Nextcloud

Minimum Requirements

• CPU: 1 core (2+ cores recommended)
• RAM: 512 MB minimum (2GB+ recommended)
• Storage: 500 MB for Nextcloud + your data
• Database: MySQL/MariaDB, PostgreSQL, or SQLite
• Web Server: Apache, Nginx, or Caddy
• PHP: Version 8.0 or higher

Recommended for Production

• CPU: 4+ cores for better performance
• RAM: 4GB+ (8GB for 100+ users)
• Storage: SSD storage highly recommended
• Database: MariaDB or PostgreSQL
• Caching: Redis or Memcached for speed
• SSL: Valid SSL certificate (Let’s Encrypt)

1. Create Directory Structure

First, create directories to store Nextcloud data and configuration:

mkdir -p ~/nextcloud/{data,db,config}
cd ~/nextcloud

2. Create Docker Compose File

Create a docker-compose.yml file with the following configuration:

version: '3'

services:
  nextcloud-db:
    image: mariadb:10.11
    container_name: nextcloud-db
    restart: unless-stopped
    command: --transaction-isolation=READ-COMMITTED --binlog-format=ROW
    volumes:
      - ./db:/var/lib/mysql
    environment:
      - MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=your_root_password
      - MYSQL_PASSWORD=nextcloud_password
      - MYSQL_DATABASE=nextcloud
      - MYSQL_USER=nextcloud
    networks:
      - nextcloud-net

  nextcloud-redis:
    image: redis:alpine
    container_name: nextcloud-redis
    restart: unless-stopped
    networks:
      - nextcloud-net

  nextcloud:
    image: nextcloud:latest
    container_name: nextcloud
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8080:80"
    volumes:
      - ./data:/var/www/html
      - ./config:/var/www/html/config
    environment:
      - MYSQL_HOST=nextcloud-db
      - MYSQL_DATABASE=nextcloud
      - MYSQL_USER=nextcloud
      - MYSQL_PASSWORD=nextcloud_password
      - REDIS_HOST=nextcloud-redis
    depends_on:
      - nextcloud-db
      - nextcloud-redis
    networks:
      - nextcloud-net

networks:
  nextcloud-net:
    driver: bridge

3. Start Nextcloud

Launch the Nextcloud stack with Docker Compose:

docker-compose up -d

4. Complete Web Setup

Open your browser and navigate to http://your-server-ip:8080. You’ll see the Nextcloud setup page:

• Create an admin account with username and password
• Click on “Storage & database” to expand database options
• Select “MySQL/MariaDB”
• Enter database details (user: nextcloud, password: nextcloud_password, database: nextcloud, host: nextcloud-db)
• Click “Install” and wait for setup to complete

5. Configure Trusted Domains

If accessing Nextcloud via a domain name, add it to trusted domains. Edit the config file:

nano ./config/config.php

# Add your domain to the trusted_domains array:
'trusted_domains' => 
  array (
    0 => 'localhost',
    1 => 'your-server-ip',
    2 => 'your-domain.com',
  ),

6. Enable HTTPS (Recommended)

For production use, set up a reverse proxy with SSL. Using Nginx:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name your-domain.com;
    return 301 https://$server_name$request_uri;
}

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name your-domain.com;

    ssl_certificate /path/to/cert.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /path/to/key.pem;

    client_max_body_size 512M;
    fastcgi_buffers 64 4K;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:8080;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

Quick Tips

Performance Optimization

Configure caching and background jobs for optimal performance:

# Add to config/config.php
'memcache.local' => 'OCMemcacheAPCu',
'memcache.distributed' => 'OCMemcacheRedis',
'memcache.locking' => 'OCMemcacheRedis',
'redis' => [
  'host' => 'nextcloud-redis',
  'port' => 6379,
],

Set up cron for background tasks:

docker exec -u www-data nextcloud php cron.php

Recommended Apps

Install these apps from the Nextcloud App Store (Settings → Apps):

• Calendar: Full-featured calendar with CalDAV support
• Contacts: Contact management with CardDAV
• Tasks: Task and project management
• Deck: Kanban-style project boards
• Talk: Video calls and team chat
• OnlyOffice/Collabora: Document editing
• Passwords: Password manager
• Notes: Markdown note-taking
• Photos: Modern photo gallery

User Management & Sharing

• Create multiple users and groups
• Set storage quotas per user
• Share files/folders with users or groups
• Create public share links with passwords
• Set expiration dates on shares
• Fine-grained permission controls

External Storage

Connect external storage sources to Nextcloud:

• FTP/SFTP servers
• Amazon S3, OpenStack Swift
• Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive
• SMB/CIFS network shares
• WebDAV servers

Security Features

• Two-factor authentication (TOTP, U2F)
• End-to-end encryption for specific folders
• Server-side encryption at rest
• Brute-force protection
• File access control lists
• Audit logging and monitoring

Collaboration Tools

Work together seamlessly:

• Real-time document collaboration
• Comments on files and folders
• File versioning and rollback
• Activity feed and notifications
• Shared calendars and address books

Regular Maintenance

Update Nextcloud to the latest version:

# Backup first!
docker-compose down
docker-compose pull
docker-compose up -d

Run maintenance commands:

# File system scan
docker exec -u www-data nextcloud php occ files:scan --all

# Clear cache
docker exec -u www-data nextcloud php occ maintenance:repair

Common Issues

Upload size limit too small:

Increase PHP upload limits by creating .user.ini in the data directory.

Slow performance:

Enable Redis caching and run background jobs via cron instead of AJAX.

Trusted domain error:

Add your domain/IP to the trusted_domains array in config.php.

Database issues:

Run database optimization: docker exec -u www-data nextcloud php occ db:add-missing-indices