{"id":79609,"date":"2018-01-03T07:57:23","date_gmt":"2018-01-03T15:57:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/?p=79609"},"modified":"2025-12-11T13:30:04","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T21:30:04","slug":"newbie-cloud-storage-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/newbie-cloud-storage-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"12 B2 Power Tips for New Users"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"B2
\nYou probably know that B2 is Backblaze\u2019s fast and economical general purpose cloud storage, but do you know everything that you can do with it?<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a B2 newbie, here are some blazing<\/span> power tips to help you get the most out of B2\u00a0Cloud\u00a0Storage<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Are you a B2 expert or developer?
\nWe have some expert power tips<\/a> for you, too.<\/div>\n
\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

1 \u00a0\u00a0 Drag and Drop Files to B2<\/p>\n

Use Backblaze\u2019s drag-and-drop web interface to store, restore, and share B2 files.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

2 \u00a0\u00a0 Share Files You Have in B2<\/p>\n

You can designate a B2 bucket as private or public. If the bucket is public and you\u2019d like to share a file with others<\/a>, you can create and copy a Friendly URL and paste it into an email or message.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

3 \u00a0\u00a0 Use B2 Just Like Any Other Drive<\/p>\n

Use B2 just as if it were a drive on your computer \u2014 drag and drop files and folders, save files to it \u2014 using one of a number of integrations that let you mount B2 as a volume in your Windows or Macintosh file system (Mountain Duck<\/a>, ExpanDrive<\/a>, odrive<\/a>). Pick the files you want to save, drop them in a desktop folder, and they are automatically saved to B2. See B2 on Your Desktop \u2014 Cloud Storage Made Easy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

4 \u00a0\u00a0 Drag and Drop To and From B2 from the Desktop, Too<\/p>\n

Use Cyberduck<\/a>, a B2 integration partner, to drag-and-drop files to and from B2 right from the Windows or Macintosh desktop.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

5 \u00a0\u00a0 Determine the Speed of your Connection to B2<\/p>\n

You can check the speed and latency of your internet connection between your location and Backblaze\u2019s data centers, and see how much data you could theoretically transfer in a day, at https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/cloud-backup\/resources\/speedtest<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

6 \u00a0\u00a0 No Matter What Type of Data you Have, B2 Can Handle It<\/p>\n

You can transfer any type or amount of data to B2 from any device that can connect to the internet, including Windows, Macintosh, Linux, servers, mobile devices, external drives, and NAS.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

7 \u00a0\u00a0 Get Your Files from B2 by Mail<\/p>\n

You have a choice of how to receive your data from B2. You can download data directly or request that your data be shipped to you<\/a> via FedEx.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

8 \u00a0\u00a0 Back Up Your Backups to B2<\/p>\n

You can automatically back up your Apple Time Machine backup or Windows backup to a NAS and then back that up to B2<\/a> to give you both local and cloud backups for a 3-2-1 backup solution<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

9 \u00a0\u00a0 Protect Your B2 Account with Two-Factor Verification<\/p>\n

You can (and should) protect your Backblaze account with two-factor verification<\/a> (such as using an app on your smartphone), and you can use backup codes and SMS verification in case you lose access to your smartphone.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

10 \u00a0\u00a0 Preview Photos Stored on B2 from the Web<\/p>\n

Preview your photos<\/a> as thumbnails (and optionally download individual photos) in common image formats (including jpg, png, img, tiff, and gif) with the B2 web interface.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

11 \u00a0\u00a0 B2 Has Group Management, Too<\/p>\n

Backblaze Groups<\/a> works for B2, too \u2014 just like Backblaze Personal Backup<\/a> and Business Backup<\/a>. You can manage billing, group membership, and control access using Group Management<\/a> in your Backblaze account dashboard.<\/p>\n

\"Backblaze<\/div>\n

12 \u00a0\u00a0 B2 Integrations Make B2 More Powerful and Useful<\/p>\n

There are over 30+ software and hardware integrations that make B2 more powerful. You can visit our integrations page<\/a> to find a solution that works for you.<\/p>\n

Want to Learn More About B2?<\/h3>\n

You can find more information on B2 on our website<\/a> and in our help pages<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You probably know that B2 is Backblaze\u2019s fast and economical general purpose cloud storage, but do you know everything that you can do with it?<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a B2 newbie, here are some blazing<\/span> power tips to help you get the most out of B2\u00a0Cloud\u00a0Storage<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133,"featured_media":79878,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[16,7],"tags":[291,468,390,372],"class_list":["post-79609","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-backblaze-tips-tricks","category-cloud-storage","tag-b2","tag-b2cloud","tag-nas","tag-power-tips","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA Newbie's Guide to Cloud Storage: Tips and Best Practices<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you\u2019re an absolute newcomer to the B2 game, you might not know how to use it most effectively. 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Here are the best tips and tricks to get more out of B2.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/newbie-cloud-storage-guide\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage & Cloud Backup\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/backblaze\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-01-03T15:57:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-11T21:30:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/tips-for-b2-beginners.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1440\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"820\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Roderick Bauer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@rodbauer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@backblaze\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Roderick Bauer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"A Newbie's Guide to Cloud Storage: Tips and Best Practices","description":"If you\u2019re an absolute newcomer to the B2 game, you might not know how to use it most effectively. 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He was a Ford-Mozilla Fellow in Media and Democracy with Common Cause in Washington, D.C., where he advocated for a free, open, and accessible internet for all, reducing media consolidation, and transparency in politics and the media.","sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/rodbauer"],"url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/author\/roderick\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/tips-for-b2-beginners.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79609","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/133"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79609"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79609\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}