IAMCURI.US

Every once in a while I get this notion that I need to move my data off of sites
like Dropbox, OneDrive, and so forth. When I do, I start playing around with
self-hosted services such as NextCloud, OwnCloud, and so forth. I'm currently in
one of those cycles and have been playing around a good bit with Nextcloud.

I've even coupled it with OnlyOffice so that I can edit documents in the
"cloud". As I began playing with this stuff, though, I struggled with my "why".
Here's where I am right now.

My Current Setup

Let me say upfront that I use OneDrive for most of my document storage. That
came about partly because I use a Microsoft Surface, as well as a Windows laptop
that doesn't have a large storage capacity. Being able to write a document in
Word and send it straight to the cloud service, and then to have that document
available from any computer I work on (I have several) is a great convenience.
Now, it's important, here, to note that I actually have two OneDrive accounts:
The 5 GB free one and a 1 TB paid service through my Office365 account. I
actually use the paid account as my Exchange server more than for file storage,
but that option is available to me.

Most of my documents, though, are saved to a Linux-based local network file
server. All of my computers are attached to that file server so that I can
access my files from that machine. The OneDrive folder that is synced to to
cloud service actually lives on that local server and is mapped to a drive on my
Windows laptop. This ensures both that I have local access and have a backup of
those files I consider critical. (They're also backed up locally to another
computer.) Ensuring that those critical files are backed up off site is
important
and one of the arguments I have against self-hosted "cloud services". What is
the point of "self-hosting" if you're then going to back up those same files to
an online backup service?

One of the arguments that I frequently hear is that these services allow me to
access my files from anywhere. This is true. And, if I'm not on my own computer
( a rare occurrence), this can be a very important, even critical, feature. In
my case, though, I have all of my mobile devices set to access my local network
through a VPN. My Ubiquiti Edgerouter X made setting up that VPN almost trivial
and works flawlessly. So, so long as I have one of my mobile devices, I can
access my internal network and all the files available there. No need for a
webservice to provide that intermediate layer.

Privacy Concerns

In most of the online discussions surrounding these types of self-hosted
services, the primary reason for moving from a "cloud host" to a self-hosted
solution is privacy. After all, we don't want those big, bad companies mining
our files for information. As I considered this argument, though, I had to come
to the conclusion that it didn't really matter to me. First of all, there's
really nothing in my files that I feel is so important that it needs to be
secured. If I have such files (various bills and statements come to mind), I
don't put them in my Dropbox or OneDrive folder. They live in a local folder.
Most of what I store in the online services are downloaded PDF files or
documents that
I received through my educational experiences. Those are already generally
publicly available. And, while they might provide some insight into what
interests me, they would hardly provide anything that could be considered
compromising. So, privacy, at least for me, isn't much of an issue.

Now, having said that, I do have to concede one area that could become
problematic from the privacy perspective. I write a lot. Most of it is for
working out my own thoughts and ideas. Some of it is part of various projects
that I'm working on (stories, or my dissertation, for example). Although not
sensitive in the sense of compromising my privacy, these writings do involve
some levels of
copyright. Should my online account at one of these big providers be
compromised, my claim to copyright on these documents could be compromised. The
likelihood of that occurring is minimal, but it is, nonetheless, a risk.

Security

Security, to me, is part of, but separate from, privacy. A secure service
protects my privacy, to be sure. But what I'm referring to here is protecting
my work from loss. If I have files that I truly do not want to lose, I want to
ensure that I've got them saved in multiple places so that I can be sure that I
don't lose them. As I mentioned earlier in this post, I have taken measures to
ensure that my important files are backed up to another computer in the event
that my server or hard drive crashes. But, if my house burns down, I'm still
out of luck. Except that I've also saved those files to my OneDrive account.

The issue with saving them to an outside vendor, whether it be Dropbox, Box, or
OneDrive, is that those companies might, at any given moment, decide to simply
disappear from the face of the Earth, taking my important files with them.

Alternately, they may sell out to another company that doesn't take the same
precautions, or that decides to hold my data hostage. Not an enticing scenario
and, hopefully, an unlikely one. But, taking that risk is ..., well, a risk.

Storage -- The Defining Factor

Perhaps the biggest draw for using a service like Nextcloud is available
storage. Unlike the online providers, all of which limit storage, storage for
your self-hosted Nextcloud account is limited only by the available storage on
the server in your home. Need More? Add another drive, or upgrade to a larger
one.

As I mentioned earlier, my free OneDrive account is limited to
5 GB of storage. Dropbox is currently limited to 2GB and will cost you $100 for
a 1TB option. Box offers 10 GB storage with their free plan and $120 a year for
a 100GB plan. Oh, and all these have upload caps, so if you're uploading big
files, you might be out of luck. As I mentioned earlier, I have Office365
account that provides my Exchange services, as well as 1TB storage. I'm
probably good there (I don't remember if there are upload limits, though I'm
sure there are!) But, I've have that account for about 6 years, during which
time I've watched the provided services change and generally decline. I would
not be surprised if, on my next renewal, the amount of available (paid) storage
diminishes. And, that is the risk with all of these services, particularly the
free services: At any time the provide can choose to lower their limits and
suddenly you're locked out of your data, or required to pony up cash to keep the
account usable.

Again, this is not really an issue for me. Part of the reason is because I do
have that
1TB of
paid-for storage, but more importantly because I have several TB of storage on
my local server, without upload limits, and have easy access through my VPN.

So, Where Am I Truly At?

For right now, I'm leaving the Nextcloud and OnlyOffice servers running.
Whether I will use them is a question that only time will answer. I'm intrigued
by the ability to do on-line editing much as Office Online and Google Docs can
do. In fact, I don't really see any differences between the various online
editing services based on my general use cases. I'll continue to play with them
to see whether they meet any specific need that I might have not yet identified.

As I wind down my dissertation work my needs for high-powered writing tools
diminishes, as does my need for document storage. In that light, Nextcloud may
provide all the services I need for daily work. Time will tell that tale.

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