Windows Mobile 6.5 Cloud Storage Before OneDrive

Before OneDrive became the unified cloud service for Microsoft platforms, Windows Mobile 6.5 users relied on an assortment of early cloud solutions, proprietary sync utilities, and enterprise protocols to store and share data remotely. This article explores the primary cloud storage and file synchronization options available for the operating system during the late 2000s, covering official Microsoft services like Live Mesh and Microsoft My Phone, enterprise solutions such as SharePoint, and early third-party integrations like Dropbox.

Microsoft Live Mesh

Live Mesh was one of Microsoft's most ambitious early cloud synchronization services. Available as a dedicated client for Windows Mobile 6.x devices, Live Mesh allowed users to synchronize entire folders peer-to-peer between PCs and mobile devices, routed through a cloud-based storage desktop. It allowed Windows Mobile 6.5 users to create synchronized shared folders directly inside the mobile file explorer, automatically uploading camera photos or pulling documents from a desktop computer whenever a data connection was active.

Microsoft My Phone

Launched alongside the Windows Mobile 6.5 platform in late 2009, Microsoft My Phone was a free cloud backup and synchronization service designed specifically for consumers. While not a traditional general-purpose drive like modern cloud services, it provided cloud storage for contacts, calendar entries, tasks, text messages, photos, videos, and music. Users managed their files through a web portal, and changes made on the device synchronized over the air directly with Microsoft’s servers.

Windows Live SkyDrive (Mobile Web and Third-Party Clients)

SkyDrive—the original name of OneDrive—was active during the lifespan of Windows Mobile 6.5, offering 25 GB of free online storage. However, Microsoft never released an official, fully integrated native SkyDrive app for Windows Mobile 6.5. Instead, users interacted with SkyDrive either through the mobile Internet Explorer browser or via third-party utilities developed by the homebrew community on forums like XDA-Developers. These community tools leveraged SkyDrive's web APIs to provide basic file upload and download directories within the operating system.

Enterprise Storage: SharePoint and Exchange ActiveSync

For enterprise users, Windows Mobile 6.5 had deep native hooks into business-oriented remote storage:

  • SharePoint Workspace Mobile: Integrated into Office Mobile, this utility allowed users to browse document libraries hosted on remote Microsoft SharePoint servers, check files out, edit them offline, and sync them back to the server.
  • Exchange ActiveSync: While primarily built for email, ActiveSync functioned as a private cloud data sync mechanism, keeping enterprise files, emails, and attachments perpetually aligned with corporate Exchange servers.

Early Third-Party Cloud Utilities and WebDAV

During this period, emerging commercial cloud platforms also found their way onto Windows Mobile 6.5 through independent developers and network protocols:

  • Dropbox via Community Clients: Since Dropbox did not have an official Windows Mobile application, community developers built clients such as Pocket-Dropbox. These apps utilized the early Dropbox API to sync local folders on the device's storage card to a user's Dropbox account.
  • Box.net: Box offered an early mobile web interface optimized for touch devices and allowed basic document management.
  • WebDAV Clients: Tools like Resco File Explorer provided built-in support for FTP and WebDAV protocols, allowing users to connect their mobile devices directly to remote storage servers, personal web hosts, and early WebDAV-compatible cloud providers.