Protect your Zotero library of citations and PDFs by backing it up in one of two ways:
- Zotero Sync Zotero gives each user 300MB of free file storage. Citations take up very little space. but PDFs, snapshots, and other attachments take up quite a bit of space. Syncing with Zotero and paying for more storage space from Zotero is highly recommended. Zotero Groups sharing PDFs must use Zotero sync.
- Cloud Storage Rather than storing copies attachments in Zotero, keep or move attachments to Dropbox, Box, Google Drive or other cloud storage using Linked File Attachments and setting up Zotero's Linked Attachment Base Directory feature. Step by step guide for linking Zotero to Dropbox from Princeton
Caution: linked attachments cannot be used for Group Libraries
No matter which option you choose, the free Zotfile plugin is recommended to manage your attachments: automatically rename, move, attach PDFs (or other files) to Zotero items, and managing linked attachments easier by automatically moving attachment files to a designated folder as you import them.
Not recommended options for managing storage
- Frequent, regular Zotero back-ups to an external hard drive are a necessity if you choose not to sync or store attachments in the Cloud.
- WebDAV is a standard protocol for transferring files over the web. It's third-party cloud storage, and there are both free and paid options. Once you have a WebDAV account info, enter the URL provided by the service, your username and password in the Sync preferences tab. Specify whether or not you are using secure WebDAV (https). If you don't know, you can simply try both options, but your service provider should be able to tell you. After entering the information, click “Verify Server”. If Zotero successfully verifies the WebDAV account, you're all set to use file syncing via WebDAV. Zotero sync works with correctly installed WebDAV servers.