Best solution for multi-platform encrypted cloud storage



  • I'm re-organizing a few things, and now I need multi-platform cloud storage. But I want (some, but not necessarily all) things to be private. So I need to encrypt the things before I upload the things, and transparently decrypt them on each client.

    How?

    Bonus points if the storage is cheap.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    So you want a service that has all the features, on all the platforms, without costing all the money? :P



  • @masonwheeler I'll pay for quality, but maybe there's competition? Maybe there's a pair of apps that work together, so that "any" cloud can act as the storage/transport layer for an encrypted file system?

    I can't be the first person to want this.



  • There's always the possibility of handrolling a tech that handles the encrypt, decrypt, etc, a la dropbox desktop client.



  • @Captain said in Best solution for multi-platform encrypted cloud storage:

    I'm re-organizing a few things, and now I need multi-platform cloud storage.

    Might help if you specified which platforms. The answer's going to be different if they're Mac Classic and BeOS.

    @Captain said in Best solution for multi-platform encrypted cloud storage:

    So I need to encrypt the things before I upload the things, and transparently decrypt them on each client.

    I don't know of any product that does this. I'd caution you not to use janky open source-esque stuff if possible, there's a lot of weird and destructive edge cases where it comes to syncing files and while Box.com and DropBox and OneDrive fixed them all like 5 years ago, you run the risk of "finding" them all over again if you're using some unproven solution.





  • @blakeyrat said in Best solution for multi-platform encrypted cloud storage:

    Might help if you specified which platforms. The answer's going to be different if they're Mac Classic and BeOS.

    Windows, Linux, and possibly OS X. Maybe Android, but that's not essential.

    there's a lot of weird and destructive edge cases

    Yeah, definitely don't want destructive edge cases. I'm sort of looking at Cryptomator and Dropbox.



  • @Captain I'm perfectly happy with DropBox, but I believe if your read up on them they keep access to your encryption key and a lot of really geeky types were up in arms about that.

    On the other hand, they have a website. Any cloud storage that lets you download from a website without needing to install a client is going to have to keep a copy of the key, because how else could they make that work?



  • @blakeyrat Yeah, I hear that. For now, I'm using Cryptomator + Dropbox + aggressive, versioned backups. Cryptomator loads up a virtual filesystem on each client, and does transparent encryption before sending the file to Dropbox (This is kind of like mounting a zip file or disk image that's stored on Dropbox). When I look at my Dropbox folder, all I see is a folder of encrypted files.

    But maybe it is janky, so I'm having my backup program keep versioned copies of everything in there.



  • @Captain I get the privacy stuff, but you're breaking DropBox's web interface (which is to say: if you have to get a file from a hotel in Zambia someday, you have no way of doing it), and probably breaking DropBox's own versioning implementation (it does that already), and also probably uploading WAY more data than you need because you modify one byte and your encrypted volume modifies 400 MB of bytes.

    If you think the tradeoffs are worth it, you might already be doing the best way of doing this.


  • Notification Spam Recipient

    We're currently using a program called Arq, it seems to fit your description but there's no Linux or FreeBSD client (yet).



  • I use DropBox and Google Drive. Anything that I want encrypted, I just put a password on the file itself... .docx and .7z both have reasonably good password security.


  • FoxDev

    @Captain said in Best solution for multi-platform encrypted cloud storage:

    I'm re-organizing a few things, and now I need multi-platform cloud storage. But I want (some, but not necessarily all) things to be private. So I need to encrypt the things before I upload the things, and transparently decrypt them on each client.

    How?

    Bonus points if the storage is cheap.

    Cross platform encrypted storage?

    is better cloud sync anyway.
    supports for FREE:

    • Selective sync
    • Automatic desync of non recent items when space on target device grows tight
    • Cross platform support
    • Scriptable interface
    • Sync multiple providers in one app, it has a rediculous list of sync hosts, and includes FTP, SFTP, WebDAV too!
      • I sync the following providers myself
      • 0_1497473975340_2060e6dd-61aa-4072-997b-f7bcc0f4558e-image.png

    Encrypted storage is a premium feature (8.57$/month when paid annually currently) but you can try it for free for 30 days to decide if you want to pay.

    then you just hook up whatever cloud storage provider you want and Robert is your father's sister.

    and if you decide to switch cloud storage providers you don't have to switch sync clients, or worry that the sync client doesn't support your device.

    ALL THE WINS!

    This post was not sponsored in any way by the makers of odrive...... and i mean it.


  • @accalia How is it technically? Does it do stupid shit like keeping your HD spinning because it polls instead of asking the OS for filesystem update events?


  • FoxDev

    @blakeyrat said in Best solution for multi-platform encrypted cloud storage:

    Does it do stupid shit like keeping your HD spinning because it polls instead of asking the OS for filesystem update events?

    not that i've noticed, but don't take my word for it, try it out and see. it's free! unless you want premium features, and those are free without a credit card or nothing for 30 days.

    so you have no excuse not to try!


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