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ownCloud
Developer(s)ownCloud GmbH, Community
Stable release4.0.0 [±][1]
Repository
Written inPHP, Javascript, Go
Operating systemServer: Linux
Clients: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS
TypeOnline storage, data synchronization
LicenceServer: AGPL-3.0-or-later
Enterprise: Proprietary
Websiteowncloud.com

ownCloud is an open-source software for sharing and syning of files in distributed and federated enterprise scenarios. It allows companies and remote end-users to organize their documents on servers, computers and mobile devices and work with them collaboratively, while keeping a centrally organized, synchronized state. ownCloud supports extensions like online document editing (Collabora, OnlyOffice, Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Office Online) calendar and contact synchronization. Users can work with documents from a browser, clients for a variety of operating systems and mobile clients for Android and iPhone.

Starting with version 2.0.0 "Infinite Scale", ownCloud is programmed in Go, its web interface is written in Vue.js. Microservices, cloud-native Technologies and a three-tier-architecture without any database replace the formerly used LAMP stack. Up to version 10 ownCloud used PHP-Scripts to access SQLite, MySQL or PostgreSQL databases on the server.

History

ownCloud is a company from Nürnberg, Germany focused on enterprise users of its software. The ownCloud project was started in January 2010, the company was founded in 2011. 2016 one of the founders left the company, creating the fork Nextcloud. ownCloud GmbH continued operations, and in July 2016 secured financing from new investors and took over the business of ownCloud Inc.[2][3]

In 2018, ownCloud launched its SaaS offer for small businesses and NGOs. The service aimed to provide a secure and GDPR-compatible product for organizations without their own IT department.[4]

In March 2019, ownCloud launched the BayernBox in cooperation with the Bavarian State Office for Survey and Geoinformation, an ownCloud-based collaboration solution for the Bavarian municipalities. The deployment involves one ownCloud instance for each of the over 2,000 municipalities.[5]

In November 2022, ownCloud published version 2.0.0 "OwnCloud Infinite Scale", which was developed with help from the European Organization for Nuclear Research, CERN and is complete rewrite in the Go language and uses CERN's EOS filesystem to handle (as of 2022) 12 petabytes of data in 1.4 billion files.[6]

Server releases

Version[7] Date New Features
Current stable version: 2.0.0 "Infinite Scale" November 30, 2022 Complete overhaul of the backend, rewritten in Go and Vue.js, in cooperation with CERN. Introducing Spaces – a new concept for team work with files.
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.11.0 September 20, 2022 Many bugfixes, edit permission for public links on single files, sharing with multiple users at once, inviting new guests to Custom Groups.
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.10.0 May 14, 2022 Many bugfixes, improved management of migrations, session handling and storage.
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.9.1 January 13, 2022 Prevent encrypted files from being corrupted when overwriting them, Marketplace not working after upgrade from 10.8 to 10.9, Fixes for the newly introduced feature to store the author of versions
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.9 December 23, 2021 Initial sync faster, more detailed file locking, version control and public sharing
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.8 July 21, 2021 New ownCloud Web browser frontend, new login UI, better caching for external storages like Windows Network Drives
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.7 March 26, 2021 Preparations for upcoming workstream integrations, UI improvements, improved encryption efficiency
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.6 December 16, 2020
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.5 August 3, 2020 Official support for PHP 7.4, manual file locking in the web interface, improved background process for metadata of federated shares
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.4 March 5, 2020 Expiration dates for user and group shares, supports MariaDB up to 10.4, PostgreSQL up to 10, share indicator on webUI
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.3 October 15, 2019 New Media Viewer, improved OAuth2 session handling, improved User/group sharing UI
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.2 May 16, 2019 Advanced Sharing Permissions, SecureView, Improved Public Links, Storage Encryption with HSMs
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.1 February 7, 2019 Microsoft Office Online Integration, File Locking, Semantic Versioning, OpenCloudMesh 1.0 compliance
Older version, yet still maintained: 10.0 April 27, 2017 File integrity checks, guest accounts, custom groups, multiple link sharing, new app marketplace

Overview

Design

Desktop clients for ownCloud are available for Windows, macOS, FreeBSD and Linux, mobile clients for iOS and Android devices. Files and other data (such as calendars, contacts or bookmarks) can also be accessed, managed, and uploaded using a web browser. Updates are pushed to all computers and mobile devices connected to an account. Encryption of files may be enforced by the server administrator.[8]

Features

ownCloud files are stored in conventional directory structures and can be accessed via WebDAV if necessary. User files are encrypted both at rest and during transit. ownCloud can synchronise with local clients running Windows, macOS and various Linux distributions. ownCloud users can manage calendars (CalDAV), contacts (CardDAV) scheduled tasks and streaming media (Ampache) from within the platform.

ownCloud permits user and group administration (via OpenID or LDAP). Content can be shared by granular read/write permissions between users or groups. Alternatively, ownCloud users can create public URLs for sharing files. Furthermore, users can interact with the browser-based ODF-format word processor,[9] bookmarking service, URL shortening suite, gallery, RSS feed reader and document viewer tools from within ownCloud. ownCloud can be augmented with "one-click" applications and connection to Dropbox, Google Drive and Amazon S3.

owncloud is a software-only product which does not offer off-premise storage. The storage capacity for owncloud has to be provided on user-owned devices.[10]

Enterprise features

Enterprise customers have access to apps with additional functionality, which are intended for organizations with more than 500 users. An Enterprise subscription includes support services.

Commercial features include end-to-end encryption, ransomware and antivirus protection, branding, document classification, and single sign-on via Shibboleth/SAML.[11]

Distribution

ownCloud server and clients may be downloaded from the website, from mobile app stores, and repositories of Linux distributions. There exist projects to use ownCloud on a Raspberry Pi to create a small-scale cloud storage system.

ownCloud.online is an SaaS that offers a secure and GDPR-compatible solution for small businesses, NGOs and others without their own IT department.[12][13]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Maintenance and Release Schedule". Retrieved 2021-12-23 – via GitHub.
  2. ^ "ownCloud Secures Financing and Expands its Management Team - ownCloud". 14 July 2016.
  3. ^ "ownCloud sichert Finanzierung und baut Geschäftsführung um" (in German). 2016-06-14. Retrieved 2022-02-17.
  4. ^ "Owncloud.Online: Schlüsselfertiges und sicheres Filesharing". speicherguide.de (in German). 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  5. ^ "ownCloud: Datenaustauschplattform Bayernbox für Kommunen". speicherguide.de (in German). 2019-03-26. Retrieved 2019-06-04.
  6. ^ "ownCloud Infinite Scale geht am CERN live". OSB-Alliance.de. OSB Alliance Bundesverband für Digitale Souveränität. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  7. ^ "Download Server Packages". ownCloud.com. 5 January 2022. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  8. ^ Scott Gilbertson (2014-09-08). "OwnCloud: Fiddly but secure host-from-home sync 'n' share". The Register. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
  9. ^ Neil Bothwick (2014-02-27). "OwnCloud: Work together online". APC. Archived from the original on 2014-04-03. Retrieved 2022-02-02. ((cite web)): |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2017-11-23 suggested (help)
  10. ^ "Owncloud Features" owncloud.com
  11. ^ "All Features". ownCloud Website. 2019-01-21. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  12. ^ Frank Ohlhorst (2013-09-17). "Review: ownCloud 5 Enterprise Edition". Enterprise Networking Planet. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  13. ^ "Find the right ownCloud Edition". OwnCloud. Retrieved 2022-02-02.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to OwnCloud.
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