Cloud File Storage Integration

Acrual lets you connect your existing cloud file storage so all your quotes, jobs and related documents all live in one familiar place. You store all files in your own Dropbox or Microsoft OneDrive/SharePoint account - while keeping everything fully accessible through Acrual.

When you upload or modify files through your cloud storage provider, or through the Acrual files interface - these changes will be instantly visible in both systems.

This integration keeps your files organized automatically for each project and makes it easy for your team to find, upload, and manage documents.

Supported providers

You can connect Acrual to:

  • Dropbox (Personal or Teams)
  • Microsoft OneDrive / SharePoint
  • Other providers like Google Drive may be added in the future based on demand

Acrual can be connected to only one cloud storage provider at a time. It is possible to switch between providers, however data loss can occur so you should be careful with this procedure. Read the Change file storage provider section for more details.

How file storage is organised

When you connect your cloud storage, Acrual automatically creates a folder structure for you.

Root Folder

At the root of your connected storage, Acrual creates a folder that stores everything inside:

Acrual Files

This folder is managed by Acrual and should not be renamed or deleted.

Item Type Folders

Inside Acrual Files, folders are created for different types of items in Acrual, for example:

Acrual Files/
├── Quotes/
└── Jobs/

Additional folders may appear over time if new Acrual features are added. You should not add any additional files in these directories.

Individual Quote and Job Folders

Inside each item type folder, Acrual creates a folder for each individual record. The folder name includes details of the record, such as the record number and name. For example:

Acrual Files/
├── Quotes/
    ├── Q0023 - House Renovation for Bob
    ├── Q0024 - 123 Sesame Street Apartments
├── Jobs/
    └── J0011 - 123 Sesame Street Apartments

This folder contains all files related to that specific quote or job. These folders will be created as soon as a quote or job is created (usually within seconds).

If a specific quote or job folder doesn't exist yet, you can edit that quote/job in Acrual (even with no changes made) and save it. This will create the folder in the cloud storage. Uploading a file or creating a new folder through Acrual will also cause a new folder to be created for the quote/job.

You should not manually create these folders, as they are managed by Acrual and could result in duplicates if the naming does not match.

Accessing files in Acrual

Each quote or job in Acrual includes a Files tab.

From the Files tab, you can:

  • View all files stored in the connected cloud folder
  • Download files
  • Upload files
  • Rename files
  • Delete files
  • Move files by dragging and dropping

Any changes made here are reflected instantly in your connected cloud storage, and vice versa in Acrual.

Accessing files in your storage provider

You can also manage files directly in your storage provider like Dropbox or OneDrive.

  • Upload files straight into a quote or job folder
  • Move files between folders
  • Share files using your storage provider’s sharing tools as usual

Files added or updated directly in your cloud storage will automatically appear in Acrual.

Tip: For best results, keep files inside the folders created by Acrual so they stay linked to the correct quote or job.

Permissions & security

  • Acrual only has access to the Acrual Files folder and its contents, it is unable to operate on any other folders and files in your cloud storage account
  • File access respects your cloud provider’s permissions, so please ensure you use an admin account when connecting Acrual that has the required read & write permissions
  • When accessing files through Acrual, team members can only see files for quotes or jobs they have access to. If they have login access to the cloud storage provider directly, then Acrual cannot ensure the access of each user

Best practices

  • Do not rename or delete the Acrual Files folder, or any of the inner folders like Quotes or Jobs
  • Avoid manually renaming quote or job folders as that is prone to typos and can result in duplicate folders
  • Use the Files tab in Acrual for everyday access when possible
  • Store all quote or job related documents in their corresponding folders

Migrating to Acrual file storage

If you already have your own file storage solution setup outside of Acrual, you can likely migrate everything across to use the Acrual file storage feature. The exact process depends on what your current solution is.

You can take a few approaches to this:

  1. Only new quotes & jobs files go through Acrual. This is the simplest approach as you don't have to do any historical migrations, however it does mean you have two sources of files for your quotes & jobs forever.
  2. Gradually move every quote & job to Acrual. This approach lightens the upfront burden, but requires ongoing effort and can be annoying.
  3. Migrate everything to Acrual at once. This process can be a little lengthy upfront, but gives you the best experience going forwards as everything is stored in Acrual in one place.

We recommend option 3 and moving everything all at once. But no matter the approach, you can follow these steps per quote & job to migrate the files:

  1. If a specific quote or job folder doesn't exist yet, you can edit that quote/job in Acrual (even with no changes made) and save it. This will create the folder in the cloud storage.
  2. Copy across the quote/job files from your current storage location into the new Acrual quote/job folder.
  3. Check in Acrual that the files are visible.

Disconnecting file storage

If you disconnect your file storage provider:

  • Files will remain safely stored in the storage provider
  • Acrual will no longer sync or display those files
  • Reconnecting the same storage account will restore access

There are two methods of disconnecting file storage providers:

  1. Changing the selected storage provider under the File Storage Provider setting on the Settings page > Integrations tab. This is a temporary option and does not require re-authenticating and connecting the storage provider again.
  2. Unlinking the storage provider integration in the integrations settings page. This option is more permanent and will automatically activate another connected storage provider (if any), otherwise it will set the selected storage provider to "None" which will disable file storage until another provider is connected.

Change file storage provider

If you want to switch between storage providers like Dropbox to OneDrive/SharePoint (or the other way around), it’s important to move your existing files before disconnecting your current storage.

Acrual does not automatically transfer files between storage providers. You are responsible for copying your files from the old provider to the new one.

Step 1: Connect the new storage provider (optional but recommended first)

You should first connect the new storage provider integration so you can make sure everything is setup correctly and Acrual has the correct permissions.

As you already have an active storage provider, the new one will not be switched to automatically just yet.

Step 2: Copy files from the old storage

Using Dropbox or OneDrive/SharePoint directly:

  1. Open your existing Acrual Files folder in the old storage account.
  2. Go into each item type folder (for example, Quotes and Jobs).
  3. Copy the folders for each quote or job (for example, Q0001 - Some quote for Bob).
  4. Paste them into the matching location inside the Acrual Files folder in the new storage account.

Important: Keep the folder names exactly the same. Acrual uses these names to match files to the correct quote or job.

Step 3: Switch provider and check files in Acrual

After copying is complete:

  • Go to the Settings page > Integrations tab and select the new provider from the File Storage Provider dropdown and save the settings. You are now using the new provider.
  • Open several quotes and jobs in Acrual and go to the Files tab, confirming the expected files appear.

If files are missing, check that they were copied into the correct quote or job folder in the new storage.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use both Dropbox and OneDrive at the same time?

No. Each Acrual account can connect to only one cloud storage provider at a time.

Can I share files with people outside Acrual?

Yes. Use your cloud storage provider’s sharing features directly to share files externally.

Are files backed up by Acrual?

Files are stored and backed up by your connected cloud storage provider. Acrual does not create separate backups for files.

If you need assistance setting up cloud storage or have questions about how it works that aren't covered here, please reach out to your Acrual contact.

Jayden Meyer -

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