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Hi,


I switched to Box because of the much larger free space but I'm considering either switching back or looking for another option because of the way Box seems to handle files.


If I understand correctly, there's no way to access my local files on my Windows laptop if Box isn't running, and if I uninstall it then all my local files will be removed. This is quite scary compared to the way Dropbox works where an existing folder is shared with Dropbox and if Dropbox is not running or is uninstalled I can still access those files.


I feels like I only really have my files in one location - the Box cloud. And that's not a happy situation because I'd like to have a backup.


Basically my needs from this type of app are two-fold: first, to access (read/write) files remotely from other devices; second, to have a backup of them. Perhaps I need to look for two separate solutions.


Am I missing something? 

Hi Nick, 


Welcome to the Box Community, I'm happy to help!


There are two separate desktop applications in Box that gives you the ability to access Box content from your desktop environment: Box Sync and Box Drive.


Although Box Drive has nearly all of Box Sync’s capabilities -- including the ability to work offline, it is true that the app needs to running in order for you to access your files and yes, if you uninstall the app, your local files will be removed as well. That said, we suggest to use Box Sync instead which is still supported by Box and may help you achieve your desired goal regarding local file access.


To learn more about using Box Sync, please take a look at the articles on this page: https://support.box.com/hc/en-us/sections/360007552673-Using-Box-Sync 


Hope this helps! Let us know if you have other questions, and if there is any else we can help.


Regards, 

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