Run R from dropbox

Question

Often in "restricted security" situations in which programs can't be installed on a computer I run R from a flash drive. Works like a charm. I've recently started using dropbox and was thinking it could be used in a similar fashion to the flash drive. For anyone who has tried this does it work?

I can test it myself but don't want to go to the bother if it's a dead end.

Thanks in advance.

PS this has the advantage of storing an .Rprofile that people whom you share the dropbox folder with can then run your R code. This is particularly nice for people unfamiliar with R.

Answer 1

It should just work.

R is set up in such a way that all its files are relative to a given top-level directory. Whether that is a F:\ or Z:\ drive from your flashdrive, or your Dropbox folder should not matter.

By the same token, R can run happily off a shared folder, be it via Samba, NFS or another mechanism.