Mountain Duck Version 5 Has New Features and It's on Sale

Mountain Duck is an app that allows you to integrate a variety of remote storage providers directly into Finder without the need for other proprietary software. This gives you the option to "open remote files with any application," just as you can with the ones on your hard drive.

Some key features are:

• Multiple protocols supported: SMB, FTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, etc.
• "Smart Synchronization," where files remain remote until you open them; at which point, it opens and caches them. This can be complicated and a little tricky.
• Full Finder integration (via extensions) allowing context menu actions, link sharing, sync status, and more.
• Licensing - one license lets you use it on all the computers you own, but major upgrades are paid. Mountain Duck v. 5 is recent, so you should be good for a while if you purchase it now.

Strengths:

• Flexible - I used it to mount OneDrive, Dropbox, Box, two WebDAV providers, and a remote SMB share.
• Finder integration is consistent across providers, something you don't get by running the software from multiple providers.
• Background operations (smart sync/offline options).
• Actively maintained. The changelog shows frequent updates and bug fixes, which is typically the sign of a dependable developer.

Weaknesses:

• Predictably, mounts with lots of folders and files are not as responsive as those with fewer files and folders. I noticed this when working with my photo collection (100K+ files) on a remote WebDAV server.
• Working with cached files requires pretty careful monitoring. Not going to lie, setting up caching can be confusing, and it pays to keep your eye on what's going on.
• The lack of free updates for major versions.
• Working with multiple protocols and options (sync vs. online vs. offline vs. integrated vs. smart modes) presents a learning curve. If you just want to mount an S3 bucket and go about your business, this may not be the app for you.

New Features in Version 5

If you used Mountain Duck in the past (as I have), there are some cool new features in version 5:

• Now uses the native File Provider API, the same as iCloud and OneDrive.
• Supports Spotlight search.
• SMB support.
• Versioning (can be customized).
• Improved sync conflict handling.
• Activity monitoring.
• Resume pending operations (helps with big data workflows).

Mountain Duck normally sells for $49 on the dev's website. It's currently on sale for $14.99 as part of the Black Friday Bundlehunt offerings.