OwnCloud : Alternative of Dropbox

OwnCloud is considered to be the alternative option for Dropbox to run your personal Cloud on any server, be it at home or in your office. The installation procedure is quite simple and more or less anybody will be able to do it. The reason behind the popularity of this open source software is because of self hosted nature. This has made sure that you do not need to rely on any third party and can easily sync data and files.

We have set up a small Owncloud server in our office and now I can sync my files on my computers and mobile devices with ease.

The ownCloud main interface with the essential elements numbered

The web interface comprises of the following items:

1. Navigation bar: Allows navigation between different parts of ownCloud, provided by apps. Not all apps depicted in this screenshot are installed and enabled by default.
2. Application view: This is where apps show their content. By default, this will show the files and directory (file view) of your user on the ownCloud installation.
3. New/Upload button: This allows you to create new files or upload existing ones from your device. Note that you can also drop files from Explorer or Finder onto the ownCloud file view and they will get uploaded to ownCloud. With New button, you can create a text file, folder or download a file from the provided URL.
4. Search/Settings: Search allows you to look for files and directories. Currently, ownCloud provides a full text search. If full text seach does not work, administrators need to enable this app from app settings. Settings menu provides access to the settings menu, where you can change your personal settings, such as the interface language or your password. You can also retrieve the WebDAV URL (see next chapter) and show your quota. Administrators will also get access to user management (Users), the apps settings (Apps) and administrative settings (Admin) including access to ownCloud’s log. You will also find logout button in this menu.
5. Apps: This button is only visible to administrators. Using this button allows administrators to enable/disable apps.