We’ve come to find out that the functionality of Seafile is very similar to OneDrive, Dropbox, and other cloud services. The main difference with Seafile is the fact that its open source, which means, users can host their servers rather than store their files on a traditional cloud client where privacy is a major issue moving forward.
Seafile free self-hosted file sync & share software
What we’re going to do in a moment, is check if Seafile is indeed good enough to use for the long term because if it is, then we might have just found our favorite tool for storing files in the cloud, or on our own servers to be exact.
How to use Seafile
After downloading and installing the program, you’ll come to the realization that you cannot log-in without a server. You’ll need to add your server address and log-in information before moving forward for that is the only way. From there, you can use the platform to store files and share with friends and family of your choice.
My Libraries
Once everything is up and running, you’ll see a simple user interface with white and orange colors. Furthermore, you should come across the My Libraries option because that’s where you’ll be seeing all the servers you have on file. If you want, you can create new Libraries by clicking on the New Library button at the top. If you’ve deleted a library, click the button that says More, then select Deleted Libraries. It’s very easy to use, more so than what we had anticipated.
Shared with me and groups
This is where you’ll see any libraries shared with you from other users of the SeaCloud platform. Now, in terms of Shared with groups, yes, it is possible to create groups and share libraries with anyone with them. Right away you can see the ability here to build a community centered around sharing, and since the privacy impact is minimal here, things should be much better than OneDrive, Google Drive, and Dropbox. To create a group, simply click on the New Group button at the top, set a name for the group, hit the Submit button and you’re good to go.
Tools
Under the Tools option, users have access to the following:
FavoritesActivitiesLinked DevicesShare Admin
These are just basic options. With Favorites, you’ll see all files you’ve favorited, while with Activities, it shows the last time a file has been modified, added, removed, among other things. Overall, Seafile is pretty decent, but it’s not for everyone. You see, if you do not have your own server, then you won’t be able to take full advantage of what this service offers. You can download it from seafile.com.
