# The honest trade-off of P2P file transfer

Source: https://help.strongfolder.com/en/blog/honest-trade-off-of-p2p/
Updated: 2026-11-05

> The trade-off of P2P file transfer: the sender's tab must stay open until the recipient finishes, because the files come from the sender's device, not from a stored copy. In return there is no upload wait, no copy on a server and no size cap from the service. When you can't stay online, a cloud link is the better tool.

Every product makes a trade-off somewhere. Ours is written on every how-to page of this help
center, and I would rather say it loudly than hide it in small print. The trade-off of P2P
file transfer is this: **when you send files with StrongFolder, your browser tab has to stay
open until the recipient finishes downloading.** This post is about why we accepted that,
when it is the wrong deal for you, and how to make it painless when it is the right one.

## What exactly does P2P ask of you?

One thing: stay online. StrongFolder sends files directly from your browser to the
recipient's browser over WebRTC. Nothing is uploaded in advance. Files are never uploaded to or stored on a StrongFolder server.

That means your device is the only source. If you close the tab, put the laptop to sleep or
lose your Wi-Fi, the source disappears and the transfer stops. The link works while the sender keeps sharing. When the sender clicks Stop Sharing or closes the tab, the files are no longer available.

The same goes for the other side: if the recipient's computer falls asleep, they stop
receiving. A direct transfer is a short appointment between two devices, and both have to
show up.

## Why did we choose it anyway?

Because the alternative — keeping a copy on our servers — is exactly what creates the
problems I started StrongFolder to fix.

- **No upload wait.** With a stored-copy service, the recipient can't start until your upload
  has finished. Upload 50 GB at 50 Mbit/s and that is 50 × 8,000 ÷ 50 = 8,000 seconds — about
  2.2 hours — before the link is even ready, and then the recipient's download comes on top.
  With a direct transfer, the download starts the moment the recipient opens the link.
- **No stored copy.** There is no file on a server to leak later and no retention period to
  read about. To be precise about what we do keep: To create the link, the service keeps transfer metadata: file and folder names, sizes and the number of files.
- **No size cap from us.** Storage costs money, which is why storage-based services cap file
  sizes or charge for larger ones. We don't store, so we set no limit.
  No size limit set by StrongFolder. The practical limits are free disk space on the recipient's device, connection speed, and how long both devices stay online.
- **Folders stay folders.** Folders are sent as folders: subfolders and file names are kept, nothing is zipped.

There is also a point people often miss: **a cloud link asks you to stay online too — during
the upload.** The real difference is whose schedule you depend on. With a cloud upload you
are online for the upload and then free to leave; with P2P you are online for as long as the
recipient is downloading. If the recipient opens the link right away, the time you spend
online is about the same — but the data travels once instead of twice.

## When is a cloud link the better tool?

I want this help center to be useful, not just persuasive, so here is where I would not use
StrongFolder myself:

| Situation | Better tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You leave in ten minutes and the files are a few gigabytes | A transfer service that stores a copy | Upload once, close the laptop, the recipient downloads later |
| The recipient is in another time zone and will download tomorrow | A cloud drive link | The copy waits for them on the server |
| Many people need the files for weeks, with previews and comments | A cloud drive or project platform | Shared access and browsing, not a one-off delivery |
| Long sends from a phone | A computer, or a cloud app | Mobile browsers pause pages in the background |
| Terabytes over a slow upload, recipient in the same city | An external drive | 2 TB at 20 Mbit/s is 800,000 seconds — more than nine days |

If one of those rows describes your situation, a stored copy is the right trade-off and
you should take it. The full comparison is in [P2P vs cloud file
transfer](https://help.strongfolder.com/en/guides/p2p-vs-cloud-file-transfer/), and [WeTransfer
alternatives](https://help.strongfolder.com/en/compare/wetransfer-alternatives/) lines up the services side by side.

## How do I make staying online painless?

For everything else — the recipient is ready now, the files are big, you'd rather not
upload them anywhere — staying online is mostly a matter of preparation:

1. **Do the math first.** Size in GB × 8,000 ÷ your **upload** speed in Mbit/s = seconds.
   20 GB at 100 Mbit/s is about 27 minutes; 120 GB at 50 Mbit/s is about 5.3 hours. Real
   transfers run somewhat slower because of overhead, so add a margin. On many home
   connections the upload number is far lower than the download number — check it with
   any speed test.
2. **Plug in.** Battery-saving modes are more aggressive about sleep.
3. **Turn off sleep, not the screen.** A dark screen is fine; sleep stops the transfer. On
   Windows, set sleep when plugged in to *Never* for the session (or use the free PowerToys
   Awake). On a Mac, run `caffeinate -i` in Terminal until the transfer ends.
4. **Keep the tab active.** In Chrome, open Settings → Performance → *Always keep these
   sites active* and add `strongfolder.com`, so Memory Saver never deactivates the tab.
5. **Use a cable.** Wi-Fi is fine for a few minutes; over several hours an Ethernet
   connection is simply more stable.
6. **Pause competing uploads.** Cloud backup, photo sync and video calls share the same
   upload bandwidth.
7. **Agree on a time window** with the recipient, and split very large sends into a few
   folders. If something drops, you only redo one batch.

Step-by-step settings for Windows, macOS and browsers are in [Why the sender stays
online](https://help.strongfolder.com/en/guides/why-sender-stays-online/).

[Send files now](https://strongfolder.com)
## Is the trade-off worth it?

For the transfers StrongFolder was built for — a finished video for a client, a project
folder for a colleague, a photo archive for family who are waiting for it — I think it
clearly is. Keeping a tab open for an hour is a small price for no upload wait, no copy on
someone else's server and no limit on size.

For the cases in the table above, it isn't, and I'd rather you use the right tool than the
wrong one with our name on it. If you hit a situation where the trade-off hurts and none of
the tips help, write to me at [info@strongfolder.com](mailto:info@strongfolder.com) — that is
exactly the kind of feedback that shapes what we build next.

## FAQ

### Can the recipient download after I close my laptop?

No. The link works while the sender keeps sharing. When the sender clicks Stop Sharing or closes the tab, the files are no longer available. If the recipient will download later, use a cloud drive or a transfer service that stores a copy.

### Does the StrongFolder tab have to stay in the foreground?

On a computer, a background tab keeps sending as long as it is open and the computer is awake. On phones, browsers often pause pages that go to the background, so keep the page on screen or send from a computer.

### What if several people download at the same time?

One link can be opened by several recipients; each downloads directly from the sender. Simultaneous downloads share your upload bandwidth, so each one runs slower than a single download would.