To have this thing you’re not supposed to need to worry about affect whether your files got backed up is exactly the problem here. The goal is to back up your files, whether they’re in the cloud or not.
I sympathize with Backblaze’s problem with their file change monitor, but then they should considee implementing connectors for OneDrive, Dropbox, etc. and back up files directly from the cloud.
I think backing up the materialized files is appropriate. That’s what they (used to) promise.
Of course it is. So *you* don't have to know which cloud files are actually there. Doesn't mean backblaze can't know, and should work within that paradigm rather than not backup anything.
As for your (the user, not necessary you personally) expectation that Backblaze would backup the stubs (im not sure that would really matter, as you said in your own comment) regardless of its stub status, that's unreasonable-- that Backblaze would travers the stubs and... why? temporarily download them, upload to backblaze? That's not what they ever stated would happen and is a big stretch to expect what amounts to the extra service of backing up cloud drives simply because a user decides to have what amounts to a an 'ln <soft link>' to to a network drive. The do explicitly exclude that.
What is not reasonable on their part is to change any service at all that had previously been happening, regardless of whether it was or was not within the ToS, and likely contract law wouldn't support a claim on their part that there was an implied contract through ambiguity which courts will typically resolve in favor of an injured party, especially one in a position of lesser power in the relationship. I'm not claiming that's what happened here, my reading of any ToS has the same legitimacy as this comment on that. I'm saying they do claim they'll backup whatever is on the computer and unexcluded. and its wrong as a matter of basic provisioning of service to a customer of what was offered. That's the limit of my claim.
