ResearchOS/Wiki

Box

Box Drive streams files on demand. Mark the ResearchOS folder Available Offline so it stays on disk.

Install Box Drive

Download Box Drive from box.com/resources/downloads. You need the desktop client running. The web interface at box.com is not enough. ResearchOS needs the desktop app because that's what creates the local filesystem folder you point ResearchOS at.

Share the lab folder

  1. One member creates an empty folder inside their Box account (e.g., LabName-ResearchOS). The folder can live anywhere under All Files.
  2. Right-click the folder in Box Drive (or open it on box.com) → Share. Invite lab members by email with Editor access. Co-owner works too if you want them to be able to re-share.
  3. Each invited member accepts the invite. The folder appears under their Box Drive mount on disk (see "Where the folder lives on disk" below).

Make it Available Offline (every member, every laptop)

Box Drive streams files on demand by default, so the folder shows up as a placeholder until you open something. ResearchOS reads directly from disk, so anything still cloud-only breaks. You need to mark the lab folder as available offline on every laptop.

  1. Open File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (macOS) and navigate to the shared lab folder under your Box mount.
  2. Right-click the folder. In the context menu, choose Make Available Offline (Windows) or Available Offline (macOS). A green check icon replaces the cloud icon on the folder and on every file inside it.
  3. Wait for Box Drive's menu-bar / tray icon to report "All files up to date" before opening ResearchOS. Large labs can take a while on the first sync.
  4. Open ResearchOS, click Link Folder, and pick that shared folder.

Where the folder lives on disk

  • Windows: under %USERPROFILE%\Box (e.g. C:\Users\you\Box).
  • macOS: under ~/Library/CloudStorage/Box-Box/ on recent macOS versions, or ~/Box on older installs.

Common pitfalls

  • Files revert to cloud-only. If a colleague opens the shared folder's properties and chooses Free up space, the folder switches back to streaming and ResearchOS can't read it. Re-run Make Available Offline.
  • Conflict files. If two members edit the same file while offline, Box creates a copy named filename (Conflicted copy …).json next to the original. Delete the conflicted copy in Finder / Explorer. ResearchOS only reads the canonical name.
  • Collaborator vs. owner storage. Shared folders on Box count against the folder owner's quota, not each collaborator's. Pick someone with enough quota (usually the lab's primary Box account) to own the folder.
  • Single sign-on re-auth. University Box accounts on SSO occasionally drop the Box Drive session and stop syncing without an obvious error. If files stop updating, open Box Drive's menu-bar / tray icon and confirm you're still signed in.

Box documentation