I installed the OwnCloud app on an Android 6.0.1 device, but realised that it doesn't work for files over about 2-5MB. The problem is that (a) the app will cancel all pending downloads if it's terminated and never retry them, and (b) it gets terminated if the phone goes to sleep or you switch apps. So literally the only way to have my videos upload is if I sit there and poke the screen while the OC app runs in the foreground. Even then it's pretty flaky, and retrying uploads doesn't really help, it just starts the whole cycle again.
I tried FolderSync, but it doesn't do instant upload, just very coarse grained scheduling.
Is there an Android app that will reliably upload files bigger than a few MB and is good for instant uploading of camera media?
I set a bunch of videos to upload, or record a bunch.
I leave the phone or even just use another app.
I come back and all the uploads have failed due to "the app was terminated". This might also happen if wifi drops out.
I retry the failed uploads.
→ 2. forever.
I have, so far, not been able to reliably upload a single file larger than about 5MB unless I've literally sat there poking the phone to keep it awake and OwnCloud active. I've been trying this all day, looking for alternatives, and nothing works.
This is mostly due to issue #1766 and the fact that the OC app never retries or resumes failed downloads.
Hence, I'd like to know if there's an app out there that will upload files reliably (ie. as reliably as Dropbox or Google Drive). Instant upload is also a must because I'm travelling soon, and can't rely on having wifi connections that I can schedule around.
The device is a Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini running Cyanogenmod 13. Since posting I've also tried Cirrus and CottonCloud, both of which are identical in behaviour to the official app.
@detly, I'm sorry, but I put all my time in developing the ownCloud Android app, so I don't know what other apps could suggest to you. Sorry.
I would recommend you to review the battery saving settings of your device. Killing the app when you just switch to other apps is not a regular behaviour in Android, it's too aggressive.
We are aware of some problems existing with Doze in Android 6 and Android 7 devices, and we'll fix them, but your case with Cyanogenmod is probably out of our scope.
The battery settings are the default, and work fine for every other app. I understand that Android will regularly kill apps depending on device resources; it's just a fact of the platform. Wifi connections drop out; that's also a given. Apps like Dropbox have the ability to resume partial uploads (and retry failures) for this reason. Even if it didn't happen very often, it's still something that needs to be dealt with.
I can understand that with limited resources, this is something I'll have to wait for or do without in the official app. Hence why I'd like to find out if there is any way to have camera syncing with OwnCloud some other way at the present time.
Note that with even a few videos waiting to upload, the total upload time might be hours. I don't think you can rely on Android not swapping out an app for that long no matter what you're running, surely?
Indeed, depending on Android version and device manufacturer, you can trust that the app might be running in background for hours. But not in Android 6 or 7.
Improvements in retry policy and battery handling are in the backlog, and will get there. Meanwhile, I only can suggest you try to disable "Battery optimization" for the ownCloud app. Go to 'Device settings' > 'Battery' > Top right menu > 'Battery optimization' ; the tap on the filter 'Not optimized' and change it to 'All apps'. Search for 'ownCloud' in the list , tap on it and switch the radio button to 'Optimize'. Just a work around, I know.
It's not that I don't want to redirect you to other apps, the case is that I don't know the capabilities of other apps in this regard. I'm sorry.
Oh I understand. Sorry if I was harsh, it's just been frustrating to come so close to a solution but not quite get there, especially with travel coming up. I appreciate that you must've put in a great deal of effort just to get the app this far.