Dropbox and the Calibre library

[halloleo]

Hi there

I'm just starting out with Calibre for my PDFs and ePUBs, mainly to serve them over OPDS.

I am aware that the library structure of Calibre is set in stone. (Thanks for the Stick thread about this. :-) ) However for some uses I want my PDFs and ePUBs to be accessible via Dropbox as well.

Can I place the Library in Dropbox and let Dropbox sync the whole structure to the cloud and other computers? Is this save if on the other computers/devices I only read-access the content files (PDFs and ePUBs)? So I won't change book content, mangle with the database or change the folder structure. - Is this save to do?

Many thanks for pointers!

[BetterRed]

You'll get different takes on this

I maintain a mirror of my libraries on OneDrive, they are synchronised daily using the GoodSynch software, I backup all my data that way. Its pretty safe because it runs as a Windows Shut Down event - I never leave calibre (or anything else) running when I Shut Down.

BR

[Sirtel]

My Calibre library is in Dropbox and I use it with my laptop and my Surface tablet. BUT there are several caveats with this scenario.

NEVER have the Dropbox running while Calibre is open (pause syncing before you open Calibre). NEVER have Calibre open on two computers at once. Run the Library Maintenance regularly. Conflicted copies do creep in.

You should do things in the following order:

Pause Dropbox
Open Calibre
Do what you need
Close Calibre
Resume syncing
When syncing is done, quit Dropbox
Start Dropbox on the other computer
When syncing is done, pause it
Open Calibre
Do what you need
Close Calibre
Resume syncing
Quit Dropbox

If you ignore those steps, you'll end up with a corrupted library in no time.

[stumped]

or play safe and put a COPY of the library into dropbox. Use sync utilites set to one way (mirror) to keep it in sync with local library.

[halloleo]

Thanks for all the advice!

The Dropbox quitting mojo sounds too fiddly to me.

So mirroring the books into Dropbox seems to be the way to go...

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by stumped

or play safe and put a COPY of the library into dropbox. Use sync utilites set to one way (mirror) to keep it in sync with local library.

Originally Posted by halloleo

The Dropbox quitting mojo sounds too fiddly to me.

So mirroring the books into Dropbox seems to be the way to go...

Yep. This is the safest way to do it particularly since you only need one-way sync, anyway.

Even on the "client" computers, I'd recommend copying the library from Dropbox to another folder and using the non-Dropbox copy with Calibre.

P.S. Of course, if you don't use Calibre on the "client" computers and are just viewing the EPUB and PDF files directly, no need to create extras on the clients.