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Pros
Cons
Dropbox Business
Nextcloud
Google Drive
Recommended
Octavi P.
Verified reviewer
Research, 1,001-5,000 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Having the capacity to get to every one of my documents from anyplace is incredible. I have a few terabytes of documents on my server, more than I would ever store with any of the cloud suppliers out there, in any event not at a sensible cost. When it is set up and designed it is entirely strong and does the activity I require it to do.
It has phenomenal capacities which encourages me keep my work all together, with my associates, I can synchronize every one of the records on various PCs, it's super sheltered since I can encode the documents, has online music peruser, online content tool, watcher of online archives (PDF, OpenDocument), among numerous different capacities.
The confounded method to coordinate different advances like FTP. The documentation for the execution of different techniques like FTP is somewhat confounded in comparisson with different instructional exercises.
Alson K.
Verified reviewer
Design, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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We have been using ownCloud as a Dropbox alternative for my company for years now. We find that owning our own data is better than leaving it on the cloud. Our installation is not accessible without VPN.
Open-source means lots of plugins and support for the software.
Not as well contributed lately as compared to NextCloud
Dear Alson, Thanks a lot for your review. We are so happy to know that you find ownCloud convenient and affordable. The Enterprise version of ownCloud offers a host of extra features and support. Perhaps you would like a free trial? https://owncloud.com/get-started/ If you have any further feedback or questions, please feel free to get in touch with us at community@owncloud.com. We also welcome you to join our community.
Giovanni S.
Information Technology and Services, 10,001+ employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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installation instruction are quite good. But you need some expertise to setup several configuration like secure access. Great point. it is completely free and work really well
The main pro is that this platform is open, the cons is that you need to have good skill to deploy it and configure. Globally most of the feature work really well like the cloud storage, that has a really good access through web, client and mobile app. Nice also the feature to integrate your mail, calendar, food task manager. Integrated editor for document is quite difficult to install. Beware cause you need to have a good machine where to install, with enough resource to make the service reliable
Owncloud has become a minor stream of this project. Mostly Nextcloud is the new evolution with more update and feature.
Dear Giovanni, Thank you so much for your review! It's great to hear that you found many features of ownCloud to be useful. If you ever face any issues while using ownCloud or need assistance, you are welcome to discuss it in our forum (https://central.owncloud.org/) and submit notifications regarding bugs in GitHub. If you have any questions or further feedback, feel free to contact us at: community@owncloud.com
Eric M.
Computer Software, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Besides being a "better DropBox", OwnCloud has the ability to use plugins. It has a MarketPlace where you can search for various types of plugins. Most of the plugins are free too.
OwnCloud is wonderful. It runs on your own server so the only limitations to the amount of storage space you have is the amount of disk space on your server. You can create public links with or without password protection, and you can schedule the link to automatically deactivate. You can have as many synchronized folders as you want (not just one like DropBox). You can share each of these folders with different people or groups, and you have full control over the type of access: read only, write only (drop box), or read/write. Best of all, OwnCloud is an open-source product and it's all absolutely free.
OwnCloud has an automatic update feature but I've had it fail more times than I've had it succeed. It's not all that hard to upgrade manually, but an automatic update would be much much nicer.
Roberto R.
Information Technology and Services, self-employed
Used daily for 6-12 months
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The software is great. It does its job and it does it perfect.
It's great to have autonomy on your cloud. You can get file storage that adapts to your very own infrastructure, plus it has a lot of plugins to interact with your data.
At some point the community divided and the product was forked, which left the people that uses it with two choices.
Jennifer P.
Internet, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 1-2 years
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My experience was good. It is easy to organize files, share certain files with certain people and keep confidential files confidential. The easy drag and drop features allows for document migration to happen quite quickly. I also love that I can access files anywhere.
This software is great for office sharing and collaboration. Considering we have remote employees, I can upload a document and they instantly have access to it. It also does not take up a ton of bandwidth space like Dropbox is known for.
There were some features that it did not have that we wanted.
Dear Jennifer, Thank you so much for your review! It's great to hear that you found many features of ownCloud to be useful. The satisfaction of our users is our biggest achievement. If you have any questions or further feedback, feel free to contact us at: community@owncloud.com
Anonymous Reviewer
Verified reviewer
Computer Software, self-employed
Used daily for 2+ years
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It's great to have your storage in house. The piece of mind that you know where your data is at all times is important, but also, nothing beats local for speed. The clients (I use Windows, Linux and Android clients) make it super easy to sync across different devices - set up once and forget about it!
I've been going back and forth between ownCloud and Nextcloud (an ownCloud fork) for a couple of years. Started out with ownCloud, switched to Nextcloud, then found out that ownCloud development had caught up and then some, and switched back. Luckily switching is easy but ideally, you want the best of both.
Anonymous Reviewer
Verified reviewer
Oil & Energy, 51-200 employees
Used daily for 6-12 months
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Great software and a great idea for anyone who wants their own self-hosted cloud storage. No sharing, and you keep full control over your data. What's not to love?
OwnCloud is seriously cool. I used it for a few years on my personal server, making use of that storage for my cloud hosting. It was surprisingly easy-to-install, no hiccups or weird configuration problems with my server (I had it running on BlueHost), and the user interface was straightforward and easy to use. I didn't purchase the smartphone app, although that would have been really cool to try out.
The software is available at no charge, so it's silly to complain, but I would have liked the interface to be a bit less sterile looking. I imagine the paid platform probably targets enterprises that want on-premise, self-hosted solutions and don't care about having a fun and attractive UI, and to be fair, ownClouds UI is super clean and it is appealing, but it would have been nice if it was just a little less "Microsoftey." That's a pretty minimal complaint though.
Abdelkadir B.
Verified reviewer
Education Management, 51-200 employees
Used daily for 6-12 months
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We often have to send large files to our students This process has always been difficult, and we've tried a variety of approaches throughout the years. None has proven as user-friendly and dependable as ownCloud. It has made my life much easier.
I believe that ownCloud is one of the greatest products for securely sharing files, the software is accessible from all major platforms. It's simple to set up and easy to access and find my stored materials.
- Time-consuming to set up - Low storage capacity - Performance issues and bugs
Dear Abdelkadir B., Thank you very much for your review! With regards to the setting up of ownCloud and your experience of it being time-consuming, this is something we are continuously improving. You mention some bugs and issues: our product is open source and we therefore rely on getting feedback from the community: we highly appreciate it when users report any bugs to us via GitHub! Feel free to visit our community section on our website for information on how you can contribute feedback or reach out to us directly. Best Regards, Katrin Giza Community Manager, E-Mail: community@ownCloud.com
Anonymous Reviewer
Verified reviewer
Information Services, 51-200 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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for a free solution it is one of the best choices in the opensource world.
It is your own server so it is the best to secure by your own way. Cook it as you prefer.
The Admin Panel lacks lots to enterprise features. The base idea of sharing files is not intuitive. It tooks a bit to get used of its limit.
John Paolo D.
Telecommunications, 201-500 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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We're very satisfied with OwnCloud considering the price we pay for it. We're not considering to move out of it in the next coming years.
We've switched from DropBox due to one feature it miss which is on-prem support. We use OwnCloud in an on-premise deployment method and now we're more comfortable that our files are more secured unlike before. Also OwnCloud supports server-side encryption as well
It doesn't have any support for file locking. Lack of ability to detect duplicate changes on the same file by 2 different users.
Arnaud G.
Oil & Energy, 5,001-10,000 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Multi-language is supported on the web interface but is not available on the desktop client as far as I know.
Synchronization of local documents with the online web platform is automatic, very efficient and fast. You can manage rights on your shared folders. You can be notified by mail when someone change a file on a shared folder. You can send a download link to an external user with a validity limit. OwnCloud is a WebDAV server, so files can be opened thru a web url in Microsoft products and other tools. You can have your own OwnCloud server on-premises. SSO authentication and Custom branding make a great integration with internal tools.
The solution is not optimized for very big files.
Anonymous Reviewer
Verified reviewer
Venture Capital & Private Equity, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Möglichkeit des einfachen Dateiuploads durch Mandanten
Sehr gute Dateifreigabe an Externe User. Top Kalenderfunktion.
Zu bearbeitende Dokumente müssen immer downgeloadet werden, wenn man an einem Gerät arbeitet ohne Clientsoftware.
Showing original review in German. See translation
Hello! Thanks a lot for your review. We are so happy to know that you find our ownCloud features convenient to use. With the integration for Office 365 Desktop, you can open a file from the ownCloud Web interface directly in Office 365 securely without downloading. Read more about it here: https://owncloud.com/owncloud-and-microsoft/ If you have any further feedback or questions, please feel free to get in touch with us at community@owncloud.com. We also welcome you to join our community.
Anonymous Reviewer
Verified reviewer
Computer Software, 11-50 employees
Used weekly for 1-2 years
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We frequently have to share very large files (zip files, videos, etc.) with our clients for their approvals. This process was always complicated and we employed a number of solutions over the years. None has been as easy to use and as reliable as ownCloud. It has literally made my life easier. I am able to organize files into folders with separate passwords and urls allowing me to share only what is needed to specific people. I know that my clients will be able to access and download what they need, when they need it. That gives me great piece of mind.
This software makes it very easy and RELIABLE to share files with our clients and others. It offers a very easy to use interface and has NEVER failed to upload or download. Prior to getting this tool, we struggled with method for sharing (especially large) files with our clients. Once our IT dept got a hold of ownCloud and customized it for our use, my life got measurably easier.
The only issue I have ever had with it is when I was surprised by a site expiring. Now, I know it was my fault to set a date and then forget it...but it would be nice to receive a notice when an expiration date is nearing. I have learned how to manage that better, but would still appreciate a notification.
moncef b.
Photography, self-employed
Used daily for 6-12 months
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I will not need the flash USB and the hard disk from now and that make me save more money and more safety.
At the website OwnCloud you can customize your all data and save them in diferent files, this make the access more quickly and easy at any time you want, ther is no losted data at all when you trasfer your files and uploaded them to OweCloud, you put them in the right place. i consider this website my degital USB especially when i upload my photogtraphy data like backgraounds, effects and frames.
Actually i don't like the theme of the dashboard it would be more colorful.
Dear Moncef, Thank you so much for your kind review! We are so proud to be your digital USB in your photography work. If you haven't already, do check out our brand new Web UI. We invested a lot of time and effort in making it more user-friendly and visually appealing. If you have any questions or further feedback, feel free to contact us at: community@owncloud.com
andrew f.
Information Technology and Services, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 1-2 years
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Experience is overall positive as the benefits typically outweigh any difficulties. Data sovereignty and geo-fencing regulations are some of the main reasons I consider using ownCloud.
Controlling your own data, while enjoying much of the benefits of the likes of dropbox or onedrive. Ability to link mobile phones and sync contacts and calendars. File/folder sync between devices.
Update process between versions can be cumbersome depending on your installation and set up method.
Javier Victor Marian B.
Verified reviewer
Government Administration, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 6-12 months
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I love owncloud, i been there almost since it born, and I'm using it now, actively participating in the community.
I been using owncloud for at least 10 years. I'm part of the translation to spanish too. I got mad at bugs, problems, etc, but this growed quick and bugs were repaired. Now, is the solution that I use internal in the institution (government) and for my personal customers, for backup. The big pro is that the space its what you can afford in hard drives. Easy to maintain. Secure. With a lot of addons for productivity and integration. Clients for every single OS that exist.
As same as dropbox and other products, the big con that I found is that every time that the client starts needs to scan all folders. In big folders with a lot of files, this take a while and it use a lot of hard drive. So when your OS starts client will kill the HD until finishing the indexing of files.
Michelle L.
Mechanical or Industrial Engineering, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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My experience has been positive, I will continue to use and tell others about it
We have had ZERO issues with this software, works great and is also a perfect alternative to store documents that others need to access
I do not have anything to say about this software that would be a con
Thank you very much for this review. Great to hear that you have had zero issues and that ownCloud is helpful for your work. Just in case any questions or issues should arise, we are always happy to help. So don't hesitate to contact us, for details see: https://owncloud.org/help/
Anonymous Reviewer
Verified reviewer
Used daily for 1-2 years
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Owncloud is absolutely wonderful. With pricing of storage going up everywhere else, OwnCloud's system is the one to beat. Open source, it works just like Dropbox/Onedrive and other systems we've already used. It's quick to set up, most web hosts can handle it with no issues. You can customize your login page, your admins, and using it is pretty intuitive. If you're looking for customized storage that you control, OwnCloud will do the job well.
When first added, there were a few errors that I had to have my host sort, because I couldn't find any documentation on them for the OwnCloud. Since it's open source, it doesn't have a very robust support system.
Artemio E.
Verified reviewer
Computer Software, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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OwnCloud has a good community support, is easy to implement and deploy.
Performance issues with many small files.
Dear Artemio, thank you for your review! We are glad to read that the community support is good. When it comes to the issues you mention about the performance with many small files, you are welcome to let us know more about this. We have a forum for issues https://central.owncloud.org/ and you can submit bugs in GitHub. We always appreciate receiving feedback if you have any questions, please contact us at: community@owncloud.com.
fred m.
Internet, self-employed
Used daily for 2+ years
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I have used this as my own cloud solution to keep records and utilities online
I get to control who accesses and what is utilized on my owncloud
Having to set things up takes a lot of time
Dear fred - thank you for your review! Please let us know in case you have any suggestions for improvement and feel free to join our community as well. There are many ways to contribute. If you have any questions get in touch: community@owncloud.com!
Mark M.
Information Technology and Services, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Owncloud served us well, was very stable and reliable and packed with functionality - highly recommended especially for commercial applications.
This is a really great piece of software that has been well designed and implemented and does a great job in solving many problems and improving productivity.
The fork to Nextcloud with purer development goals made a point in time where the leap to a new platform become compelling.
Binod B.
Higher Education, 501-1,000 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Overall Owncloud is a perfect place to organize and backup your files and documents.
We used Owncloud as our backup storage of our organization documents. I liked the ease of upload, share and version control.
Sometimes uploading a folder and subfolders wasn't easy. One had to zip it before uploading which was a little time consuming. But for single files there was no such problem.
Scott J.
Information Technology and Services, 5,001-10,000 employees
Used daily for less than 6 months
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While I ultimately decided to go with Nextcloud over this one they both work really well and if the idea of an enterprise version appeals to you for business reasons then this is the way to go. Own cloud functions well and does a fantastic job of syncing files between my computers and MY cloud.
Keep your files onsite. you don't have to relinquish control of your files to some cloud provider to enjoy the sync and sharing privileges that they offer you can run your own cloud. This is a storage platform that stores your files like Dropbox and sync's them with your computer or computers . They have clients for Linux, Mac , Windows, Android and iOS. There is a free version but also there is a paid enterprise version with expanded features. There is also a growing market place of apps that you can install on your instance to expand functionality even further.
Can be a little complicated to setup initially. Not all features are available in the free/open source version.
Remi D.
Information Services, self-employed
Used daily for 2+ years
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Pretty easy to install for an open-source solution Easy to configure & upgrade
The cache configuration can be complicated to configure. I have an issue on sharing a file on an external storage. Développers know about it, but it seems complicated to solve