iRadar: UltraCopier – An Alternative Multi-Platform Batch File Copier

Friday, October 15, 2010

UltraCopier – An Alternative Multi-Platform Batch File Copier

UltraCopier – An Alternative Multi-Platform Batch File Copier: "

batch file copier I copy and move lots of documents and files between computers and gadgets that I use. While emails and/or Dropbox would be sufficient for small documents, larger files require extra treatment.

Everybody knows that copying (or moving) large files takes time (especially those beyond the realm of hundreds of megabytes). There are also “(un)expected troubles” that occasionally occur in the middle of big file transfers. Any help on speeding up the process and managing those transfers would be accepted with open arms.

That’s the reason why TeraCopy is at the top of my list of Windows applications that I (and most Mac users that I know) wish to be available for Mac. Even though TeraCopy is still Windows-only at the moment, I was lucky to find one multi-platform alternative called UltraCopier.

Good Things Come In Batches

UltraCopier is a multi-speed batch file copier which is available for Windows (32, 64 and portable), Linux, and also Mac. This range should cover most common users’ needs. Even though the project is still in early Beta (v.0.2), the app already has some nice promising features.

Note: the following example was done using the Mac version of the app, but other versions should be more or less similar.

After you open it, UltraCopier will reside in the Menubar (or System Tray in Windows). Using it is a simple matter of clicking the icon and choosing either “Add copy” or “Add move“.

batch file copier

A progress window will open. Click the “More” button to reveal more options. You can manage your copy/move files using the tool buttons and view the list on the pane.

batch files

The “Open (+)” button gives you the option to open file(s) or folders, while other buttons allow you to re-arrange the order of the files (move up/down, move to top/bottom) and to delete one or more items.

batch files

After clicking open, UltraCopier will ask you to find the source that you want to copy/move.

batch files

Then you also have to decide the destination where you want to save the file.

batch file copy files

After you are done with the file arrangement, you just click the “Play” button to start the transfer process, and minimize the display by clicking the “More” button again should you want to.

batch file copy files

You will get a notification window if the files that you want to move already exist in the destination folder. Should this situation occur, you can choose to overwrite the files in the destination folder, rename the file that you are moving, skip the item(s), or cancel the entire process.

batch file copy files

There are several choices that you can choose from the “Overwrite” option. Click the little arrow next to the button to view the options list.

01be ultracopier - Overwrite options.jpg

Some Other Options & Personal Opinions

You might notice that “Copy List” is only one of the available tabs from UltraCopier’s interface. There are other tabs that will allow you to customize the working of this app even more.

The “Options” tab lets you decide what to do at the end of every copy process, limit the copy speed (if you want to reserve the processing power for other activities), and what to do should file collisions and copy errors happen.

02a Ultracopier - Copy Options.jpg

You can enable/disable the autostart feature from the “Copy Management” tab. You will want to enable this feature if you want the copy/move process to start automatically right after you choose the files.

I honestly don’t really understand the functions of the other options except for “Reduce to systray“.

02b Ultracopier - Copy Management.jpg

As for the “Advanced” tab, this is the place where you can pre-set the priority of all the copy/move processes. There’s also the option to adjust the block size and whether you want to enable “Preallocate the file’s size“. Unless you really know what you are doing, I suggest you leave those two as it is.

batch file copier

After playing with the app for a while, I can tell you that even though the developer should allocate more time and resources on re-designing the user interface, the app itself works just fine. All the items I moved arrived at their destination safe and sound.

I’m not qualified to give any professional opinion on transfer speed, but the process did feel faster on my Mac. I also tried to compare UltraCopier with TeraCopy on my Windows machine by using both apps to move the same file from the same location to the same destination, and as far as the precision of my stopwatch goes, the difference is insignificant with TeraCopy heading by a hairline.

If any of you can share a professional perspective on this matter, you are welcome to use the comments below. Meanwhile, appearances aside, UltraCopy is already a must have tool on my utility belt. I keep one copy of the Mac version and one copy of the portable Windows version inside my thumb drive so that I will always have access to faster file transfers.

What do you prefer?

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