How to create a private cloud using Nextcloud

If you no longer want to use regular cloud storage like Dropbox and Google Drive and want to create a self-hosted cloud for your group or business, Nextcloud is an ideal solution. . It provides almost all the necessary features of a cloud storage service along with all the control and privacy.

In this article, we will learn about Nextcloud, and then set it up to create a private cloud. If you need a private cloud using Nextcloud then follow this guide.

Why use Nextcloud?

Nextcloud supports a lot for popular platforms - mobile platforms as well as desktops. It provides native applications for most operating systems, allowing you or your team to work from any device or location. That means, there is no infrastructure cost.

Nextcloud integrates many features to make it a solution to create a great private cloud. Some of its outstanding features include:

1. Self-hosted solution - You can control Nextcloud almost anywhere - home or office, data center or storage service provider. It gives you total control over data storage.
2. Sharing features - Nextcloud allows sharing files safely. You can share files with anyone on or off the cloud using a password-protected link and they can also upload files.
3. Security priority - Nextcloud has standard security methods including terminal encryption. It supports authentication, control and licensing schemes.
4. A lot of integration - Nextcloud comes with integrated support - applications and services to expand the functionality of the cloud. For example, you can manage tasks, edit files in Markdown and perform many other tasks.

Where should you try Nextcloud?

If you are looking for a free account to try Nextcloud, then you can use hosting provider services that provide managed versions of Nextcloud. However, a free account may not provide large capacity or memory size for all applications or features.

Please find below this list of services to try immediately Nextcloud:

1. Dediserve - Allocate a total of 10GB in the free account.
2. oCloud.de - Provides a free account with 1GB storage capacity.
3. OwnDrive - Provides 1GB account with support for some applications.
4. Serverdiscounter - There is a huge storage space up to 5GB.
5. Unixcorn - Enables quick registration and provides 1GB capacity.
6. Wölkli - Provides an account with 1GB of free storage.

How to install Nextcloud?

Nextcloud can be installed on your server using any of the following three methods:

1. Web installer - This is the fastest way to install Nextcloud on the server, especially in shared hosting. You need to upload a file to your server and execute it. That file will download and install this solution.
2. Archive file - This is the recommended option for the server owner. You need to upload the complete package (as an archive file) and extract its contents in a directory on the web server.
3. Appliances - This is the easiest method for people who are not tech-savvy but apply for server owners. You need to download an image file with Nextcloud pre-installed and load it onto your computer.

System requirements

Let's first talk about the system requirements needed to install and run a private cloud using Nextcloud. Since most free hosting providers offer Linux-based hosting, we will focus on the requirements for services as below.

1. Server OS: CentOS 6.5 or 7, Debian 8+, openSUSE LEAP 42.1 or higher, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.5 and above, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3 or 12 and the release of Ubuntu 14.04 and above are supported.
2. Memory: At least 128 MB, but should use 512MB RAM.
3. Storage capacity: Minimum of 500 MB, but depending on your requirements. In addition, the server must allow a 65 MB file to install Nextcloud using the method of using the web installer.
4. Web server: Apache 2.4 (php-fpm, mod_php) or Nginx (php-fpm).
5. Database: MySQL or MariaDB 5.5+ as well as PostgreSQL 9 and 10.
6. PHP: PHP 5.6 and newer versions are supported by Nextcloud.

Free hosting provider

We need a hosting service provider to create our own cloud. You should find a free hosting that comes with the minimum system requirements required for Nextcloud. But this is not an easy task.

How to install Nextcloud

In this tutorial, we will install Nextcloud using the first method, ie, using the web installer. The reason this is the simplest method and the only method that works well on shared hosting.

Follow the steps below to get started and run with your own cloud:

1. First, open this link: https://nextcloud.com/install/#instructions-server and switch to the ' web installer ' tab (at the bottom of the page) and download the file mentioned in the first step.

2. Access the server's dashboard page and open the file manager . For example, in 000webhost , you will see the following dashboard:

3. Once in file manager , click the upload button. Note that you can see another screen depending on your server or host.

4. Now select the file ' setup-nextcloud.php ' (which you downloaded in step 1) from your computer and upload the file to the server using file manager.

5. After the file is uploaded, open ' your-domain / setup-nextcloud.php ' in the browser. For example, if the domain name is ' example.com ' then you must navigate to ' example.com/setup-nextcloud.php '.

6. You will see the installation wizard of Nextcloud. Click Next to begin.

7. Now you need to point to the installation directory for Nextcloud. If you don't want to use sub-directly , just enter " . " In the directory name. For example, if your domain is' example.com ', you can use the same domain name to access Nextcloud, but you can also access your own cloud at the link' example.com/folder- name '.

8. If all goes well, you should now see a page like this. Just click Next .

9. In the next screen, Nextcloud will ask you to set up an admin account to be able to access and manage your own cloud later. Just enter the credentials you want and click the Finish button.

10. Done. Finally, you will see a welcome message from Nextcloud.

11. That's all you need to do. You have successfully created your own cloud using Nextcloud.

Troubleshoot

1. I uploaded the archive but I don't see it on my server.

In this case, it is possible that your server does not support displaying files large enough or does not support uploading files by FTP or File Manager. Please verify by uploading any large size file (> 60MB).

If the server does not support large files to store Nextcloud, you can extract stored on your computer and directly download extracted content directly to your server (public_html or htdocs) via FTP. However, Nextcloud hosting has more than 12 thousand files, so you may also encounter other problems when your server does not support making too many upload requests.

2. On the 'Dependency check' page, an error dependency error occurs

If Nextcloud tells you about some of the problems at the ' Dependency check ' page, your server does not support all the programs / packages needed to run it. That means you need to find another server that supports Nextcloud.

3. After the 'Dependency check' page, an error server appears.

In this case, your server does not support the file large enough to allow the download installer Nextcloud or the server to have less execution time than Nextcloud's setup file needs to complete.

You can learn about server settings and increase PHP's execution time limit to 300 seconds or more.

What can you do with Nextcloud?

The first thing is to check its settings and customize different options to meet user requirements - especially encryption and security options. After that, we tested uploading files and checking their features.

The more you delve into Nextcloud, the more you will like it. For example, you can extend its functionality by adding applications from the App Store. You'll notice there are many different applications - both official and third-party applications - to add more features to Nextcloud. For example, you can add calendars, contacts, tasks, etc.

Do you want to create your own cloud? Please share your comments in the comment section below!

See more:

1. Create your own cloud using Hyper-V
2. Collection of the best free online data storage websites today
3. How to create a private cloud