As an addition to its Windows Live service, Microsoft has launched Windows Live SkyDrive। The service provides users with free, password-protected online file storage with an option for it to be shared with other people. Prior to today, Windows Live SkyDrive was available in Beta with a 1 GB storage cap -- only in the US, the UK, and India. Microsoft says this service is beneficial for Indian users due to the increase in the number of people using the Internet, irrespective of their owning a computer. It allows users to upload 5 GB of data, with a 50 MB limit on each file. Illustrating the 5GB data-holding capacity of SkyDrive, Microsoft cites that the service will enable users to store approximately 1,000 songs, over 30,000 Microsoft Office documents of average size, or 30,000 digital photos at a resolution of 1200 x 1200.


SkyDrive offers users three ways to store and share files by means of Personal, Shared, and Public folders. Personal folder lets users password-protect their data and keep it to be accessed only by them; Shared folder allows them to share files with people they choose; while the third option of Public folder allows anyone on the Internet to access the data. To access the SkyDrive service, one needs a Windows Live ID. In order to share folders, people who need to access the files also need to have a Windows Live ID. From today, the service has also now become available in 35 new countries and regions.