How to Build a Personal DIY Cloud Storage System With Remote Access
Cloud storage is a necessity today with so much data around us. It helps secure your important files from accidental data loss and allows you to access the files from anywhere remotely. Although you get some free storage space with many cloud providers, it may not be enough for your needs, and you may have to shell out for their paid plans.
In this guide, you will learn to build your own unlimited cloud storage solution using a small $10 Raspberry Pi Zero W and use it to synchronize, upload and access your files or data remotely using your smartphone or computer.
Things You Will Need to Build DIY Cloud Storage
You will need the following to build a DIY cloud storage solution with secure remote access:
Install and Set Up Nextcloud Server
To install andset up a Nextcloud server on Raspberry PiZero W, 2, 3, or 4, follow the steps below. If you are using an old laptop with a Linux distro (Ubuntu), you can skip this step.
Step 1: Flash Raspberry Pi Lite OS
Download, install and use the Raspberry Pi Imager tool to flash the micro SD card with Raspberry Pi Lite OS.
After the flash, open the boot partition and create ansshfile and awpa_supplicant.conffile. In thewpa_supplicant.conffile, paste and save the following code. check that to update the code with your Wi-Fi SSID and password.
Remove the card from the system, insert it into your Raspberry Pi and connect the power supply to turn it on.
Step 2: Install Nextcloud
Next, follow the step-by-step instructions below carefully to avoid any confusion:
To expose your DIY cloud storage, i.e. Nextcloud,to the internet for remote access, follow the next steps.
Install and Set Up a Cloudflare Tunnel
To install and set up a Cloudflare Tunnel to securely access your DIY cloud storage from anywhere, follow these steps.
Step 1: Add Site to Cloudflare
Get a free domain nameat Freenom or purchase one from a domain registrar, such as GoDaddy or BigRock and add the domain to Cloudflare by following the instructions given below.
Since we have already updated the nameservers, we don’t need to add any records for now. you may click onContinueand hitConfirm.
Step 2: Install Cloudflared Service on Raspberry Pi
To install Cloudlfared service on Raspberry Pi, open the Terminal or Putty and connect via SSH. Then follow these instructions:
Step 3: Set Up the Cloudflare Tunnel
To create a secure tunnel to access your DIY Nextcloud storage, run the following command in the terminal window,
Now, copy the displayed tunnel UUID and the JSON file path.
Create and edit the Cloudflared configuration file orconfig.ymlfile using the following command.
In the editor terminal window, paste the following code.
Make sure to replace thetunnel UUIDandcredentials-filepath. Also, update thehostnameyou want to give to your DIY cloud storage and update the IP in theservice:field.
To save the changes, pressCTRL+Xand thenY,followed by theEnterkey.
Finally, create a DNS entry in Cloudflare by executing the following command,
Now, you could start the secure tunnel.
Once the tunnel has started, you can add the domain name in Nextcloud trusted domain to avoid the following access error.
To fix this, run the following command in the SSH terminal window.
In the editor, add your domain (hostname) to include it as a trusted domain, as shown highlighted in the below code.
PressCTRL+Xfollowed byYand theEnterkey to save the changes.
Now, you can open the web browser or install the Nextcloud app on your Android or iOS smartphone or tablet to remotely access, upload or synchronize your files or data to and from your DIY Nextcloud storage.
No More Paying for Cloud Storage
With this DIY cloud storage, you don’t need to subscribe to cloud storage providers to store and access all your data remotely. it’s possible to increase the storage anytime based on your needs, which will require a one-time investment for purchasing the external storage media, such as an SSD or hard drive. You may also purchase and set up RAID storage for redundancy and protect your data from vanishing due to a drive failure.
Looking for the cheapest cloud storage possible? Here are the best budget cloud storage options for 1TB, 100GB, and other tiers.
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