Installation and Configuration of the Mobile App

Important: Please always use the new URL https://datashare.tu-dresden.de starting from 25. September 2023.
  1. After installing and launching the Nextcloud App for the first time, please click "Log in" to proceed to the next step.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Landingpage when the Nextcloud Android app is opened for the first time

 

  1. When starting the app for the first time, the ZIH Datashare server address "https://datashare.tu-dresden.de" must be entered. When logging in, an encrypted connection to the ZIH Datashare server is established.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: ZIH Datashare server fill in

 

  1. Security instructions are then displayed. A click on "Login" leads to the input mask of the ZIH user data.  

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Security warning and redirect button to login

 

  1. When logging in, an encrypted connection to the ZIH Datashare server is established. The "ZIH-Login" (lower case, without "@tu-dresden.de") is used as username and the ZIH main password as password.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Nextcloud mobile app login screen

 

  1. You will then be asked whether you want to grant the mobile app or your device access to the ZIH Datashare. After confirming the dialog, an encrypted connection is established. After a successful connection, the file manager opens with your ZIH Datashare data.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Granting iPhone access to the Datashare account

 

  1. If necessary, the mobile app must be granted access rights to the device data. 

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Allowing app access to device data
 

 

Using the Mobile App

All files stored in the ZIH Datashare can be saved offline in the app, shared with other ZIH accounts or deleted using the app.

Fileview

The file view is the central element of the Datashare interface. It displays all existing folders and files. By selecting a folder, the user switches to the selected folder. The "Back arrow" at the top left can be used to navigate back to the parent level.

At the bottom right, via the "+" (plus symbol), users can create new objects in the current folder by performing the following actions:

Each item in the list can be shared with others.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot of the Datashare file view in the app browser
 

 

Create and upload files

New objects can be created in different ways. Clicking on the "+" (plus symbol) mentioned in the last section, opens a drop-down menu that can be used among others to upload files, create folders or generate text files.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot of the detail view of the dropdown menu
for uploading files in the Datashare app interface

 

By clicking on "Upload file", the desired file can be selected via an explorer pop-up window. Furthermore, files and photos can be uploaded to the Datashare directly from the Android folder structure or photo gallery using the "Share" function. However, this only works with files and not with folders. Folders should be created in Datashare beforehand and afterwards the files should be copied into this folder.

You can also see at the bottom how much of the total available memory has already been used.

Using the "More" icon (≡) on the left side at the top of the screen allows you to manage the settings of your ZIH Datashare account. Via the name abbreviation, or profile photo, at the top right of the screen, you can manage the ZIH Datashare account linked to the mobile app, disconnect or delete the connection to the mobile app.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot of the available storage space in the Nextcloud app interface
 

Sharing files or folders (also password protected)

Another important functionality of Datashare is sharing files or folders with other people. You can share files/folders with individual TUD members or external users, but also with a group and protect them by password.

 
  1. In the first available field, you can enter the first and/or last name or the e-mail address of a TUD member with whom you want to share the file.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Selecting users for file sharing, Nextcloud app interface.
 

 

  1. The person will then see the shared files in the fileview under the "Shared" folder or under the menu item "Shared" via the "More" icon (≡) on the left-hand side at the top of the fileview , if it was created by her/himself.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: "Shared" folder for shared content, Nextcloud app interface.
 

 

  1. Setting access rights: It can be selected whether the person may edit the file himself, create a new version, delete it and in turn share it with other people. In this way, any number of people can be given access to a file or folder.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Dropdown menu of access rights management, Nextcloud app interface.
 

 

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Dropdown menu page 2 of the management of access rights,
Nextcloud app interface
 

 

  1. Users with whom files have been shared are then displayed in the Share dialog. There, the sharing can also be canceled via the "..." (ellipsis symbol).

 

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Managing settings for shared content with TUD-Members 
 

 

 

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Screenshot: Managing settings for shared content with externals.
via link
 

 

 

File sizes

Datashare allows uploading files up to 30 GByte . The time limit for uploading a file is 10 hours. However, limits are also set by the operating system. For example, you cannot manage files larger than 2 GB with 32Bit operating systems.

Allow upload by external person

A special case is the upload of files by external persons (not members of the TU Dresden). Since external persons do not have a ZIH login, the exchange/upload takes place via a folder of a TUD user. This TUD user is thus also legally responsible for the external person's data (see also Cloudstore Terms of Use).

 

Conflicts when editing files at the same time

Datashare is not intended for simultaneous editing of files - for that you should rather use the ZIH Sharepoint service.

Two clients (e.g. laptop and PC or two different users in a shared directory) synchronize files via Datashare. Then the user(s) simultaneously modify the same file on their local system. The first client then synchronizes its modified file with the Datashare server. When the second client now also wants to synchronize, he notices that the file on the server is no longer the original file that he had synchronized before the change. Therefore, he creates a so-called conflict file on the server: 'filename_conflict-date' Only the second client sees this file. The users are responsible for resolving the conflict (e.g. inserting the changes of the second into the first version of the file).

Deleting and restoring files

Deleting files is done via the "..." icon (ellipsis) on the right side of the file list. The deleted files are first moved internally to a recycle bin. The "Deleted files" option ("More" icon (≡) on the left side at the top of the screen) can be used to access and recover deleted content.

Explanatory screenshot to the previous description
Screenshot: Trash, Nextcloud app interface

 

Files are kept in the trash for a maximum of 30 days and up to a maximum of half the user's quota, and are permanently deleted when one of the limits is exceeded.