Can ownCloud be installed on free hosting accounts

[vishvaf]

Hi I like to test out an web application called ownCloud - http://owncloud.org I uploaded the installation files onto the free hosting account uncompressed the files and proceeded to go the the where the files have been extracted on a web browser. I was present with the fallowing information.

• PHP module zip not installed.
  Please ask your server administrator to install the module.
  
  
• PHP modules have been installed, but they are still listed as missing?
  Please ask your server administrator to restart the web server.

So I would like to know if registered free hosting accounts users would be able to make use of this web application or not.

 

[essellar]

No, and not for technical reasons (necessarily) but because it's a violation of the Terms of Service. The space is provided for web sites only; file storage is not allowed:

• File Storage: Accounts are not to be used for file storage, your account will be permenantly suspended if found to be breaking this rule. Downloads are only allowed on your x10Hosting account if they have to do directly with your website. e.g. you developed custom software and are selling it or giving it away. Accounts may not be used for mirrors, game file hosting, or any other type of file hosting not specified here.

File storage is not allowed on x10Premium hosting either, in case you were wondering.

 

[vishvaf]

Ah okay thanks for your post and answer to the question I've asked.

 

[igpwdx10]

Wait, Owncloud is a system who allow to storage files easily so it can be use to violate term of service, but it also allows users to storage files needed for their web proporsals easily (it has a phone app like dropbox which allow user to modify some things wherever it is and owncloud will syncronize it with the web and everything will be perfectly updated) So I don't know how you won't allow this. It is as dangerous for ToS as give us a clean space to upload files like you are doing, and create a php page with an upload form and generate public links is easiest work than install Owncloud or something like it. It would haven't had as many advantages (like mobile and desktop apps, but it would violate ToS perfectly). So, knowing that I can have owncloud installed in my account without violating your ToS, Can you explain me if is still not possible and in that case, why? Thanks.

 

[Dead-i]

Wait, Owncloud is a system who allow to storage files easily so it can be use to violate term of service, but it also allows users to storage files needed for their web proporsals easily (it has a phone app like dropbox which allow user to modify some things wherever it is and owncloud will syncronize it with the web and everything will be perfectly updated) So I don't know how you won't allow this. It is as dangerous for ToS as give us a clean space to upload files like you are doing, and create a php page with an upload form and generate public links is easiest work than install Owncloud or something like it. It would haven't had as many advantages (like mobile and desktop apps, but it would violate ToS perfectly). So, knowing that I can have owncloud installed in my account without violating your ToS, Can you explain me if is still not possible and in that case, why? Thanks.

We're a web hosting company - not a file hosting service. It appears that OwnCloud's primary purpose is to privately host files, which isn't allowed as per the Terms of Service. Users shouldn't have a freely-used uploader script on their site either, nor should they be using their account as a place for file storage.

 

[bdistler]

Can you explain me if is still not possible and in that case, why?

#1 - ownCloud is a software system for what is commonly termed [ file hosting ] - as such it is a violation of the Terms of Service (TOS)

#2 - ownCloud must be installed on the server - as a free-hosting user on a 'shared' server you do not have access to install it

#3 - x10hosting can not be used for a 'file hosting service' (cloud server)

EDIT: - have a 'delay' issue in the forums today - when making post

 

[igpwdx10]

Yeah, I know this is a WEB hosting and not a file hosting, and I know very well the ToS (As web developer I have sold several websites hosted in x10[every website where my client didn't want to pay for a server] and I show them the ToS), but in the ToS says that file hosting is not allowed (except if files are needed for the website) but it doesn't say nothing about programs designed to do that but that aren't used like that. I mean, OwnCloud is a tool. Is Open source tool, so the main purpouse of owncloud is to provide users this tool to be modified and adapted to everyone's specific neededs. The ToS says:
"File Storage: Accounts are not to be used for file storage, your account will be permenantly suspended if found to be breaking this rule. Downloads are only allowed on your x10Hosting account if they have to do directly with your website. e.g. you developed custom software and are selling it or giving it away. Accounts may not be used for mirrors, game file hosting, or any other type of file hosting not specified here." And there is not any mention to programs which "may be used" to do that, because, like I said before, PhP or even html are systems capable to do that (I know a freely-user script isn't allowed too, I tried to mean that you can not forbid every system that allow it because php, html, java, etc are systems capables to do that), so at this moment, that doesn't seem a reasonable explanation for me. Of course, as free user, If you said directly: "We won't allow it, whatever it takes" I'll obbey you and be shutted up, but just, I don't understand yet why, If like I said before, it really dosen't violate the ToS and is as suitable to violate it as any other tool that should be allowed like php... and it's a very usefull tool for update your web content.

About the second message:
#1 lie, is a system to upload and download files. That files could be your own php,htma,jpg,psd, etc files to create your web page and modify it wherever you are without an ftp client (because, for example, my mobile phone hasn't ftp client).
#2 I don't understand what that sentence mean (I'm spaniard so I'm not reading it in my mohter language) but Does it mean that ownCloud has a range of a server and if it were installed, It'll be in every account of the server and involved everyone? IF its what it mean, It isn't true, owncloud is installed in your account, and it only uses one folder, the folder you choose, so If you choose your public-html folder, it will affect only your web page source files.
#3 I have explained before why this is not only for file hosting.

 

[bdistler]

About the second message:
#1 lie, is a system to upload and download files...

see --> [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OwnCloud ]

About the second message:
#2 I don't understand what that sentence mean...

you do not have access to install it

EDIT: for fun - I now have ownCloud on a Raspberry Pi by following --> [ http://www.owncloudbook.com/owncloud-on-raspberry-pi/ ]

 

[igpwdx10]

About the second answer, ok, but the original message ask Why we are not allowed to, so this is the same of "Because I said so", don't you think? But I think I could install it without any security permissions. It is one of the owncloud's goals, making it easy to install.

And now, about the first one, Sorry but Wikipedia is not a reliable source for a real discussion. You can see the real source:
http://owncloud.org/ where they literally said:"ownCloud provides universal access to your files via the web, your computer or your mobile devices — wherever you are." what is the real purpouse I was trying to explain. You can share this access with everyone or you can keep it private. In addition, your files could be needed for your web (then you are not violating the ToS) or it could be whatever file you want to upload (like a movie, music, books, etc) which if it is not relative to your website will be a violation of ToS. But you can do the same with cPanel file manager (or ftp). You are able to upload a movie in public_html and share the linkd "http://www.whatever.x10.bz/movie.avi". Or you could use ftp to upload a backup of your computer hard disk drive...

Sumarising: Owncloud is a tool. A tool won't violate the ToS. The user can use a tool to violate ToS. The user can use whatever to violate ToS, so If you really think that you must seal every tool that allow user to violate ToS, then try offering web hosting services like http://www.own-free-website.com/ that only allow content in pages pre-created, becuase every file a user can upload to his page is suitable to violate ToS and every line of code that you allow to be written by every user is suitable to violate ToS. This tool isn't more illegal (against ToS) than any other (joomla, moodle, wordpress, galleries, etc.). It's more. I'm sure that if you take a look for every single page on the servers and examine these which violate ToS, There will be a lot of them that are not using any tool like this or like any other. When you have the posibility of upload files to a server, a tool that makes the work easy or automatically when the files changes doesn't mean anything. It's only comfortable.
It's weird, but this conversation is reminding me the typical discussion about "piracy", and when people starts to say that torren is only for downloading illegal content. What will happen to all people who download Ubuntu new discs via torrent if they close torrent because can be use to piracy? It sounds me like the same. What will happened to people who try to upload web content easily if you won't allow Whatever-tool because can be use to violate ToS? Well the answer is simple, the same as before, because it has never been possible, but knowing that is not only suitable to violate ToS, now is when you could think in future or live like the anti-piracy-morons.

 

[bdistler]

what part of "you do not have access to install it" do you not understand ?
calling me and x10hosting "anti-piracy-morons' will not changed that fact

 

[igpwdx10]

Sorry if you have understood that.
I didn't try to call you like that I only said that I see that the behavior of "forbidding what is suitable to do what we don't want to be done" reminds me the behavior of anty-piracy-morons. No that you are anti-piracy-morons.

On the other hand, I understood that they don't want to give us access to install it (seriously, the most confusing part for me is the word access, for me[in my language] access has meaning of capability of entrance, so if I can be be in the system and I can install software (for example via softaculous) I only can interpretate it like permission and knowing that I could install it with the permissions I have this is why it is confusising to me). I undesrstood too that you are an active member, a member with experience in that, but you are not part of x10hosting staff so I don't know why you take it as personal. In addition, if you are not part of x10hosting staff, why and how are you traying to explain me why x10hosting doesn't want to allow owncloud installations? I mean, How you possibly know how they think?

Again if You have felt insulted, I'm sorried. I only came here to know why they won't allow it and to expose arguments saying that the thigs they have said about it doesn't seem real arguments for me. As I said in the first message (or the second) If they said that they are not going to allow it, it's ok, but I'm only saying that it's not true that owncloud violate ToS so in that case I don't undertand why.

 

[Livewire]

I'm closing this thread down as it's rapidly going off the rails. Before I do that, I can confirm that, at this time, OwnCloud is indeed considered a banned piece of software and can/will result in the permanent suspension of the hosting service it is installed to. At the time it was added to our "do not allow" list, it was purely used for File Storage, and a large number of users were abusing it as such. At this time, we have no plans to re-review its status as an allowable script, due partially to the abuse we STILL continue to see with it both on free and premium (if it was being primarily used for legitimate purposes maybe, but primarily it's still being used as a File Storage platform).

As a side note bdistler, OwnCloud does not require a server-side install of any form, which is probably where the confusion on the "access" phrasing is coming from. The primary method of install is server-side, but it does have a download/extract option like most CMS, and I'm seeing users installing it that way without errors (right up until they get suspended for using it to dump their personal backups to).

 

[Livewire]

Adding another reply to clarify something else I noticed as well, I'm going through Softaculous and resetting what software we do/don't allow. Apparently during the move, the settings got buggered so it thought "I'll just re-enable everything," when it SHOULD have said "Hmm, I should notify the admins that I can't copy my settings cause I'm sure there's a reason they changed them."

*grumble grumble inconsiderate software grumble grumble*