More than Just Storage: 8 Ways To Repurpose Your Old USB Flash Drive
Old USB drives and portable hard drives can still be useful despite cloud storage making them less common. The article describes ways to repurpose them for sharing files at home or online, potentially saving money and keeping some files within a private local network.
One suggested project is to connect an external drive to a router’s USB port and enable file sharing, creating a shared storage space for devices on the home network. For remote access, the article describes using the free HFS application, but the computer must remain on, and exposing personal files to the internet can create security risks; it recommends using ngrok to help secure a home file server.
- Old drives can become shared storage on a home network.
- A router with a USB port may be all you need.
- Remote sharing requires extra setup and careful security.