People often ask me who StrongFolder is actually for. The honest answer: anyone whose files are too big for e-mail and chat, who would rather not upload them somewhere first, and whose recipient is ready to download now. That is still abstract, so here are four large file transfer use cases, each with what people typically did before and what changes with a direct transfer.
How does a wedding videographer deliver 120 GB?
The delivery: a finished film in two resolutions, a highlights reel and a folder of
original camera footage the couple wants for their archive — about 120 GB in a folder tree
like Film/, Highlights/, Raw/Camera A/, Raw/Camera B/.
Before: the usual route is an overnight upload to a cloud drive, a link the next day, then a second long wait while the couple downloads. Storage plans fill up after a few weddings, so old projects have to be deleted or paid for. The other route is a USB drive by post or in person — reliable, but days away.
With a direct transfer: the videographer shares the folder from the studio computer, and the couple starts downloading as soon as they open the link — no upload to finish first. At 100 Mbit/s upload, 120 GB takes about 9,600 seconds, roughly 2 hours 40 minutes; at 50 Mbit/s, about 5.3 hours. The studio computer stays plugged in, on a cable, with sleep turned off. The folder tree arrives exactly as it was, at full quality.
What to watch: the couple needs well over 120 GB of free disk space and Chrome, Edge or Opera on a computer to save the whole folder. A branded USB drive as a keepsake is still a nice touch — a direct transfer replaces the waiting, not the gift. More in How to share large video files.
How does an architecture studio send a Revit project folder?
The delivery: a host Revit model with linked structural and MEP models, CAD links and images — say 6 GB in a few thousand files — for an outside consultant.
Before: zip everything, upload the archive, send a link. The consultant unzips into a different folder, a few links break because they pointed to absolute paths, and an afternoon goes on relinking. Each revision adds another archive to someone's drive.
With a direct transfer: the studio packages the project with eTransmit for Revit into a folder, which copies the host model and its linked files and rewrites the paths, then sends that folder as it is. Folders are sent as folders: subfolders and file names are kept, nothing is zipped. At 50 Mbit/s upload, 6 GB takes about 16 minutes, and nothing waits on a server afterwards.
What to watch: for a workshared model, send a detached copy, never the central file. For daily collaboration on the same model, a shared project platform is the better tool; a direct transfer is for handing over a package. The details are in How to send CAD files.
How does an indie game developer share a 30 GB build with testers?
The delivery: a playtest build — executable, data folders and libraries — of about 30 GB, for five testers who should all have it today.
Before: upload the build to a cloud drive (hours on a home connection), post the link, and watch the drive quota disappear by the third build. Or set up a branch on a distribution platform, which is the right move for public demos but heavy for a quick internal test.
With a direct transfer: one link in the testers' chat. One link can be opened by several recipients; each downloads directly from the sender. The catch is upload bandwidth: if all five start at once on a 100 Mbit/s upload, each gets roughly 20 Mbit/s, and 30 GB at 20 Mbit/s takes about 12,000 seconds — 3.3 hours for everyone. One tester at a time gets the build in about 40 minutes. Staggering the start, or sending overnight from a desktop that stays on anyway, keeps the wait short.
What to watch: builds won't start if a folder is missing, which is exactly why keeping the structure matters. For public demos and regular patches, platforms such as Steam playtests or itch.io handle updates while you are offline. Share only builds you own. See How to share game files.
How does a family share scanned photos with relatives abroad?
The delivery: decades of family photos, scanned at high resolution and sorted into folders by year — say 25 GB and several thousand files — for relatives in another country.
Before: chat apps compress photos and cap file sizes, shared albums ask everyone for an account and storage space, and burning discs to post abroad takes weeks. Often the archive simply never gets shared.
With a direct transfer: the family agrees on an evening that works in both time zones, both computers stay awake, and the relatives open the link in Chrome. At a 20 Mbit/s home upload, 25 GB takes about 10,000 seconds, a little under three hours — a long film's worth of waiting, done once. Every scan arrives in its original quality, inside its year folder. The same full-quality principle applies to photographers' RAW files: How to send RAW photos.
What to watch: if the grandparents will download "sometime next week", a shared cloud album is kinder — a StrongFolder link only works while you keep sharing.
What do these large file transfer use cases have in common?
Four different people, one pattern:
| Wedding film | Revit project | Game build | Family archive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Size | ~120 GB | ~6 GB | ~30 GB | ~25 GB |
| Shape | Folder tree | Linked files | Folder that must stay intact | Folders by year |
| Recipient ready now? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, at an agreed time |
| Time at 50 Mbit/s upload (one recipient) | ~5.3 h | ~16 min | ~80 min | ~67 min |
The files are big, they are folders rather than single files, and the recipient is ready. That is where skipping the upload, keeping the structure and leaving no copy on a server pay off. 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.
It is not every case. When the sender can't stay online, when files must stay available for weeks, or when people need to preview and comment, a cloud link wins — see P2P vs cloud file transfer. More scenarios, from teachers to developers, are on the use cases page.
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If your situation looks like none of these, I'd like to hear about it at info@strongfolder.com.