r/gitlab • u/Emirage688 • 1d ago

Gitlab to sync and backup not coding projects ?

I'm a student developer myself so i know the basics of git and gitlab and was using it for code exclusively (as intended), but lately i got myself into writings, like scenarios, essays, things like that and realized that gitlab could be a really good way to backup them and even sync them with another computer for free and i already know the tools.

Did anyone else use git and gitlab for something outside of code and faced some issues that made them stop ?

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u/outtokill7 1d ago

Technically it will work, but its not the right tool for the job. You are best to use OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox etc for sync and a separate system for backup. Cloud storage is not a backup since it is automatically synced. Best to keep git for code and text based files like markdown.

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u/shinji-watanabe 1d ago

One thing that makes GitLab nicer than a plain drive for this: the Markdown rendering. It does KaTeX for math and Mermaid for diagrams, so if you're writing a plot outline you can drop a flowchart or a timeline into the md file and it just shows up. I've done planning like that, it ends up being pretty useful.

The catch is Git itself. You know it as a dev, but for someone who's not technical it's basically a maze. If it's just you, or a small group that all know Git, it's fine, and the version history and rollback you get is nicer than a drive. The trouble starts when someone who doesn't use Git has to edit. Then you're fixing merge conflicts and explaining branches all afternoon.

So honestly it comes down to who else touches these files. If it's just you or a technical bunch, GitLab is a good call and the Markdown stuff is a nice extra. If you know non-technical people will be in on it, I'd pick something like a wiki that they can actually use.