---
title: "Cloud accounts"
url: https://storagestudio.us/wiki/cloud-accounts
category: "Cloud accounts"
tags: ["cloud accounts", "sign in", "data transfers", "finder"]
summary: "Connect your cloud drives, storage buckets, file servers and other devices in one window. Each account signs in on its own, stays signed in, and can be tested, edited or removed at any time."
updated: 2026-10-01T05:31:52.000Z
---

# Cloud accounts

Connect your cloud drives, storage buckets, file servers and other devices in one window. Each account signs in on its own, stays signed in, and can be tested, edited or removed at any time.

Storage Studio can work with the cloud accounts and servers you already use: Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, another Apple ID's iCloud Drive, S3-compatible storage, and SFTP or FTP servers. You connect them once in the **Remotes & Accounts** window, and from then on they are places you can copy, move, sync and back up to, or browse in Finder.

## Opening the window

Choose **Connect Accounts…** from the **More** menu, or click the small badge in the corner of the **Data Transfers** card on the Home screen. The window has up to three tabs:

- **Accounts** — the accounts you've connected, with **Add Account** at the top.
- **Mounting** — which accounts, folders and devices appear together in [the Storage Studio location in Finder](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-storage-studio-location-in-finder).
- **Devices** — other computers and phones you've paired with [Bridge](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/bridge-devices). This tab only appears when Bridge is available on your copy.

```mermaid
%% caption: The kinds of account you can add, and how each one signs in
mindmap
  root((Add Account))
    Sign in with your browser
      Google Drive
      Dropbox
      OneDrive
      Box
    Apple ID and a code
      iCloud Drive for another Apple ID
      Its Photos library, read-only
    Keys or a password
      Bucket Storage, S3-compatible
      SFTP
      FTP
```

*Mind map — The kinds of account you can add, and how each one signs in. Outline:*

- Add Account
  - Sign in with your browser
    - Google Drive
    - Dropbox
    - OneDrive
    - Box
  - Apple ID and a code
    - iCloud Drive for another Apple ID
    - Its Photos library, read-only
  - Keys or a password
    - Bucket Storage, S3-compatible
    - SFTP
    - FTP

## Adding an account

1. Click **Add Account** and pick the type of account.
2. Type a **Nickname** you'll recognise, such as *work-drive*. Use a different nickname for each account; letters, numbers, spaces and _ - . + @ are allowed.
3. For Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive and Box, click **Open browser to sign in** and approve access in your browser. For the other types, fill in the form and click **Save account** (or **Sign in** for iCloud).

Each type has its own page with the details:

- [Connecting Google Drive](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-google-drive)
- [Connecting Dropbox](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-dropbox)
- [Connecting OneDrive, including work and school accounts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-onedrive)
- [Connecting Box](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-box)
- [iCloud Drive for another Apple ID](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/icloud-drive-for-another-apple-id) and [its Photos library](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/icloud-photos-of-another-apple-id)
- [S3-compatible storage](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/s3-compatible-storage)
- [SFTP and FTP servers](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/sftp-and-ftp)

Each row in the **Add Account** list shows how many accounts of that type you have and how many are allowed, for example **1 / 5**. When a type is full, its row is greyed out until you remove one.

## What you can do with a connected account

- Copy, move or sync folders with [Data Transfers](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/data-transfers), including [between two accounts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/copying-between-two-cloud-accounts).
- Browse it in Finder alongside your other accounts, from the **Mounting** tab.
- Park a folder in it from Data Parking — see [parking a folder in a cloud account](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/parking-a-folder-in-a-cloud-account).
- Use it as a [backup destination](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/backup-destinations).
- Look for [duplicates inside it](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/duplicates-in-cloud-accounts).

## Looking after your accounts

Select an account to see **Test connection**, **Remove**, and — for the types that have one — **Edit** or **Sign in again**. See [testing, editing and removing an account](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/testing-editing-and-removing-an-account) and [when an account needs signing in again](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/when-an-account-needs-signing-in-again). Your sign-ins are kept on this Mac; [here's how](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-account-sign-ins-are-stored).

Some services can't be added at all — see [accounts Storage Studio doesn't connect](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/accounts-we-dont-connect) and [Google Photos](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/google-photos).

## If something looks wrong

If a yellow banner says **The cloud transfer engine is missing**, **Add Account** is switched off until it's fixed — see [moves or transfers say a component is missing](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/engine-missing). If you signed in but the list stays empty, see [my cloud accounts list is empty after signing in](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/cloud-account-list-is-empty).

- **Can I see all my cloud accounts in Finder on a Mac?** Yes. Storage Studio adds a "Storage Studio" location to Finder's sidebar, with each connected cloud account and paired device as a folder inside, and a Finder button in the app's main window opens it. Files stay in the cloud until you open them. Folders you have visited open straight away and… (https://storagestudio.us/faq)

See also: [Data Transfers](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/data-transfers) · [The Storage Studio location in Finder](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-storage-studio-location-in-finder) · [Bridge](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/bridge-devices) · [Storage Studio's cloud accounts and iCloud Drive](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/compared-with-icloud-drive)

## What links here

- [Accounts Storage Studio doesn't connect](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/accounts-we-dont-connect)
- [Bridge: connecting another device](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/bridge-devices)
- [Connecting Box](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-box)
- [Connecting Dropbox](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-dropbox)
- [Connecting Google Drive](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-google-drive)
- [Connecting OneDrive, including work and school accounts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/connecting-onedrive)
- [Copying between two cloud accounts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/copying-between-two-cloud-accounts)
- [Data Transfers](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/data-transfers)
- [Duplicates in your cloud accounts](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/duplicates-in-cloud-accounts)
- [Google Photos: what's possible and the Takeout route](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/google-photos)
- [How your account sign-ins are stored](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/how-account-sign-ins-are-stored)
- [Letting another AI assistant read your storage](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/ai-access)
- [My cloud accounts list is empty after signing in](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/cloud-account-list-is-empty)
- [Parking a folder in a cloud account](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/parking-a-folder-in-a-cloud-account)
- [S3-compatible storage](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/s3-compatible-storage)
- [SFTP and FTP servers](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/sftp-and-ftp)
- [Storage Studio's cloud accounts and iCloud Drive](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/compared-with-icloud-drive)
- [Testing, editing and removing an account](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/testing-editing-and-removing-an-account)
- [The Storage Studio location in Finder](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-storage-studio-location-in-finder)
- [The cloud folder browser](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/the-cloud-folder-browser)
- [Thumbnails, and why some accounts show plain icons](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/thumbnails-in-finder)
- [Using your own sign-in credentials for an account](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/using-your-own-app-credentials)
- [What Storage Studio does](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/what-storage-studio-does)
- [What leaves your Mac, and when](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/what-leaves-your-mac)
- [Where a backup can go](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/backup-destinations)
- [Where to start: pick your goal](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/where-to-start)
- [Why Google Photos isn't in the Finder location](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/google-photos-and-the-finder-location)
- [Your Storage Profile](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/storage-profile)
- [iCloud Drive for another Apple ID](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/icloud-drive-for-another-apple-id)
- [iCloud Photos of another Apple ID](https://storagestudio.us/wiki/icloud-photos-of-another-apple-id)
