SA dual Lima system could substitute for TimeMachine although without the same history timeline function. Where I’m less certain is what happens when I use FileVault and encrypt all the content off my Mac and/or use TimeMachine? Is it still accessible and what level of security?
here’s how Lima works: you plug your router into the little adapter, as well as one or multiple USB drives. After that, you launch the app on your computer and then everything will go through Lima thanks to a deep filesystem integration. All your files will be moved to those drives and available on all your devices, at home or away. The only limit of this Dropbox alternative is the amount of storage space you have on your USB drives. via Dropbox Alternative Lima (Née Plug) Works With Chromecast, Breaks Into Kickstarter Tech Top 10
I suspect many devices like Lima will emerge. One observation, hot Kickstarter projects are quickly copied. There’s an increasing interest in hosting your own cloud, and making it as simple as adding a home router and WiFi network, must be the longer term goal. I suspect the next generation of home routers from Netgear etc. begin to address this need.