One of the most important services in a homelab, be it to take control of your date or save money, would be a solution to save, store and share your files. One of the most popular solutions is NextCloud. If you are like us, and have a Proxmox machine idling at home in your homelab, we have guides on installing Nextcloud in Proxmox, but it can run on a machine as small as a Raspberry Pi. It can even be run inside a FreedomBox instance running on a Raspberry Pi. That said, and even though NextCloud is an amazing solution, it does not offer the type of features of a specialised app, like comparing NextCloud to Immich for syncing your photos from your mobile phone. So when we back up and sync our files, sometimes you need something more focused, lightweight, and modern.
Enter OpenCloud, a promising open-source, self-hosted file-sharing solution built with performance, simplicity, and security at its core. If you’re looking for a clean, fast, and no-fuss platform to manage your files, it’s time to give OpenCloud a spin in your lab.
Image Credit: OpenCloud Github
What Exactly is OpenCloud?
At its heart, OpenCloud is a self-hosted platform that allows you to store, manage, and share your files on your own server. Think of it as your personal Dropbox or Google Drive, but without the subscription fees, data scanning, or privacy concerns. It’s built for individuals, families, and small teams who want a straightforward and secure file-sharing experience.
Developed with a modern tech stack (primarily PHP and a MariaDB/MySQL database), it’s designed to be lightweight, meaning it won’t bog down your homelab server with excessive resource consumption. You can check out the entire project and its code on its official GitHub repository.
How Does It Work?
For the self-hosting enthusiast, the setup is familiar and flexible. OpenCloud runs as a web application on a server you control. The most common deployment methods are:
- Docker: The easiest and most recommended method for most homelabbers. The project provides a
docker-compose.ymlfile, allowing you to spin up the entire service—the web application and the database—with a single command. This isolates the application and its dependencies, making management a breeze. - Bare Metal/VM: You can also install it directly on a Linux virtual machine or server. This involves setting up a web server (like Nginx or Apache), installing PHP and its required extensions, and configuring a database.
Once deployed, users interact with OpenCloud through a clean and intuitive web interface. All your files are stored in a designated data directory on your server (e.g., /var/www/opencloud/storage/), and the metadata (usernames, shares, file info) is kept in the database.
The Feature Set: What Can OpenCloud Do?
OpenCloud focuses on doing one thing and doing it well: file sharing. Here’s a breakdown of its core features:
Core File Management
It covers all the essentials you’d expect:
- Upload and Download: Easily upload single files, multiple files, or entire folders through the drag-and-drop web interface.
- File & Folder Operations: Create folders, rename, move, and delete files and directories to keep your cloud organised.
Powerful Sharing Capabilities
This is where OpenCloud truly shines. You have granular control over how you share your data.
- User-to-User Sharing: Share files and folders directly with other registered users on your OpenCloud instance.
- Public Link Sharing: Generate a unique public link to share with anyone, even if they don’t have an account.
- Link Security: Enhance the security of your public shares by adding a password, preventing unauthorised access.
- Expiration Dates: Set an expiry date for a share link. After this date, the link automatically becomes invalid—perfect for time-sensitive file sharing.
Robust Administration and Security
- Admin Dashboard: A central control panel to manage the entire instance. You can monitor storage usage, view logs, and configure system-wide settings.
- User Management: As an admin, you can easily create, edit, and delete users. Crucially, you can set storage quotas for each user to ensure fair resource allocation.
- Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): A critical security feature! Users can enable 2FA using an authenticator app (like Authy or Google Authenticator) to add an extra layer of security to their accounts.
- REST API: For the developers and power users, OpenCloud provides a REST API, opening the door for integrations, automation, and custom scripts.
Customisation
You can brand your instance by changing the theme colours and logos to make it truly your own.
Considerations and Potential Cons
No application is perfect for every use case. Here are a few things to consider before committing to OpenCloud:
- Maturity and Community: OpenCloud is a newer player compared to veterans like Nextcloud or ownCloud. This means its community is smaller, and you might find fewer tutorials or forum threads for troubleshooting. You should be comfortable reading the official documentation.
- Feature Scope: OpenCloud is intentionally focused on file sharing. It does not have the massive “App Store” or the integrated groupware features (Calendar, Contacts, Mail, Online Office Editors) that you’d find in Nextcloud. If you need an all-in-one collaboration suite, OpenCloud might not be the right fit. However, if you want a fast, dedicated file manager, this focus is a significant advantage.
- Client Ecosystem: As of now, the primary way to interact with OpenCloud is via its web interface. While desktop and mobile clients are on the project’s roadmap, the lack of mature, native sync clients could be a dealbreaker for users who depend on seamless file synchronisation across all their devices.
A Quick Reminder on Self-Hosting Best Practices
Deploying any service, including OpenCloud, comes with responsibilities. Always remember:
- Security is Paramount: You are the admin. Keep your server’s operating system, Docker, and OpenCloud itself updated. Use a reverse proxy like Nginx Proxy Manager or Traefik to easily manage SSL certificates (HTTPS). Enforce strong passwords and 2FA.
- Backups are Non-Negotiable: Implement a solid backup strategy, like the 3-2-1 rule (3 copies, 2 different media, 1 off-site). For OpenCloud, you need to back up two critical components: the database and the file data directory.
- Reliable Access: To access your cloud from outside your home, you’ll need a domain name and a way to handle your dynamic home IP address (a Dynamic DNS service is perfect for this).
Conclusion: Is OpenCloud for You?
OpenCloud presents a compelling case for the modern homelabber. It’s a lightweight, fast, and secure file-sharing platform that excels at its core mission. It strips away the bloat of larger suites, offering a focused and pleasant user experience.
If you are looking for a simple and performant self-hosted alternative to Dropbox or Google Drive and don’t need the extensive groupware features of its larger cousins, OpenCloud is an excellent choice. It’s a perfect weekend project to get running in a Docker container and a fantastic way to take one more step towards full data sovereignty.
Head over to the GitHub page, give the docker-compose.yml a try, and see if your next cloud is an OpenCloud.