Copsy›Offload to a drive + cloud on Mac

Offload footage to an external drive AND Google Drive or Dropbox at once on Mac

Written by a working DIT · Copsy · Last verified June 2026

Short answer

Copsy — a free Mac camera-offload app — copies your card to an external drive and to Google Drive or Dropbox in parallel, from a single offload. It reads the card once, writes both copies, verifies every file with ASC-MHL checksums, and pings you on Telegram when it's done — free, no card limit, no signup.

That's the part most people do by hand: copy the card to a drive in Finder, then separately upload the same files to the cloud — reading the card twice, with no verification. Copsy does both at once and checks them.

Download Copsy for Mac → · macOS 13+ · no account needed

Why you want a local copy AND a cloud copy from one offload

The moment you pull a card out of a camera, that footage exists in exactly one place: the card you're about to reuse. The standard professional rule is 3-2-1: don't wipe the card until the footage lives in more than one place. The cleanest way to do that on set is to make both copies from a single offload:

The external drive is your fast, offline working copy. You can start editing immediately, and it doesn't depend on internet or anyone's account.
The cloud copy (Google Drive or Dropbox) is your off-site safety net. If the drive is lost, stolen, dropped or simply fails, you still have the footage, and a remote editor or producer can pull it the same day.

Making both at the same time means you only wait once, and you can pull the card the moment a single job confirms both copies are verified, instead of babysitting two separate transfers.

Why doing it manually is slow and error-prone

The manual version of "drive plus cloud" almost always looks like this: drag the card to your external drive in Finder, wait for that to finish, then drag the same folder into the Google Drive or Dropbox sync folder and wait again. Two problems:

You read the card twice. The drive copy reads the whole card, and then the cloud upload reads it all over again (or re-reads from the drive). That roughly doubles the time you're tied to the card and the reader.
Nothing is verified. Finder drag-and-drop does not checksum your files. Neither does a plain cloud-sync folder. A file that silently drops a few bytes, whether from a flaky reader, a full disk, or an interrupted upload, looks identical in Finder until the day you actually open it. On footage you can't reshoot, that's the worst possible time to find out.

Copsy closes that gap: one job, the card read once, both copies written and verified.

How Copsy copies to a drive and the cloud in parallel

Copsy keeps a single read of the card and fans it out to both destinations, then verifies. Here's the full sequence.

Install Copsy and connect your cloud. Download Copsy, open it, and connect your Google Drive or Dropbox account once in Settings. Copsy remembers it for every future offload.
Insert the card. Plug it into a reader and Copsy auto-detects it by content — Sony, ARRI, Blackmagic, RED, Canon, drones or audio recorders — so you don't pick a profile.
Choose an external drive AND a cloud destination. Select your drive as the local destination and tick Google Drive or Dropbox as the cloud destination. Both come from one offload.
Press Start — both copies run in parallel. Copsy reads the card once, writes to your drive and the cloud together, and organizes files by date and source.
Copsy verifies with ASC-MHL. Every file is checksum-verified against the source, so your drive copy and your cloud copy both match bit-for-bit — nothing lost or corrupted.
Get a Telegram ping and pull the card. When it's verified and done, Copsy messages you on Telegram. Now it's safe to wipe the card — you have a verified local backup and a verified cloud copy.

One small thing to know about the cloud copy

The drive copy and verification run at drive speed — fast. The cloud upload runs in the background at your internet's upload speed, so for a big card you'll want to keep the Mac awake and online until the cloud copy finishes. Copsy's Telegram ping tells you when both copies are verified and done, so you can walk away rather than watch a progress bar.

Free Mac tools, and why none of them do drive + cloud + verify

There are good free offload tools — but each is missing a piece of "copy to a drive and the cloud, verified." Here's the honest landscape, last verified June 2026.

Tool	Copsy	Finder drag-and-drop	DaVinci Resolve Clone Tool
Price	FREE	FREE	FREE
Copies to an external drive	✓	✓	✓
Copies to the cloud (Drive/Dropbox) in the same job	✓	manual, separate	—
Both copies in parallel (card read once)	✓	—	—
ASC-MHL checksum verification	✓	none	xxHash, no MHL
Auto-detect card type	✓	—	—
Telegram notification when done	✓	—	—

Paid tools like OffShoot (formerly Hedge, ~$169–$249), ShotPut Pro (~$149–$169 + ~$59/yr) and Pomfort Silverstack (~$300–$600/yr) verify copies superbly, but generally target local/LTO destinations rather than copying to a consumer cloud in the same job. Figures last verified June 2026 — check each vendor for current pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Can I copy footage to an external drive and Google Drive at the same time on a Mac?

Yes. Copsy, a free Mac camera-offload app, copies your footage to an external drive and to Google Drive or Dropbox in parallel during a single offload. You point it at one local drive plus one cloud destination, press Start, and both copies are made from the same job and verified with ASC-MHL checksums.

Why offload to a local drive AND the cloud instead of just one?

A local drive gives you fast access for editing and a copy that does not depend on internet, while a cloud copy protects you if the drive is lost, stolen or fails, and lets editors or producers pull footage remotely. Following the 3-2-1 backup rule — keep footage in more than one place before you wipe the card — is why pros make a local plus cloud copy from a single offload.

Why is offloading to a drive and the cloud manually so slow and risky?

Doing it by hand usually means dragging the card to a drive in Finder, waiting, then separately uploading the same files to Google Drive or Dropbox — reading the card twice and doubling the time. Worse, Finder drag-and-drop and basic cloud uploads do not verify checksums, so a silently dropped or corrupted file can go unnoticed until you need it. Copsy reads the card once, writes both copies, and verifies them.

Does Copsy verify the cloud copy as well as the drive copy?

Yes. Copsy verifies copied files with ASC-MHL checksums — the same film-set and Netflix-delivery verification standard professional offload tools use — so both your external-drive copy and your cloud copy are checked against the source, not just assumed to be fine.

Do I need to keep my Mac awake while it uploads to the cloud?

The local drive copy and verification finish at drive speed, which is fast. The cloud upload runs in the background and depends on your internet upload speed, so for large cards you may want to keep the Mac awake and online until the cloud copy completes. Copsy sends a Telegram message when everything is verified and done, so you can walk away and get pinged.

Is Copsy free, and does it limit how many cards I can offload?

Copsy is free to download and use today, with no card limit and no account required. It runs on macOS 13 or later and auto-detects Sony, ARRI, Blackmagic, RED, Canon, drone and audio-recorder cards.

Get a verified drive copy and cloud copy from one offload

Copsy — a free Mac camera-offload app. One job copies your card to a drive and the cloud, both ASC-MHL verified.

⬇ Download Copsy for Mac

macOS 13+ · No card, no signup, no limits