Migrating from a proprietary cloud

At it's core, the pub.solar cloud is an attempt to create a set of services that allow you to move your data away from Google, Facebook, Apple, or other proprietary providers. This page provides an overview of how you can change your software and habits to adapt to pub.solar.

File storage

Proprietary examples include Google Drive, iCloud, and Dropbox.

We use Nextcloud to do file hosting and synchronization.

Contacts & Calendar

Proprietary examples include Google Contacts, Google Calendar, and iCloud.

We use the contacts app in Nextcloud. The web interface for contacts can be found at cloud.pub.solar/apps/contacts, for the calendar at cloud.pub.solar/apps/calendar.

Synchronizing to devices

Android

In the Nextcloud app, go to app settings -> Sync calendar & contacts. This will install the app DAVx5 for you, and start the login process there. After logging in, select the calendars you'd like to synchronize.

Chatting

Proprietary examples include Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp, and Telegram.

For chatting, we host Matrix. Clients exist for multiple platforms, including iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Linux. The standard client is called Element, and can be downloaded at https://element.io/download. A web interface hosted by us can be found at chat.pub.solar.

Homeserver address for clients

When logging in to clients, you'll have to provide your homeserver address. This is matrix.pub.solar, not chat.pub.solar.

Saving your encryption keys

The first time you log in, you'll be asked to save your encryption keys. Make sure to write these down in a secure location! We recommend using a password manager. Matrix messages are end-to-end encrypted, which means that the administrators of pub.solar cannot read their contents. However, if you lose your encryption keys you'll lose access to all previous messages.

Microblogging

Proprietary examples include Twitter, Threads, and tumblr.

We host a Mastodon instance at mastodon.pub.solar. You can use the web interface we host, or choose an app. There's a ton of apps, you can find a full list on the mastodon website.