Livedrive for Busines (which begins at $50 per month for three users and two terabytes or TB of storage) is an entry-level business cloud storage product.
It also offers a business-class data backup service as well as file syncing and sharing between business users.
For transferring data, Livedrive for Business has native clients available for Apple MacOS and Microsoft Windows 10.
For those using other operating systems (notably Linux, for which there is no native client at this time), there's support for File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Secure FTP (SFTP), and Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV).
A free 14-day trial is available from their website.
Overall, this is a decent, entry-level product.
But collaboration, document editing, and sharing oddities, combined with some vagueness around its security capabilities, keep it behind Editors' Choice winners Microsoft OneDrive for Business and Egnyte Business in this roundup, for now.
As a cloud-based business backup tool, Livedrive for Business also falls short behind Editors' Choice winner Zetta Data Protection, mainly due to a lack of business controls and a higher-than-average price tag.
Livedrive's servers are located in the United Kingdom; the company has focused on providing storage solutions for UK customers that fit within the strict requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which is a European Union (EU) law on data protection and privacy standards requiring personal data remain in the EU.
Livedrive is expanding to other countries in the EU and recently added five languages to its apps and services.
These are Spanish, German, French, Italian, and Dutch to cater to customers in those localities.
For users who have businesses across the pond or who have affiliates or partners in the EU, Livedrive for Business is a notable solution that fits the bill for a GDPR-compliant cloud storage and file sharing solution.
The company also owns and maintains its own servers and hardware, which is a key advantage in providing cohesive service and functionality.
Livedrive is SOC2 self-certified and SOX-compliant.
Editors' Note: j2 Global, the company that owns Livedrive for Business, also owns Ziff Davis and Daxdi.com.
Pricing and Setup
Livedrive for Business comes in two tiers.
A Business Express tier which starts at $50 per month for three users and two TB of storage is ideal for entrepreneurs and startups wanting to cover some of their basic storage and backup needs.
SMBs requiring a larger storage headroom can opt for the second option, which is the Business Standard tier; this drives costs up to $160 per month but it's good for sharing between 10+ users and offers a far larger 10 TB of cloud storage backup.
For the trial period of Livedrive, we opted to test the smaller and more affordable Business Express tier.
Once we entered our name, company information, email address, and password, we were directed to a dashboard page.
Unlike some other Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) cloud storage and file sharing solutions that catapult users into a live dashboard when they sign on, Livedrive pretexts this with an introduction page that explains what the service can do (i.e., backup all the computers in your company, provide employees with a Briefcase to sync files, create team folders, and share files outside the company).
Users will also appreciate the QuickStart Guide that walks them through the finer points of getting the most of the service.
There is also a link to Livedrive's desktop software ideal for sync and backup scenarios.
Once signed in to the web client, there are various links to apps for Microsoft Windows 10, MacOS, iOS, and Android.
We downloaded the Windows 10-compatible file and set it up on our desktop.
Backup Features
Livedrive for Business offers an incremental, file-based backup capability.
Backups are continuous and changes are scanned for once per hour.
Left in its default settings, LiveDrive for Business backs up common desktop system folders, such as Desktop, Documents, Music, and Videos, but you can add others.
Files backed up to the briefcase can be encrypted but it's not entirely clear how this encryption is implemented or where it applies.
Livedrive did not waste any time; it instantaneously started backing up our PC once we installed the desktop dashboard.
While some businesses may want the proactive auto-backup feature, there are likely more users that prefer to determine which files and folders they would want to back up.
Seeing a "Backup in Progress, Your Files are Being Uploaded" message might throw off some users.
Another sticking point is that, while you can see the percentage of files being backed up, there's no indicator of which files or folders are being backed up at the time.
We did value the estimated time remaining indicator as well as the data upload rate being displayed.
There are various controls for managing bandwidth usage and priorities.
If some types of files are more important than others, such as oft-used or critical spreadsheets and documents, then those can be selected to be backed up first.
There is also a handy integrity checker that compares your offline files to the ones stored in the cloud for additional piece of mind.
Versatile Desktop Client
While various Cloud Backup and File Sharing services seem to put their best foot forward in their web clients, Livedrive stands out in the sense that its desktop app seems to be more developed than its web counterpart.
The Livedrive desktop app has sections for Dashboard, Settings, Restore, Support, and Web.
Dashboard is a simple overview of when the last backup was and how much storage space is still available.
Settings shows key folders on the PC which are usually backed up (it is simple to add, remove folders by ticking and unticking boxes).
You can't however, drill down to subfolders to enable or disable individual folders and files, which could be an issue for some users.
It is also easy to manage backup schedules from the Settings section by selecting how often folder should be scanned and by choosing what time of the day to run backups.
The Restore menu has three key source buttons for restoring from a cloud backup, from a briefcase or from team folders.
The Support and Web sections simply kick users over to websites.
For most users, the simplicity and barebones direction of Livedrive's desktop client make it super intuitive and easy to use.
This ease of use is also evident in the Livedrive mobile app (Android and iOS) which replicates most of the features of the desktop client, and makes it easy to backup photos and files from user's mobile device and also preview certain file types.
Collaboration Conundrum
A key ding against Livedrive for Business for some will be that it doesn't offer live document editing features like Dropbox Business, Google Drive Enterprise, and Editors' Choice selection Microsoft OneDrive for Business do.
However, that's not a ubiquitous need for all businesses.
Livedrive for Business does utilize a workable solution with the Team Folders concept, allowing such folders to be synchronized between business users.
Both the web UI and the Briefcase sync client are available for interacting with such shared files.
Version control is available for up to 30 iterations and conflict management is handled in this manner.
It would have been nice to have seen some configurable options for this or unlimited versioning, but it's quite functional and may be the right choice for many users.
Our concern would be that someone saving repeatedly could overwrite previous versions that would eventually have no means of recovery.
Sharing is handled well though, with some minor lapses.
Aside from sharing among internal users, there are two options available.
You can share via a public link or you can share links to a list of email recipients.
The downside is, there isn't a way to apply a password or a maximum number of downloads to shared files like you can with ADrive Business (2.50 Per Month, or $25 Per Year for 100GB at ADrive) , so granting access to external users becomes something of an all-or-nothing proposition.
Mobile apps are also available across the Android and iOS mobile platforms.
Documents and photos can be viewed and opened in supported third-party applications on whatever device is doing the accessing.
Security
Livedrive for Business is an oddity when it comes to security.
The product has encryption in transit through Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), which should be expected of any business-level data sharing app.
But after that, the details start to break down.
Data is supposedly protected at rest by using military-grade, 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption on Livedrive for Business' servers, but Livedrive for Business lacks any guarantee of security.
While the company claims to follow generally accepted standards to protect information, it's not plainly spelled out as it is in competing services, which could make many IT buyers nervous.
While there is nothing saying that their security is bad (in theory, it could be quite good), the company needs to engage in some trust building before it can be accepted as a true business-grade app from a security perspective.
At this point, Livedrive for Business is not a HIPAA Business Associate and would not meet the requirements for storing sensitive healthcare data.
At a minimum, businesses should seek information on standards compliance such as ISO 27001 and SOC that demonstrates a base level of due diligence on behalf of the cloud storage provider.
Permissions can be set as read/write or read-only.
Unfortunately, this is limited to only the team folders.
This eliminates any possibility of setting up permissions on a hierarchy of folders, for instance.
As such, Livedrive for Business can really only be considered for small teams that have read and write access across the board.
One nice feature, however, is that entire feature sets can be enabled or disabled for specific users.
Access to mobile apps, web apps, and the Briefcase desktop client, as well as the ability to add team folders, can all be controlled from the Business Portal.
In the future, it would be nice to see this extend to the other transfer protocols such as File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
In particular, FTP should be restricted since passwords are transmitted in plain text, which is a major security risk.
While the Livedrive for Business team recommends that SFTP be used whenever possible, it's often not practical to enforce this restriction without software controls.
Finally, there's no native multi-factor authentication (MFA) available, which is increasingly becoming a requirement for business-level security as, without it, the potential for a successful hack is much greater.
Many users may need to consider a third-party app that offers connectors to Livedrive for Business as an additional safety measure, which should help with security but also might drive up cost.
Integration and API
At this time, Livedrive for Business doesn't offer a public application programming interface (API), which was another disappointing surprise.
It's unfortunate as there's a lot to gain by plugging into solutions such as Google G Suite or Microsoft Office 365.
Livedrive for Business also doesn't offer any native option for integrating with Microsoft Active Directory (AD), although some third-party directory products, such as OneLogin, offer a Livedrive for Business connector.
For an entry-level solution, this may not be a problem.
But it would be nice to see in the future if the company intends to mature Livedrive for Business into something that's capable of servicing customers at the enterprise level.
Ultimately, while Livedrive for Business has small-team functionality, it fails to deliver a standard of service that justifies the price.
For example, Dropbox Business is priced at $12.50 per user per month while Livedrive for Business averages out to cost $16.66 per month for the Express package, with additional users costing $15 per month for the Standard package.
The lack of integration options and validated security, combined with spotty permissions control, might be problematic for users seeking these features from a business-grade product.
Livedrive for Business is in a unique position for business users in the UK and the EU seeking a business cloud storage and file sharing solution that's compliant with strict GDPR regulations.
Other than this, it's hard to reccomend this product over more powerful and less expensive alternatives from better-known vendors.
Pros
Superb desktop and mobile clients.
Data encrypted in transit and at rest.
GDPR compliant for UK- and EU-based businesses.
The Bottom Line
Livedrive for Business is a UK- and EU-focused cloud storage and file sharing solution with intuitive web, desktop, and mobile clients.
It covers the basic needs of small businesses but lacks deeper collaboration, productivity, and integration features.
Livedrive for Busines (which begins at $50 per month for three users and two terabytes or TB of storage) is an entry-level business cloud storage product.
It also offers a business-class data backup service as well as file syncing and sharing between business users.
For transferring data, Livedrive for Business has native clients available for Apple MacOS and Microsoft Windows 10.
For those using other operating systems (notably Linux, for which there is no native client at this time), there's support for File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Secure FTP (SFTP), and Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV).
A free 14-day trial is available from their website.
Overall, this is a decent, entry-level product.
But collaboration, document editing, and sharing oddities, combined with some vagueness around its security capabilities, keep it behind Editors' Choice winners Microsoft OneDrive for Business and Egnyte Business in this roundup, for now.
As a cloud-based business backup tool, Livedrive for Business also falls short behind Editors' Choice winner Zetta Data Protection, mainly due to a lack of business controls and a higher-than-average price tag.
Livedrive's servers are located in the United Kingdom; the company has focused on providing storage solutions for UK customers that fit within the strict requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which is a European Union (EU) law on data protection and privacy standards requiring personal data remain in the EU.
Livedrive is expanding to other countries in the EU and recently added five languages to its apps and services.
These are Spanish, German, French, Italian, and Dutch to cater to customers in those localities.
For users who have businesses across the pond or who have affiliates or partners in the EU, Livedrive for Business is a notable solution that fits the bill for a GDPR-compliant cloud storage and file sharing solution.
The company also owns and maintains its own servers and hardware, which is a key advantage in providing cohesive service and functionality.
Livedrive is SOC2 self-certified and SOX-compliant.
Editors' Note: j2 Global, the company that owns Livedrive for Business, also owns Ziff Davis and Daxdi.com.
Pricing and Setup
Livedrive for Business comes in two tiers.
A Business Express tier which starts at $50 per month for three users and two TB of storage is ideal for entrepreneurs and startups wanting to cover some of their basic storage and backup needs.
SMBs requiring a larger storage headroom can opt for the second option, which is the Business Standard tier; this drives costs up to $160 per month but it's good for sharing between 10+ users and offers a far larger 10 TB of cloud storage backup.
For the trial period of Livedrive, we opted to test the smaller and more affordable Business Express tier.
Once we entered our name, company information, email address, and password, we were directed to a dashboard page.
Unlike some other Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) cloud storage and file sharing solutions that catapult users into a live dashboard when they sign on, Livedrive pretexts this with an introduction page that explains what the service can do (i.e., backup all the computers in your company, provide employees with a Briefcase to sync files, create team folders, and share files outside the company).
Users will also appreciate the QuickStart Guide that walks them through the finer points of getting the most of the service.
There is also a link to Livedrive's desktop software ideal for sync and backup scenarios.
Once signed in to the web client, there are various links to apps for Microsoft Windows 10, MacOS, iOS, and Android.
We downloaded the Windows 10-compatible file and set it up on our desktop.
Backup Features
Livedrive for Business offers an incremental, file-based backup capability.
Backups are continuous and changes are scanned for once per hour.
Left in its default settings, LiveDrive for Business backs up common desktop system folders, such as Desktop, Documents, Music, and Videos, but you can add others.
Files backed up to the briefcase can be encrypted but it's not entirely clear how this encryption is implemented or where it applies.
Livedrive did not waste any time; it instantaneously started backing up our PC once we installed the desktop dashboard.
While some businesses may want the proactive auto-backup feature, there are likely more users that prefer to determine which files and folders they would want to back up.
Seeing a "Backup in Progress, Your Files are Being Uploaded" message might throw off some users.
Another sticking point is that, while you can see the percentage of files being backed up, there's no indicator of which files or folders are being backed up at the time.
We did value the estimated time remaining indicator as well as the data upload rate being displayed.
There are various controls for managing bandwidth usage and priorities.
If some types of files are more important than others, such as oft-used or critical spreadsheets and documents, then those can be selected to be backed up first.
There is also a handy integrity checker that compares your offline files to the ones stored in the cloud for additional piece of mind.
Versatile Desktop Client
While various Cloud Backup and File Sharing services seem to put their best foot forward in their web clients, Livedrive stands out in the sense that its desktop app seems to be more developed than its web counterpart.
The Livedrive desktop app has sections for Dashboard, Settings, Restore, Support, and Web.
Dashboard is a simple overview of when the last backup was and how much storage space is still available.
Settings shows key folders on the PC which are usually backed up (it is simple to add, remove folders by ticking and unticking boxes).
You can't however, drill down to subfolders to enable or disable individual folders and files, which could be an issue for some users.
It is also easy to manage backup schedules from the Settings section by selecting how often folder should be scanned and by choosing what time of the day to run backups.
The Restore menu has three key source buttons for restoring from a cloud backup, from a briefcase or from team folders.
The Support and Web sections simply kick users over to websites.
For most users, the simplicity and barebones direction of Livedrive's desktop client make it super intuitive and easy to use.
This ease of use is also evident in the Livedrive mobile app (Android and iOS) which replicates most of the features of the desktop client, and makes it easy to backup photos and files from user's mobile device and also preview certain file types.
Collaboration Conundrum
A key ding against Livedrive for Business for some will be that it doesn't offer live document editing features like Dropbox Business, Google Drive Enterprise, and Editors' Choice selection Microsoft OneDrive for Business do.
However, that's not a ubiquitous need for all businesses.
Livedrive for Business does utilize a workable solution with the Team Folders concept, allowing such folders to be synchronized between business users.
Both the web UI and the Briefcase sync client are available for interacting with such shared files.
Version control is available for up to 30 iterations and conflict management is handled in this manner.
It would have been nice to have seen some configurable options for this or unlimited versioning, but it's quite functional and may be the right choice for many users.
Our concern would be that someone saving repeatedly could overwrite previous versions that would eventually have no means of recovery.
Sharing is handled well though, with some minor lapses.
Aside from sharing among internal users, there are two options available.
You can share via a public link or you can share links to a list of email recipients.
The downside is, there isn't a way to apply a password or a maximum number of downloads to shared files like you can with ADrive Business (2.50 Per Month, or $25 Per Year for 100GB at ADrive) , so granting access to external users becomes something of an all-or-nothing proposition.
Mobile apps are also available across the Android and iOS mobile platforms.
Documents and photos can be viewed and opened in supported third-party applications on whatever device is doing the accessing.
Security
Livedrive for Business is an oddity when it comes to security.
The product has encryption in transit through Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), which should be expected of any business-level data sharing app.
But after that, the details start to break down.
Data is supposedly protected at rest by using military-grade, 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption on Livedrive for Business' servers, but Livedrive for Business lacks any guarantee of security.
While the company claims to follow generally accepted standards to protect information, it's not plainly spelled out as it is in competing services, which could make many IT buyers nervous.
While there is nothing saying that their security is bad (in theory, it could be quite good), the company needs to engage in some trust building before it can be accepted as a true business-grade app from a security perspective.
At this point, Livedrive for Business is not a HIPAA Business Associate and would not meet the requirements for storing sensitive healthcare data.
At a minimum, businesses should seek information on standards compliance such as ISO 27001 and SOC that demonstrates a base level of due diligence on behalf of the cloud storage provider.
Permissions can be set as read/write or read-only.
Unfortunately, this is limited to only the team folders.
This eliminates any possibility of setting up permissions on a hierarchy of folders, for instance.
As such, Livedrive for Business can really only be considered for small teams that have read and write access across the board.
One nice feature, however, is that entire feature sets can be enabled or disabled for specific users.
Access to mobile apps, web apps, and the Briefcase desktop client, as well as the ability to add team folders, can all be controlled from the Business Portal.
In the future, it would be nice to see this extend to the other transfer protocols such as File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
In particular, FTP should be restricted since passwords are transmitted in plain text, which is a major security risk.
While the Livedrive for Business team recommends that SFTP be used whenever possible, it's often not practical to enforce this restriction without software controls.
Finally, there's no native multi-factor authentication (MFA) available, which is increasingly becoming a requirement for business-level security as, without it, the potential for a successful hack is much greater.
Many users may need to consider a third-party app that offers connectors to Livedrive for Business as an additional safety measure, which should help with security but also might drive up cost.
Integration and API
At this time, Livedrive for Business doesn't offer a public application programming interface (API), which was another disappointing surprise.
It's unfortunate as there's a lot to gain by plugging into solutions such as Google G Suite or Microsoft Office 365.
Livedrive for Business also doesn't offer any native option for integrating with Microsoft Active Directory (AD), although some third-party directory products, such as OneLogin, offer a Livedrive for Business connector.
For an entry-level solution, this may not be a problem.
But it would be nice to see in the future if the company intends to mature Livedrive for Business into something that's capable of servicing customers at the enterprise level.
Ultimately, while Livedrive for Business has small-team functionality, it fails to deliver a standard of service that justifies the price.
For example, Dropbox Business is priced at $12.50 per user per month while Livedrive for Business averages out to cost $16.66 per month for the Express package, with additional users costing $15 per month for the Standard package.
The lack of integration options and validated security, combined with spotty permissions control, might be problematic for users seeking these features from a business-grade product.
Livedrive for Business is in a unique position for business users in the UK and the EU seeking a business cloud storage and file sharing solution that's compliant with strict GDPR regulations.
Other than this, it's hard to reccomend this product over more powerful and less expensive alternatives from better-known vendors.
Pros
Superb desktop and mobile clients.
Data encrypted in transit and at rest.
GDPR compliant for UK- and EU-based businesses.
The Bottom Line
Livedrive for Business is a UK- and EU-focused cloud storage and file sharing solution with intuitive web, desktop, and mobile clients.
It covers the basic needs of small businesses but lacks deeper collaboration, productivity, and integration features.
