The recently lost file upload feature in the Nextcloud app for Android
8 comments
·May 14, 2025inigoalonso
darkwater
Waiting for the nitpicker crowd "you can install AOSP and/or sideload APKs easily, so there is no incumbent abuse here!", just like we had them for IE (you can install another browser) and iPhone (you can buy another brand).
Edit: oh we already have them in the other submission
raverbashing
Yeah it's the "less space than a Nomad" people
I know, I used to be one of those
throw347897823
Maybt NextCloud is just lazy to fix their outdated app.
Android old file API had blank access to ALL files on device. This was deprecated. New API requires individual permission for each folder. Or without permission, app can use file dialog provided by operating system.
Google apps have the some conditions. On many vendors they do not even have file permissions in default installation!
jsnell
Dupe (250 points, 170 comments): https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43970959
sierra1011
Arguably the originator's blog post has some individual merit beyond an article from a tech news aggregator.
BLenkomo
I would like to have both options: Full file access and controlled access. I guess not eveyrone wants nextcloud full file sync.
But yes this is shitty regarding google.
yard2010
Goddammit Pichai. We had something mediocre, why enshitify it to the oblivion?
This is exactly why the EU's Digital Markets Act exists. And why it needs teeth. Google disabling Nextcloud's all-files access on Android, while quietly letting its own apps and big corporate players keep it, isn't about "security". It's about control. Nextcloud is a European, privacy-first alternative built on open standards and that can be fully aligned with GDPR requirements. Blocking its core functionality while favouring your own services is a textbook abuse of platform power. Android was supposed to be open, but moves like this show it (at least the Play Services verison) is just another walled garden. If the EU is serious about digital sovereignty and fair competition, this is the kind of behaviour that must be stopped. Otherwise, no European tech, no matter how compliant, open, or user-friendly, stands a chance.