The new update broke things and is costing time

[e_owncloud]

Actual behaviour

• It insisted on moving my files to a “secure” location, so now I can’t find them via other apps that I need to open them with. It also moved them off my SD card where I wanted them onto the phone’s storage where I didn’t want them.

Expected behaviour

• Don’t force me to move my files against my will! Just leave it alone? Empower the users! None of your business where I want to store my files. Don’t need arrogance. I need freedom.

Steps to reproduce

1. Upgrade
2. Cry
3. Get on a forum and shout.

I’d have screenshots, but my phone refuses to sync to photos cuz of YOUR UPDATE!

Can this problem be reproduced with the official owncloud server?
(url: https://demo.owncloud.org, user: test, password: test)

Environment data

Android version:

Device model:

Stock or customized system:

ownCloud app version: the latest from f-droid, whatever that is. can’t find version number inside the app.

ownCloud server version:

The new update is HORRIBLE! You moved my files “to a more secure location on my device” and reset all my configuration AGAINST MY WILL! The ONLY reason I am using OwnCloud is cuz I want control over MY FILES. Why on earth did you make the decision to force changes on us that we didn’t ask for and do not want? PLEASE REVERT THIS CHANGE AND MOVE MY FILES BACK ON MY SD CARD WHERE I CAN ACCESS THEM OUTSIDE THE APP!!!

Then you had the arrogance to DELETE them from the SD card to “avoid duplicates and vulnerability”. That should of been MY DECISION! Now, I can’t access the files. I don’t have duplicates. I HAVE ZERO FILES. I’m vulnerable to people thinking they can force change against my will. If I had my glasses on when I launched the updated app, I would of aborted the upgrade so it couldn’t delete my files. You should of at least given users the option of staying on the prior version forever before deleting their files!

I need to access the owncloud files I choose to have offline via other apps, and now I can’t even find them. This makes it USELESS! The pict and video sync’ing, well, it doesn’t go back in time and sync things it missed cuz of your stupid updates. so why on earth am I using owncloud? it won’t even do the simple things I spent hours installing and configuring because someone else thinks they know what I want and need better than I do. I don’t want more “security”. I want to be able to access my files! Please quit forcing changes on users. You couldn’t let users opt out of the file migration?!?

HOW DO I FIND AND OPEN MY FILES via a different app without going through the OwnCloud app so I can actually use them?!? I can’t find them and open them cuz they are “secure”!!! You really really really screwed me up. I have to zip them on my computer, transfer that to the phone and unzip them now and manually sync changes to use them cuz OWNCLOUD is 100% not doing its only job.

[jesmrec]

hi @e_owncloud

the decision of moving files to another place was done to fulfill Google requirements. From Nov’21 apps to be updated need to use an SDK level that does not allow to use legacy storage. Otherwise, the app would have been removed from Google Play.

In the post about the release you can find more information about that, with proper links that contain relevant information:

ownCloud 2.19 for Android

Hello everyone! Today we have released a new version of the ownCloud Android App. This release comes with some visual improvements, new features, and Scoped Storage! Scoped Storage Here comes the most important change in this release. The Scoped Storage. We have changed completely the way the ownCloud app stores files on the device. To do it, we have added a new migration wizard that will guide the user through this migration to scoped storage. Previously, the files were sto…

You can use the options “open with” or “send” to access files in your account, as well as the document provider (more info in the release thread, with some example apps). Also, we are working in more options to give all users a better experience.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

[e_owncloud]

I don’t use Google Play. I use OwnCloud to be free from Google, so install from F-Droid.

As noted in the other post, Open with and Send to do not do what I need. What I need is for other apps to simply be able to open and edit the files, which is how it works on the desktop. I’ll detail more on why those options don’t work in the other post.

Right now, OwnCloud is so broken I’m about to take a photo of my grocery list displayed on my desktop screen because I can’t access the file when I leave wifi. Before this update, I would of had no problem opening the file on my phone.

Note that I do not put owncloud on the internet. I only want it to sync files so they are available offline. That was it’s core capability, as I understood it. Now, it no longer does that, as sync’ing to an inaccessible part of the phone does not help.

[e_owncloud]

It appears I’m not alone in hating Scroped storage, which I didn’t know existed until Owncloud forced it on me. Read what users in this thread think…

Disabling "scoped storage" via ADB on Note 10+ updated to Android 11

It would make a lot more sense if Owncloud simply empowered us to decide whether a folder is stored on scoped or shared storage. That could make all users happy.

[alfredb]

Even if it doesn’t help you, I fully understand your anger!

[jesmrec]

Not posible to decide, because as i commented, legacy storage is not selectable from SDK level 30 on, and now this is mandatory to send updates to Google (respecting your decision not to use that platform, for sure).

Your comments are welcome. We’ll check if something (not hacky) could be done.

[e_owncloud]

Is it possible to offer an option of storing in Documents?

Saving files in Android 11 to external storage(SDK 30)

[e_owncloud]

OwnCloud overlaps 4 of the use cases for allowing MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE:

If you stay true to being a file sync utility, then we can sync encrypted volumes and decrypt them with our choice of tool. E.g., DroidFS. These tools will never work with Open with or Send to. DroidFS, for instance, requires a folder, not a “document”, to store it’s files.

[Danstroem]

My main use case is similar to the thread starters:

1. Mark file in owncloud app to be available offline
2. Exit owncloud app
3. At any time: Modify this file on shared storage with different app/service
4. Start owncloud app to detect local change and sync modified file back to server (would be nice if owncloud app would detect the change automatically, btw)

So ok, Google is now enforcing security by not allowing a shared storage anymore.

I’m not into the Android api, but if I understand correctly, owncloud can send a file to an app, but the modified file cannot be fetched back?

So what is the official/preferred way to solve this? Can owncloud app watch for changes on the file via a different api? I noticed, that the file will be copied to /storage/emulated/0/Android/data/com.externalApp when hitting “open with” in owncloud app. Don’t know if this is a feature of android, owncloud app or the external app. What if the app will share the file back to owncloud app in some way?

I tried to copy back the modified file to the private owncloud storage at /data/data/com.owncloud.android/files/owncloud with tasker and root permission and overwrite the original file. This had been working at the time, when the owncloud app storage was shared. But owncloud does not detect the file as modified anymore.

Yeah, this is neither official nor preferred, but would be a workaround for me. The syncing back of modified files has been the key feature for me. If this will not work in the future, I am forced to look for a different app/server, because in the near future I will switch to Android 11.