The Knowhow
- What is the Briefcase?
- Setting up the Briefcase for the first time
- How do I get the Briefcase drive on my PC or Mac?
- Do I need an internet connection to use the Briefcase drive?
- How to add files to the Briefcase through the desktop software
- How to add files to the Briefcase through the web portal
- How to access the Briefcase
- Deleting Briefcase files
- How to recover a deleted file
- Converting local files to online files
- Converting online files to local files
- Copying files from Backup to the Briefcase
- How do I find out how much space I have left?
What is the Briefcase?
The Briefcase allows you to share files with different devices and computers as well as allowing you to edit them through the web portal. Any changes made to files in the Briefcase do not sync back to the original location of the file. Files you place in the Briefcase can be viewed and downloaded online, but you can also choose to store them locally (which can be useful if wanting to work offline).
If you store them as local files, a physical copy of the file will be placed in a drive on your computer; this is normally called the L drive. Local files will be in full colour and have the original file extension/type. If it's only an online file it will have a .ld extension and a reduced file size, so it doesn't take up space on your hard drive.
With Briefcase you can also:
- Keep up to 30 versions of a file on the Livedrive servers, so if an important file is accidently saved over you can go back to a previous version
- View your Briefcase and upload images from any smartphone or tablet through the Knowhow™ Cloud app
- Set it up so when a file is changed on one computer it will automatically be updated across all other computers linked to your Knowhow™ account
Setting up the Briefcase for the first time
When you install the Knowhow™ Cloud software on your computer, you will be taken through the setup process. During setup, you will be prompted to enable or disable Briefcase. If you choose not to enable at this time, you can always do it at a later date.
To enable Briefcase on a Windows computer:
- Go to Start > Programs > Livedrive and open the Livedrive Control Panel
- Select the Services tab and place a tick next to Livedrive Briefcase
- Press Apply, then OK
To enable Briefcase on a Mac:
- Click on the Livedrive icon (on the top toolbar), then Preferences...
- Select the Services tab and place a tick next to Livedrive Briefcase
When you enable the Briefcase, a pre-synchronisation check will run. This check matches your Briefcase files to those stored on the servers, keeping everything up-to-date.
How do I get the Briefcase drive on my PC or Mac?
The Briefcase drive is normally shown on your computer as the L drive. To get the Briefcase drive, you need to either activate your Knowhow™ Backup & Share account or install the desktop software on your computer(s). For more help on doing this read our article on, setting up your cloud account.
Do I need an internet connection to use the Briefcase drive?
You need an internet connection to set up Knowhow™ Cloud, but not to access files and folders from the Briefcase (L:) drive.
If you go offline, for example when you're travelling or in a meeting - you can keep working offline. You can also access the files stored to your Knowhow™ Cloud; any changes you make will be synced the next time you connect to the internet. You can change your settings through the Livedrive desktop software under Online Files.
How to add files to the Briefcase through the desktop software
When you drag and drop files to the Briefcase, these files will be copied to your computer's hard drive. If you want to add files without also adding them to your computer's hard drive, you must:
On a Windows computer:
- Select the files / folders you want to add to the Briefcase
- Right-click on one of the selected files
- Go to Livedrive > Copy to Livedrive Briefcase
- A screen will appear, click Next then Finish
On a Mac:
- Select the file(s) you wish to upload into your Briefcase
- Click on the Livedrive icon (on the top toolbar) and then go to Selected Files > Copy to Briefcase
- Select Next or click on Select to choose a different location
Your file will now be uploaded to the Briefcase, or will be placed in the queue. To check the status of your transfers, go to the Livedrive icon and then Status.
How to add files to the Briefcase through the web portal
If you don't have access to the desktop client and want to upload files directly to the Briefcase:
- Login to your Knowhow™ Cloud Account
- Select the Briefcase tab and choose Upload
- A new window will appear; click on Upload Files
- Select the file(s) you want to add then click Open
The file(s) will now start uploading. As the files are uploaded directly to our servers, they will be downloaded to your desktop Briefcase the next time the client software connects to Livedrive (provided you have setup Briefcase on your computer).
How to access the Briefcase
The Briefcase can be accessed from your computer or through an internet browser.
Windows Users:
- Right-click on the Livedrive icon (bottom right of the toolbar next to the time/date)and select Open Briefcase in Explorer
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Alternatively, you can view your Briefcase folders from your internet browser:
- Right-click on the Livedrive icon (in the bottom right corner of the toolbar) and select Web Portal
- Open your browser and go to: www.livedrive.com/login
Mac Users:
- Select the Livedrive icon near the date/time on the top toolbar and choose Open Briefcase in Finder
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Click on the Livedrive Briefcase icon on the desktop
If you cannot find the desktop icon, you can check if it is enabled by going to:
Livedrive icon > Preferences > Services > Show Livedrive Briefcase on desktop
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Alternatively, you can view your Briefcase folders from your internet browser:
- Click on Livedrive icon > Web Portal
- Or, open your browser and go to: www.livedrive.com/login
Deleting Briefcase files
Briefcase files can be deleted through the web portal and the desktop software:
Web Portal
- Login to you Cloud Account
- Select the Briefcase tab
- Go to the file you want to delete and click on the arrow in the top right-corner
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Click Delete
- When asked if you're sure, click Yes
Desktop Software
Windows
- Right-click on the Livedrive icon at the bottom right of the toolbar
- Select Open Briefcase in Explorer
- Right-click on the file and select Delete
- Select Yes to confirm deletion
Mac:
- Click on the Livedrive icon and then Open Briefcase in Finder, or from the desktop click on the Livedrive Briefcase icon
- Select the file you want to delete
- Press CTRL + click mouse and then Move to Trash
How to recover a deleted file
You can only undelete a Briefcase file within 30 days of the deletion date. After this time the file is removed from the Livedrive servers.
To undelete a file from Briefcase:
- Go to www.livedrive.com/login
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From the Briefcase tab, click View Options > Show Deleted Files
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The deleted file(s) will appear in the folder they were located in before deletion; they will have a greyed out icon in the top left corner as shown below:
- Click on the arrow on the deleted file and select Undelete
- When asked if you're sure, click Yes
Your file will now be restored and will also be downloaded to your desktop Briefcase.
Converting local files to online files
The steps below will show you how to change local files to online files on a Windows computer or a Mac. This can be done manually or you can configure your Briefcase to automatically store all future files online only. You can learn more about the differences between local and online files in the What is Briefcase? section.
On a Windows machine:
- Go to the (L:) drive, located in My Computer
- Select the file/folder, or to select all files press CTRL + A on your keyboard
- Right-click on one of the selected files
- Go to Livedrive > Do not keep a copy on my computer
To change the settings so future files are only stored online:
- Go to Start > Programs > Livedrive and launch the Livedrive Control Panel
- Select the Online Files tab
- Change your settings to: Just store my files online and then manually choose which files to store on my computer
- Click on Apply and then OK
Note: This will stop new files added by other machines from being downloaded to your computer. Also, once the files have been removed from your hard drive, they can't be accessed offline.
On a Mac:
- Select the file(s) in Briefcase
- Click on Livedrive icon > Selected Files > Do Not Keep On This Mac
Note: To view these files, you will need to double-click to download them.
If there are existing files in the Briefcase, these will need to be converted manually. The automatic configuration will only start working from the time you set it up.
- Click on the Livedrive icon, then Preferences...
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Select the Online Files tab and choose Just store my files online
Converting online files to local files
The steps below will show you how to change online files to local ones from a Windows machine or a Mac; this can be done manually or you can configure your Briefcase to automatically store all your files locally. You can learn more about the differences between online and local files in the What is Briefcase? section.
On a Windows machine:
- Go to Start > Programs > Livedrive and launch the Livedrive Control Panel
- Select the Online Files tab
- Click on Automatically store all my files on my computer as well as storing them online
- Click Exceptions and make sure there are no options selected
- Press OK to close the new window
- From the Livedrive Options screen click Apply, then OK
Changing these settings means your files will be stored on your computer as well as being in the cloud, which can take up significant hard drive space. If your hard drive starts getting overburdened, visit our section on converting local files to online files.
On a Mac:
- Select the online file(s) in the Briefcase (they will have a .ld extension)
- Click on Livedrive icon > Selected Files > Keep On This Mac
Alternatively, you can double-click on an online (.ld) file and it will download to your Briefcase and be stored as a local file.
To enable all files to be automatically stored locally and online:
- Click on Livedrive icon > Preferences...
- From the window that appears, select the Online Files tab and then choose Automatically store all my files on my computer and online
Copying files from Backup to the Briefcase
- Login to your Cloud Account
- Select the Backup tab and go to your chosen file
- Click on the arrow in the right-corner of the file and select Copy to Briefcase
How do I find out how much space I have left in my Briefcase?
If you login to the web portal and select Account Settings you will be shown the amount of used space and free space. The properties of the Knowhow™ Briefcase always mirror your computer's hard drive, so you know how much space you have left over.
Running out of hard drive space on your PC? Read the section on how to convert local files to only be online.
