How to use rclone with nextcloud docker

keffin · June 16, 2022, 12:20am

Introduction

Nextcloud supports external storage. We will be adding to its external storage via this path:

Docker volume plugin --> rclone plugin --> rclone config with remote --> docker-compose.yaml volume section --> docker-compose.yaml services volume mounting section --> nextcloud webUI.

Steps

Create config with whatever backend you want
rclone config
sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/docker-plugins/rclone/config and sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/docker-plugins/rclone/cache
Copy that conf file into the /var/lib/docker-plugins/rclone/config directory.
docker plugin install rclone/docker-volume-rclone:amd64 args="-v" --alias rclone --grant-all-permissions and sudo docker plugin enable rclone
Add this into the volume section of the compose file for nextcloud. Tweak values as needed.

  ${volume_name}:
    driver: rclone
    driver_opts:
      remote: '${your_remote}:'
      allow_other: 'true'
      vfs_cache_mode: full
      poll_interval: 0
      umask: 000

note, I have only tried the umask: 000 option and nothing else. Perhaps something like 776 will work, but too lazy to try.

Mount the volume into the nextcloud service:

    volumes:
      - nextcloud:/var/www/html
      - ${your_remote}:/some_path_you_want

Restart container: sudo docker compose restart
Install nextcloud external storage app.
Configuring External Storage (GUI) — Nextcloud latest Administration Manual latest documentation
Nextcloud --> Settings --> Administration --> External storage. Add parameters.

Beware

File edit appearances will be slow, but they will happen at the end.
Let's hope this post will not be deleted - Creation of a directory called www
Have not been met with Transport endpoint not connected error yet when rclone mount is managed via docker plug in, comment below if you have any.
You can fiddle with the other settings for performance in regards to vfs, but I don't think there is a need if you are just serving the external storage to be downloaded and uploaded.

Demonstration

$ sudo docker exec -it nextcloud /bin/bash -c 'ls -hal /mounted/path'
total 4.0K
drwxrwxrwx  1 root     root    0 Jun 15 23:02 .
drwxrwxrwx 16 www-data root 4.0K Jun 15 22:59 ..
drwxrwxrwx  1 root     root    0 Jun 15 23:05 Folder
drwxrwxrwx  1 root     root    0 Jun 15 23:13 www

References

https://docs.nextcloud.com/server/latest/admin_manual/configuration_files/external_storage_configuration_gui.html

If you need to make a volume by itself.

github.com/nextcloud/docker

Mount volume for just data

opened 11:38AM - 30 Jan 18 UTC

closed 10:38PM - 04 Nov 19 UTC

ulrikstrid

I want to mount a volume that is just for my data (images, documents etc...) so …that it lives outside of docker. I tried to do something like this: ```yml app: image: nextcloud:fpm restart: always volumes: - nextcloud:/var/www/html - /mnt/nas/nextcloud/data:/var/www/html/data environment: - POSTGRES_HOST=db env_file: - db.env depends_on: - db ``` But I'm getting the following message ``` Your data directory is readable by other users Please change the permissions to 0770 so that the directory cannot be listed by other users. ``` The most important use case for this is to put the data on my NAS instead of on the server running nextcloud. And as it's just for personal use I don't care if anyone can see my files outside of nextcloud.

I don't think you need to run the php occ command at all, nextcloud will be slower but it will eventually update the external storage.

No amount of work done in a container can change permissions, only the options at the creation of the volume can.

Comment below if you need anything, too bad I am too lazy to write the fold down syntax for the sections.

simonm · April 4, 2025, 6:58pm

Have you tried this with the encrpyted plugin in pls ? I'm having issues using it. The container starts but the directorycontents are missing.