KEIBIDROP and Syncthing

A full copy on every device, or a folder you open.

By Marius-Florin Cristian · 2 September 2026

Syncthing keeps a full copy of the folder on every device, so every machine needs room for all of it. KEIBIDROP mounts the folder instead and a read pulls only the bytes it touches, so a large project costs nothing on disk until you open something in it.

Side by side

KEIBIDROPSyncthing
Disk used on the second machineOnly what you openA full copy
Time before you can workImmediate, it mountsAfter the sync finishes
Open a file without copying the folderYesNo
Both peers onlineRequiredNot required
Many devicesTwo per shareA fleet
AccountNoneNone
EncryptionEnd to end, X25519 with ML-KEM-1024End to end, TLS
Source codeOpen, MPL-2.0Open, MPL-2.0

A large folder costs nothing until you open it

KEIBIDROP mounts the other machine's folder as a folder on yours, and a read pulls only the bytes it touches, so a whole shoot takes no disk on the second machine until someone opens a take. Syncthing replicates the folder to every device that joins it.

You work immediately

The mount appears and the tree is browsable straight away, so there is no wait for a first sync to finish before anyone can open anything.

Existing tools work unchanged

The mount is a real filesystem, so Premiere, Resolve, Blender, grep and git open a path on it the way they open a local one.

Limits

Common questions

Does KeibiDrop copy the whole folder?

No. It mounts the folder and a read pulls only the bytes it touches, so disk on the second machine grows with what you open. Syncthing keeps a full copy on every device.

Do both machines have to be online?

Yes. A KeibiDrop share joins two machines that are both running, where Syncthing catches up whenever a device comes back.

How many devices can join?

A share joins two machines. Syncthing is built for a fleet of them.

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