DropFiles on Cloud with OneDrive Integration

If you’re anything like us, you probably have files scattered across different devices. You might also use a cloud service, such as OneDrive, to share files with your Joomla! collaborators. Whereas before you had to bring files over from OneDrive into your Joomla! blog, Dropfiles is now making copy-pasting files a thing of the past.

In recent times, we have been rolling out updates to WordPress that allow you to access all your OneDrive files straight from WordPress and from WP Media Folder. Now, JoomUnited’s latest offering also brings the cloud directly to Joomla! thanks to DropFiles.

One of Microsoft’s creations, OneDrive is one of the most popular cloud hosting services in existence. Just like other similar tools, OneDrive allows you to backup files for safekeeping, and access them from anywhere. More importantly, OneDrive allows you to easily share files with colleagues, which is one of the main reasons why DropFiles now allows you to access your OneDrive files directly from Joomla!

The benefits of using OneDrive with DropFiles are many. For starters, the inclusion of OneDrive follows in the steps of the integrations with Google Drive and Dropbox, allowing for two-way synchronization between DropFiles and OneDrive. And setting it up is a breeze!

Setting Up OneDrive with DropFiles

All the OneDrive connection settings reside in the cloud connection tab in DropFiles’ configuration page. The setup itself is a short, one-time process using Microsoft’s Application Registration Portal. Two different fields need to be filled in: the Client ID and the Client Secret. You can obtain both by creating a Microsoft application.

Among other uses, Microsoft applications help you link Microsoft’s services with other systems, and that is the exact reason why we will be using them. All of Microsoft’s applications can be managed in the Application Registration Portal, so head there and click on the add an app button to kickstart your integration.

In the first screen, pick a name for your application and your contact email, then press the create button to head to the next page. Already, the Client ID is given in the form of the Application ID just below the application name.

In this page, two sections are of particular importance to us - the application secrets and platforms categories. The former gives us the sought-after Client Secret, whereas the latter allows us to designate the purpose of the application we’ve just created.

To retrieve the Client Secret, press on the generate new password button. Make sure that you copy and store the resulting code in a safe place, because you will not be able to retrieve it later.

The last step in Microsoft’s Application Portal is to click on the add platform button and select web as a platform. In the resulting section, add your Joomla! blog’s administration panel URL as a redirect URL. Then, save changes and head back to the DropFiles configuration page.

In the configuration page, insert the Application ID into the Client ID field, and the generated password into the Client Secret field. In addition to the basic connection settings, you can also specify the synchronization method and the synchronization periodicity.

The synchronization periodicity allows you to specify the number of minutes between each synchronization. A longer periodicity means that changes to files and directories will be delayed, giving you time to fix any mistakes that you make. Save changes and then press the connect button to start using DropFiles.

Using OneDrive with DropFiles

Similarly to Google Drive and Dropbox, OneDrive integration changes nothing about the DropFiles workflow. For all intents and purposes, the setup you just completed made OneDrive a natural extension to Joomla!

In fact, if you head to the DropFiles component, you will notice new categories with cloud icons next to their names. You’ve guessed it - categories such as these represent folders in your OneDrive account.

Anything stored in these categories—not only files but directories too—will also be available on OneDrive. Similarly, if you modify cloud directories or their contents on OneDrive, those modifications will also be reflected on Joomla!

Best of all, the synchronization happens automatically. While Dropfiles offers the option to synchronize your Joomla blog with your OneDrive folder every few minutes or hours, the plugin also permits push notifications. In short, with push notifications the plugin reflects the changes as soon as they happen.

A file’s best location is right at your fingertips. Cloud services such as OneDrive ensure that files are available wherever you are. With the latest update, DropFiles powers up Joomla! to bring you the files that you need, exactly when you need them, and fully organized.