Nextcloud Snap users, please list the issues you're facing

[oparoz]

If you’ve installed the Nextcloud Snap provided by Canonical, we’d like to hear about the issues you’re currently facing to see if it’s something we can improve or which is already on the roadmap.

Per example

• Lack of HTTPS support
• Outdated release version
• Updater is not working
  etc.

Thank you!

[tflidd]

You should pin such topics to stay on top of the list.

[Biffo]

lack of https
thumbnails/ pictures not displaying on web browser

[greg]

cant get to first login. connection refused by device.

raspberrypi
Ubuntu LTS 16.04 LTS 4.4.0-1027-raspi2 armv71

via SSH:
sudo snap install nextcloud

install completes

go to another machine on network open browser
192.168.XXX.XXX/
connection refused
[IP].local
connection refused
[IP]/local
connection refused
[IP]/nextcloud.local
connection refused

wget localhost
connection refused

I can still SSH into the raspberryPi so it is alive and connected to the network.

What do I need to configure?

[oparoz]

Sounds like Apache can’t start. Could you do a snap list ?
Also, it’s important to have the latest deb packages installed as there was a major issue with one of them.

[wu_ming]

Hi, I’m using Snap(s) on the Nextcloud Box: following the guide here, I managed to set it up with HTTPS and dynamic IP, and I must say it’s working quite good. The only issue I’m facing is the impossibility (well, at least I couldn’t find a way, except for recompiling the whole Snap package) to modify configuration files, so, at this time It’s not possible to use any video chat app (Spreed.me requires to modify ssl.conf, while Rocket.chat seems to be configured to only work trough HTTP).

[oparoz]

Thanks for your feedback @wu_ming. I’m also of the opinion that we should let users configure their Nextcloud the way they want to, but it complicates things when upgrading or making config changes.
Since the main maintainer of the snap wants to focus on the part of the user base who has no technological knowledge and can’t use SSH to make changes, you currently have the following options:

1. Wait for config hooks to be available, which should make it possible to make modifications from Nextcloud itself
2. Build your own snaps
3. Put together a team to maintain an advanced version of the snap

[aptanet]

I have three issues:

1. I cannot find the Apache configuration to install my https certificate so that I can use Federation with my primary Nextcloud instance. The two options I’ve seen so far are to either use Let’sEncrypt (which I do elsewhere, but this box is on an internal only domain), or nextcloud.occ which might work if I knew what format the certificate should be in, my pem/crt isn’t recognised.

2. Am I missing a better way to configure the hostname / IP, etc. of the box? I’ve dug into the snap directory tree and edited the Nextcloud configuration, switching the IP address for the hostname, which seems too advanced for the target audience. I’m hoping to get a better handle on it because this Nextcloud Box will be travelling between networks so easy configuration changes would help! It will use a static DHCP lease in each location, but the configuration rewrites full URLs rather than using relative links (which would help no end!).

3. The Nextcloud version in the Snap seems to be higher than the main Nextcloud, or at least my main instance is claiming to be at the latest. Both are on the stable channel, but the Box is on 10.0.1 and the main on 9.0.51 with both claiming to be the latest version.

I suspect the first may be down to my lack of experience with Snaps, I don’t feel in complete control which isn’t a nice feeling!

[greg]

Name Version Rev Developer Notes
nextcloud 10.0.1snap2 136 nextcloud -
ubuntu-core 16.04.1 424 canonical -

I did apt-get update and apt-get upgrade for ubuntu before installing the snap.

My apologies for being a bit terse earlier, I was about to dash off to work.

I may try again with Ubuntu Mate instead of Ubuntu Snappy Core.

[Micahj]

I have the same problem as greg.

Ubuntu Snappy Core running on Raspberry PI 2.

Installed Nextcloud using snaps.

snap list only give my Nextcloud. Not sure what else is suppose to be there.

Checked to see if Apache was installed, it was NOT.

I thought snaps for nextcloud would have installed averything required or am I wrong?

[Guillaume]

Hello Micahj,

@Micahj

I thought snaps for nextcloud would have installed averything required or am I wrong?

you are right, everything is included in the nextcloud snap (apache, php, redis, …)

[oparoz]

@aptanet

1. I think it’s a generic federation sharing issue and has nothing to do with Apache or the snap, please have a look at the documentation on federated sharing
2. This should be available in the future in the form of a Nextcloud app
3. Sounds like a separate issue with your main instance, which is very dated. You should manually update it and once it’s on 10.0.1, the updater will be able to do it automatically for you

And you’re right, with a snap made by someone else, you will never be in complete control. Think of it as like using an iOS device.

@greg @Micahj

Since Ubuntu Core is in beta, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were parts which aren’t fully functional. That’s the main reason we’ve decided not to include it in the initial image for the Box.
See if you can bring the network one way or another and connect to other services.
Apache is included in the snap, so you won’t find an apache2 service per example-

[wu_ming]

You’re welcome!
I’m afraid that cross compiling Snap packages for arm is beyond my reach, for now (any link is welcome, b.t.w. , I guess I’ll just wait for the next update of Nextcloud (any ETA?). I hope however that Canonical will come out with an easy way to modify config files of Snaps (I think it’s not really feasible to rebuild a whole program, just for, let’s say, uncomment a line…).
Cheers

[aptanet]

1. I’ll take another look through. I had decided from the logs that it was down to the fact that it was making the connection over https, which neither system was configured for. The main one is now, although I’ve done this the way I normally do using the Apache configuration so the Nextcloud command line doesn’t recognise it - not having investigated that yet I’m assuming that if I use the Nextcloud commands it doesn’t touch the Apache config (it wouldn’t have access) and uses the .htaccess file.

2. Looking forward to that one, I’m experimenting with the concept of a Pi based Federated box that can take ISO images, etc. to LUG meets, amongst other things. Managing a changing IP/hostname might be interesting!

3. I thought I had only recently install the main box, but it was back in June. I’ve not had any updates provided by it yet, so as you say a manual update looks on the cards.

I’ve not used Snaps before, but had read about them possibly replacing .deb in Ubuntu. Clearly that is a misunderstanding of their concept. I’ll play a bit longer, and will be getting another case to setup another box with my existing PiDrive, so that may become my main one with a full install on. There’s a reason I don’t use iOS devices, and lack of control is one!

[oparoz]

@wu_ming

I’m afraid that cross compiling Snap packages for arm is beyond my reach, for now

It’s easier than you think

1. Fork
2. Edit ← That’s the hard part as it requires to known about the snap variables and how the update process works
3. Create account on Launchpad
4. Push your branch to Launchpad
5. Request snap build for the architectures you need

@wu_ming

I guess I’ll just wait for the next update of Nextcloud (any ETA?)

This will take a while to land and there will be new versions of Nextcloud before that.

@wu_ming

I hope however that Canonical will come out with an easy way to modify config files of Snaps

Nothing to do with Canonical. It’s the choice the maintainer has made. You can today put the whole of Nextcloud on the writable partition and do what you want with it, but your instance is less protected, especially since the user with access is root.

@wu_ming

(I think it’s not really feasible to rebuild a whole program, just for, let’s say, uncomment a line…

The problems arrive when we need to push changes to the file you’ve been editing. That requires publishing changelogs and instructions and making sure we don’t break 1001 customised configs

@aptanet

I had decided from the logs that it was down to the fact that it was making the connection over https, which neither system was configured for

Yes, both systems need https.

@aptanet

the Nextcloud command line doesn’t recognise it

The problem, I think, is unrelated to Apache, you need curl to be able to recognise your certificate and you need to save your certificates in Nextcloud so that it can use it when making connections to the other system.

I think that if things don’t work as expected, you should open another thread just for that.

@aptanet

Looking forward to that one

https://github.com/nextcloud/networkconfig/issues/2

Hopefully by the end of this year.

@aptanet

I’ve not used Snaps before, but had read about them possibly replacing .deb in Ubuntu. Clearly that is a misunderstanding of their concept

That can work for desktop apps which are a collections of debs and need to evolve out of sync with the OS.

Snaps are great to deliver a solution, but they’re not very flexible.

@aptanet

There’s a reason I don’t use iOS devices, and lack of control is one!

Ditto

[pan]

Hi,

I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to get nextcloud running with snaps.

However it quickly became obvious it’s not very configurable. I’d like to:

• Set certificates
• have sql data stored on a seperate database server
• store all user data on a seperate nfs partition(s)
• work with multiple network interfaces
  and still have nextcloud updated automatically.

I may have a meltdown, but I’m really struggling to find a way to integrate this into existing
infrastructure and configure with a deplopyment managment system.

Being very new to snap packages, I’m wondering if this is the way snap packages are designed work,
and if it’s even possible to make a packages that are configurable to this extent? Maybe separating
everything to smaller packages and connecting them with interfaces. Who knows?

[oparoz]

@pan

However it quickly became obvious it’s not very configurable

That’s correct. It depends on the maintainer’s vision for the snap. The current version is for beginners, so you won’t be able to tailor the configuration to meet all of your needs. This is not for Enterprise customers.

However, you can use your own certificates. Replace the ones which have been generated with your own. You should use the self-cert option to avoid them being overwritten by Let’s Encrypt.

You can use another database server, simply modify your config.

Same for data, just point to a folder in /media (requires the beta snap for now)

Regarding the network interfaces, I don’t see how it’s related to the snap if you install it on something like Ubuntu server.

[pan]

Hmm… snap starts to look like a bad idea from a DevOps viewpoint.
Might be wrong tough, as it’s largely uncharted territory for me.

@"oparoz

Regarding the network interfaces, I don’t see how it’s related to the snap if you install it on something like Ubuntu server.

Surely running different services on the same server but on different network interfaces is not a novel idea.
Quite a common practice and trivial to set up usually. Or am I missing something on how this is supposed to be set up?

[oparoz]

@pan

Hmm… snap starts to look like a bad idea from a DevOps viewpoint.

Not necessarily, if you develop your own snap.

@pan

Quite a common practice and trivial to set up usually.

Indeed and that’s why I fail to see how the fact that you’re using a snap is relevant here. Just give the IP you want to use to Nextcloud. Unless you mean that you want to create your own vhost?