Skip to main content

Mounting IREIcloud as a Local Drive

Nextcloud exposes your files over WebDAV, which means you can mount your Nextcloud storage as if it were a local drive or folder, without having to sync files manually through the desktop client. This guide covers Windows, macOS, Linux, and our HPC system.

Throughout this guide, replace <username> with your Nextcloud username and <app-password> with an app password generated under Settings → Security → Devices & sessions. Using an app password instead of your real account password is strongly recommended, since it can be revoked independently if a device is lost.

The base WebDAV URL for our Nextcloud instance is:

https://ireigogn.hi.is/remote.php/dav/files/<username>/

Windows​

Native WebDAV support on Windows is unreliable

Windows' built-in WebDAV client is known to be slow, prone to timeouts, and generally unreliable for anything beyond casual, occasional access. We do not recommend it for regular use. Please use one of the third-party tools below instead.

We recommend one of the following tools, both of which have first-class Nextcloud support:

ToolCostExperience
CyberduckFree (donation-ware)Browser-style interface — open and transfer files without a drive letter
Mountain DuckPaid (one-time license)Mounts Nextcloud as a real drive letter in File Explorer, just like a USB drive

If you want the most seamless experience — editing files directly in Word, saving back to Nextcloud, etc. — Mountain Duck is worth the cost. If you just need to transfer files occasionally, Cyberduck is a great free option.

Connection settings for both tools:

  • Protocol: WebDAV (HTTPS)
  • Server: ireigogn.hi.is
  • Path: /remote.php/dav/files/<username>/
  • Username: your Nextcloud username
  • Password: your app password

Native Windows WebDAV (not recommended — casual use only)​

If you still want to use the built-in Windows WebDAV mount:

  1. Open File Explorer, right-click This PC and choose Map network drive….
  2. Pick an unused drive letter (e.g. Z:).
  3. In the Folder field, enter: 
    https://ireigogn.hi.is/remote.php/dav/files/<username>/
  4. Check Connect using different credentials, then click Finish.
  5. Enter your Nextcloud username and app password when prompted.

Expect occasional connection drops, slow directory listings, and failures with large files.

macOS​

Finder's native WebDAV connection is not reliable for large files

Finder can connect to Nextcloud over WebDAV, but it is not suitable for transferring large files or sustained use — connections drop unexpectedly and file transfers can silently fail. We recommend using a third-party tool for anything beyond quick, occasional access.

The same tools recommended for Windows work equally well on macOS:

ToolCostExperience
CyberduckFree (donation-ware)Browser-style interface for browsing and transferring files
Mountain DuckPaid (one-time license)Mounts Nextcloud as a volume in Finder, fully integrated with macOS File Provider API

Connection settings for both tools:

  • Protocol: WebDAV (HTTPS) (or choose Nextcloud if listed explicitly)
  • Server: ireigogn.hi.is
  • Path: /remote.php/dav/files/<username>/
  • Username: your Nextcloud username
  • Password: your app password

Native Finder WebDAV (not recommended — casual use only)​

  1. Open Finder and choose Go → Connect to Server… (Cmd+K).
  2. Enter: 
    https://ireigogn.hi.is/remote.php/dav/files/<username>/
  3. Click Connect, choose Registered User, enter your username and app password.

The volume will appear under Locations in Finder. To reconnect at login, add it to System Settings → General → Login Items. Be aware that large file transfers are unreliable through this method.

Linux​

There are two common approaches: davfs2 for a true filesystem mount, or your file manager's built-in GVfs WebDAV support for a quick graphical mount.

  1. Install davfs2:

    # Debian/Ubuntu
    sudo apt install davfs2

    # Fedora/RHEL
    sudo dnf install davfs2

  2. Create a mount point:

    sudo mkdir -p /mnt/nextcloud

  3. Add an entry to /etc/fstab:

    https://ireigogn.hi.is/remote.php/dav/files/<username>/ /mnt/nextcloud davfs user,rw,auto 0 0

  4. Store credentials securely instead of typing them every mount, in /etc/davfs2/secrets (root-readable only):

    /mnt/nextcloud <username> <app-password>
    sudo chmod 600 /etc/davfs2/secrets

  5. Mount it:

    sudo mount /mnt/nextcloud

Option B: GVfs (Nautilus/Files, GNOME-based desktops)​

  1. Open your file manager (e.g. Files/Nautilus).

  2. Go to Other Locations.

  3. In the address bar at the bottom, enter:

    davs://ireigogn.hi.is/remote.php/dav/files/<username>/

    (note: davs:// not https://)

  4. Enter your username and app password when prompted.

This mounts under /run/user/<uid>/gvfs/ and is convenient for quick access, but it isn't a real POSIX mount, so it won't work well for command-line tools or scripts.

HPC Cluster (Elja-IRHPC)​

Mounting Nextcloud directly on the HPC cluster requires membership in a restricted group, since WebDAV mounts on shared compute infrastructure have to be controlled carefully.

1. Request access​

Mounting Nextcloud storage on the HPC system is gated behind the [GROUP_NAME] group. To request access:

Include your HPC username and a brief justification for needing direct Nextcloud access from the cluster.

Once approved, you'll be added to the group, and you should log out and back in (or run newgrp davfs2) for the membership to take effect.

2. Store your credentials​

Once you're in the group, set up your WebDAV credentials in ~/.davfs2/secrets (same format as the standalone Linux instructions above):

mkdir -p ~/.davfs2
cat <<EOF > ~/.davfs2/secrets
https://ireigogn.hi.is/remote.php/dav/files/<hpcusername>/ <hpcusername> <app-password>
EOF
chmod 600 ~/.davfs2/secrets

Use your link login name (HPC username) and the app password generated in Nextcloud, not your regular account password.

3. Mount and unmount with cloud_connect2​

The cluster provides a wrapper script, cloud_connect2, that handles the davfs2 mount/unmount for you using the credentials in ~/.davfs2/secrets. Your Nextcloud storage is mounted at:

/hpchome/share/mnt/<hpcusername>

To mount:

cloud_connect2

To unmount:

cloud_connect2 --unmount
Mount/unmount in batch jobs

Because HPC nodes are shared, you must not leave the mount open outside of active use. If your job reads from or writes to your Nextcloud storage, mount it at the start of the job and unmount it at the end, inside the same batch script:

#!/bin/bash
#SBATCH --job-name=my-job
#SBATCH ...

cloud_connect2

# your calculations, reading/writing under /hpchome/share/mnt/<hpcusername>
./my_program --input /hpchome/share/mnt/<hpcusername>/data --output ./results

cloud_connect2 --unmount

Leaving the mount active after your job finishes (or across multiple concurrent jobs) can cause conflicts or stale mounts on shared nodes, so always unmount as one of the last steps in the script, even if the job fails partway through — consider wrapping the calculation step with a trap to guarantee cloud_connect2 --unmount runs on exit.

Encrypting Sensitive Files​

Nextcloud's built-in end-to-end encryption has known reliability issues and is not recommended for protecting sensitive research data. Instead, we suggest using Cryptomator — a free, open-source tool that provides transparent client-side encryption on top of any cloud storage, including Nextcloud.

How it works​

Cryptomator creates an encrypted vault — a folder that lives on your Nextcloud storage as ordinary (but scrambled) files. When you open the vault with Cryptomator, it appears as a regular drive or folder on your computer where you can read and write files normally. All encryption and decryption happens locally on your machine; only the encrypted data ever reaches the Nextcloud server.

This means:

  • Your files are protected even if the server is compromised
  • The vault works with any Nextcloud client — it's just a folder of encrypted files
  • You control the encryption key via a password you choose at vault creation

On Windows and macOS (with Cyberduck or Mountain Duck)​

Both Cyberduck and Mountain Duck have native Cryptomator vault support built in. You can open and work with a Cryptomator vault directly through the app without installing anything extra:

  1. In Cyberduck or Mountain Duck, browse to the folder on Nextcloud where you want the vault.
  2. Choose File → New Vault… (or equivalent in your version).
  3. Set a strong passphrase — this is the only key to your data, so store it safely.
  4. The vault folder is created on Nextcloud and you can immediately read/write through it as normal.

To open an existing vault, simply navigate to it in the app and enter the passphrase when prompted.

On Linux and as a standalone app​

Download the Cryptomator desktop app from cryptomator.org — available for Linux, Windows, and macOS. It presents a simple vault manager where you add a vault, point it at a folder inside your mounted Nextcloud directory (e.g. /mnt/nextcloud/my-vault), and unlock it with your passphrase. The unlocked vault appears as a virtual drive you can use like any other folder.

Mobile access

Cryptomator has iOS and Android apps (small one-time purchase) that can open the same vaults directly from the Nextcloud mobile app, so your encrypted files are accessible on all your devices.

Keep your passphrase safe

There is no password recovery. If you lose the vault passphrase, the encrypted data cannot be recovered — by you or by the administrators. Store it in a password manager.

  • 401 Unauthorized: Make sure you're using an app password, not your regular login password — Nextcloud rejects regular passwords for WebDAV if two-factor authentication is enabled.
  • Slow listing of large folders: This is a known WebDAV limitation with folders containing thousands of files. Consider using the desktop sync client for those folders instead.
  • Mount disappears after sleep/reboot: On Linux, ensure the auto option is in your fstab entry, or set up a systemd.mount unit for more reliable reconnects.