My main issue with Nextcloud

[Holagil]

I have no support/technical question and have seen the support category. (Be aware that direct support questions will be deleted.)

on

Which general topic do you have

I am using nextcloud since I think V10 (and used Owncloud before since V3). So at the moment with V32 I am a long time user with multiple instances. But some things I really find annoying.
While there is regularly an update of the cloud. Many app can’t hold up. With every update I hope that everything works. Normally there should be a warning when an app doesn’t support the version I am updating to, but somehow that doesn’t always work correctly.
The apps are the main issue. When I click on featured you can see why. Many have mediocre ratings. And I get what’s the problem. Instead of working on the bugs of the apps and new features, the app developers have to work on getting it compatible with the new nextcloud version. When you look at the plans some apps promoted they are dropped after a while and then only major bugs and updates are released.
Many apps have to work on a new next cloud version and they can’t be upgraded easily.

Tables for example - a featured app - but look at it. So far unusable for something real. And that’s only one example. While I tried TFA I saw all the issues you get when using it. Calenders, Tasks or Contacts couldn’t be synced anymore with some standard-applications outside.
And even when I get it to work, I don’t know if it still works with the next upgrade. Cound be but most likely not.

Do I need two major version every year? Nope. Because the main changes are small or only bring problems that need to be solved. Especially when you want to use any new feature.

I don’t know if the Nextcloud developers are in the forums and read it, but instead of so many new major versions I would like to have a better app universe with a long time api that I can be sure an app works a while. And a better docs. Often new features weren’t described in the docs and I had to ask in the support forums how to use it.

Many major functions I still miss, like a better versioning with major versions and draft versions.

Don’t get me wrong. I use my Nextcloud daily because I don’t want to use microsoft cloud. But still many basic functions for working in teams are missing and the app environment is mediocre. So after years we have a half working private cloud that has a lot issues comming with every update.

Others may have another opinion, but that’s my point of view after many years

[Dennis1993]

I agree with you. Same topic I discribed here in 2024: Nextcloud Quality and Release-Cycles

Nothing changed and all my Issues are still open…

[mwildam]

There is one general problem with software I notice since some years now: When designing software, the long run is not considered well any more. Features get implemented in the minimum needed way and developers think “We can refactor this later”. With the years passing by, the need for refactoring grows and causes backward compatibility breaks. It looks like software design and software architecture is topics that are not considered important enough any more.

That said, I find Nextcloud is doing better than many others - just my impression, I am not a Nextcloud developer.

[deakus]

I just found this link because of the post

Maintenance and Release Schedule

very useful thanks

What I like about Nextcloud is the enthusiasm for the software, lots of communication and small information updates for releases and events with inspirational music in the background. This has a big affect on general mindshare and awareness. This creates attraction from potential end users and business owners looking for alternatives for service Hyperscalers, which is good.

However the simplicity presented by these communications hides the complexity and fragility of running and maintaining Nextcloud installations. It is not as simple as the shiny demos indicate.

Running a NextCloud installation is non trival.

If you don’t want to undertake these operational tasks, there are providers which will do it for you

Nextcloud providers - Nextcloud

https://www.ionos.de/office-loesungen/nextcloud-workspace

The docs are quite comprehensive Introduction — Nextcloud latest Administration Manual latest documentation

My only gripe is that they don’t include some important information which you discover during operation, or often just out of date.

Application Development
I’m not a web developer by profession, but I have created a number of applications based on the symfony framework.

Nextcloud seems to be an attractive platform to migrate some of my applications due to the “batteries included” features for user management, LDAP, mail, etc

However developing applications in NextCloud is like trying to climb a greased wall, the documentation and tutorials of the structure of application are shallow in depth.

I also saw this post some time back regarding the implementation of vue.js in nextcloud , I encourage you to read it.

Give VUE 2.x a chance

Hello, one great development for Frontend is React. It is a bit steep in its approach but that’s why VUE 2 is so great. It can just be included in any frontend (few KB, much less then jQuery) and does Databind, Transformations and Templates out of the box. It is the perfect VIEW for all our data and could unify development (Frontend across plugins) as nextcloud could offer also some core components to make live easier. For even further integration and code seperation on can step it up to VUE …

What @jan stated in his reply to this post is practically prophetic

Speaking for myself, I find the application development environment nuanced and hard to grasp whilst it continues to evolve.

So here we at the close of 2025 still using Vue 2 which went EOL at the end of 2023 and a migration to Vue 3 is still underway.

This is a constraint and the added layer of abstraction causes complexity and now technical debt.

@mwildam

There is one general problem with software I notice since some years now: When designing software, the long run is not considered well any more. Features get implemented in the minimum needed way and developers think “We can refactor this later”. With the years passing by, the need for refactoring grows and causes backward compatibility breaks.

I know Javascript frontends are Hyper fashionable at the moment, but in my opinion they create bloat, complexity , increased security exploit surface area

Critical Security Vulnerability in React Server Components – React

All this makes application development a major challenge

[jtr]

@Holagil

Do I need two major version every year? Nope

Then why are you upgrading to a new major? The project spends a lot of time doing backports and maintaining both latest stable and prior stable for 12 months each. Just install maintenance releases (which don’t have app compatibility issues and contain all critical security fixes).

[JimmyKater]

as this is the international part of the forum we encourage every user, including you, to post in english. Apparently you do know how to speak english

[castillo92]

You are right, the same thing happens to me when I read threads in German, it’s hard to read.

Edit is not allowed in this topic because a “slow mode on”, so I write again:

On the other hand, there is the issue of translations in Transifex…

I’m tired of constantly translating the same strings, with ridiculous changes.

[JimmyKater]

@castillo92

when I read threads in German

whenever someone writes in their native language in the international part of the forum you can be sure that some mod would chime in sooner or later to remind them of the internationally spoken language as we do feature native-language subforums (with a lesser reach, of course).

@castillo92

Edit is not allowed in this topic because a “slow mode on”

whoa. that’s new for me. Interesting to know.

@castillo92

I’m tired of constantly translating the same strings, with ridiculous changes.

try the transifex-thread… or ask @rakekniven