FAQ: Callback Drive for Amazon S3

Content

• What is Callback Drive for Amazon S3?
• What is the difference between Callback Drive for Amazon S3, Callback Drive for SFTP and Callback Drive for AES?
• Is the Personal License really free forever, and what can it be used for?
• What is the difference between "configured drives" and "connected drives"?
• What is "Isolated Drive Management"?
• Can I use versioning and other S3 features?
• What operating systems does Callback Drive for Amazon S3 work on?

What is Callback Drive for Amazon S3?

Callback Drive for Amazon S3 is an application which enables you to use any S3 compatible service as if it were a local disk drive. Callback Drive for Amazon S3 works with Amazon S3, DigitalOcean Spaces, Akamai (Linode), etc. and there is a custom option as well. When Callback Drive for Amazon S3 is started, you access your buckets through Windows Explorer or an application's File menu, just like a regular drive. You work with files and folders as normal. Callback Drive for Amazon S3 is not a sync service, you read and write directly to or from the drive without needing a local copy of the file. This is different than how some other cloud storage applications work.

What is the difference between Callback Drive for Amazon S3, Callback Drive for SFTP and AES Drive?

Callback Drive for Amazon S3 turns an S3 compatible service into a local disk drive. Callback Drive for SFTP does the same, but for an SFTP server, and AES Drive encrypts files on your local drive.

Is the Personal License really free forever, and what can it be used for?

Yes! The Personal License is a free single-user license, and allows for Personal Use of a set of basic features. The Personal License is for a single user, and can be installed on all the machines that user works on, for as long We have other licenses with more advanced features, detailed in Callback Drive for Amazon S3 Feature Comparison.

What is the difference between "configured drives" and "connected drives"?

A "configured drive" is the connection details for a storage location, while a "connected drive" is running and usable. Callback Drive for Amazon S3 can store multiple configurations, but with the Personal License only one drive at a time can be connected. The Standard and Professional licenses allow you to have multiple drives running at the same time.

What is "Isolated Drive Management"?

Windows computers allow more than one user to log on, and some settings can be shared across all user profiles. Sharing configuration settings across all users is the default behavior for the Personal and Standard Licenses. The Professional License allows you to isolate drive configurations on a per-user basis for additional convenience and security. Additional technical details are available in the documentation at Isolated Mode.

Can I use versioning and other S3 features with Callback Drive for Amazon S3?

Yes, but with caveats. All S3-compatible services support a basic set of login, folder and object management commands, which Callback Drive for Amazon S3 utilizes. Different S3 storage providers (especially AWS) may support additional features which Callback Drive for Amazon S3 does not utilize. For example, AWS can transparently encrypt objects at rest using KMS. Enabling this is a best practice, and does not affect Callback Drive's operations, but must be managed via the AWS console or via IaC.

What operating systems does Callback Drive for Amazon S3 work on?

Callback Drive for Amazon S3 is cross-platform and runs on Windows (7 and up) and Linux. The Professional license adds support for Windows Server editions as well (2008 R2 and up).