Automatically uploading photos

The Nextcloud app can automatically upload every photo and video you take to your WebOké Nextcloud. That way, you always have a copy, even if your phone is broken or lost. Afterwards, you'll see your photos in the Photos and Memories apps in your Nextcloud (see Photos or Memories: which app for what?).

On the iPhone or iPad

1. Tap More at the bottom and then Settings.
2. Choose Auto upload photos (in some versions Automatic upload).
3. Turn on uploading and choose whether you want to upload photos, videos or both.
4. Give the app access to all photos if iOS asks. With limited access, the app only sees the photos you've chosen.
5. Choose which folder in your Nextcloud the photos should go to, and whether you want subfolders per year or month (Use subfolders).
6. If you only want to upload over wifi, turn on Only upload via wifi connection.
7. Choose whether the app uploads all photos and videos already on your phone, or only from a certain date. In newer versions of the app, these options are called All photos and videos and From a date. The app skips anything already in your Nextcloud.

Please note (iPhone): iOS only gives apps a limited amount of time in the background. Because of this, uploading often only continues once you open the app. Here's how to keep it running smoothly:

• Open the Nextcloud app now and then, for example in the evening, and leave it open for a while while it's charging and on wifi.
• In the iPhone's Settings, under General, turn on Background App Refresh for Nextcloud.
• Turn off Low Power Mode while uploading, as it stops background activity.
• Don't swipe the app away from the overview of open apps.
• Newer versions of the app have a mode that keeps the app open with a dimmed screen while it uploads faster (Focused Auto Upload). This is handy the first time, when thousands of photos are waiting.

On Android

1. Tap the three lines in the top left and choose Settings, then Auto upload.
2. You'll see the folders with photos and videos on your phone, such as Camera and Screenshots. Turn on the folder you want to upload. Tap the three dots next to a folder to set it up.
3. Choose the destination folder in your Nextcloud. By default this is /InstantUpload; you can choose your own folder.
4. Choose whether you only want to upload over wifi (Upload on Wi-Fi only) and whether it should only happen while charging (Upload on charging only).
5. Use Upload existing files too to choose whether the photos already on your phone should also be included.
6. Under Original file will…, choose what happens to the photo on your phone: leave it (recommended), move it or delete it.
7. With Use subfolders, the photos go into folders by year and month.

Tip (Android): turn off the battery restriction for Nextcloud (in Android's settings, under Apps, Nextcloud, Battery: Unlimited). Otherwise Android stops the app running in the background. Has automatic uploading stopped working after an app update? Read Resuming photo upload on Android after an app update.

Where do the photos go?

The photos go into the folder you've chosen, in your own storage. So they do count towards your storage space (see Viewing your storage: what counts and what doesn't). You'll see them in the Files app and in Photos and Memories. Want to see someone else's photos, or share an album? See Sharing an album with family or friends.

Please note: don't choose to delete the photos on your phone until you've checked that they really are in your Nextcloud. It's best to never turn this option on.

Has uploading stopped? See Photo upload on your phone stops for a checklist.