Transform your laptop into a desktop docking station.
Transform your laptop into a desktop docking station.
Hello, it's possible to connect a laptop as an external drive for a desktop via USB3.1 or Thunderbolt 3. You might wonder why, given the popularity of ultrabooks with Thunderbolt 3 for external GPUs. The goal is to combine the portability of an ultrabook with the performance of a desktop when connected. The main challenges are: these ultrabooks often have less powerful CPUs than desktops, docking stations can be costly and cumbersome, and external GPU performance may drop. For a similar price, you could get a budget ultrabook paired with a powerful desktop. The real issue is keeping the two devices synchronized, which can be tricky and frustrating. In short, docking your laptop as an external SSD with Windows 10 could solve this problem—so if you have any suggestions, please share. Hopefully, LINUS and ANTHONY can create a video about this concept!
You can't. The system would need to boot in some special mode which make the drive accessible via USB. But here is an idea: You can network share folder to share the drive or folder(s) on your laptop, so that it is accessible on your desktop. On your desktop you can just access that folder which would give you access to the laptop files. You can go a step further and create a map network drive on your desktop from that laptop shared network folder. This means, on your desktop, you can have a drive called, say, Z:\ (or whatever letter you want that is not used already) that you'll see in "This PC" in file explorer Just double click on it, like any other drive and access you laptop content that way.
GoodBytes, thank you for your feedback. I understand the points you raised about differences between apps and settings on laptops versus desktops, as well as the limitations of file sharing. It’s not the best approach, but it’s a significant improvement over syncing through OneDrive or external drives. Could you set up a Linux distribution like GParted on your laptop? This would allow you to treat the laptop’s SSDs as an external hard drive. With dual-booting—Windows 10 on one SSD and Linux on the other—you could restart the laptop into dock mode (simulating the Windows hard drive), then switch to the desktop and boot from the external SSD. Would that work for your needs?
Isn't this more complicated than it should be? Besides network folders, there are software options for file syncing across platforms. I'm confused about the purpose of starting desktop hardware from a laptop SSD. You could achieve the same with a USB 3 external drive or flash drive. USB 3 remains the main limitation for transfer speeds.
I believe you're focusing too much on details while ignoring some facts. Online sync apps perform well as long as you have a reliable internet connection. There are many good options available. I prefer pCloud since it offers more storage than DropBox, and it supports both Windows and Linux clients. You can sync devices on a local network without needing internet, though this is similar to setting up shared folders. Without either, you're limited. It seems you're missing the bigger picture, which is making it harder to find practical solutions. Also, switching between different hardware from the same drive can cause issues—drivers are necessary each time you change systems. If this is too complicated and you prefer not to risk data loss, consider a NAS.
I prefer manual backups with FreeFileSync. I’d like to try Resilio Sync instead. Setting up a private WiFi connection is a good idea, even without regular internet access. Resilio Sync can also sync files over the internet, not just within a LAN. However, that premium feature isn’t active yet for me.