WebDAV
WebDAV is one of many standard protocols for accessing the Cloud from your desktop or another computer. Files.com does support WebDAV, however if your goal is simply access to Files.com from your Desktop, please use the Files.com Desktop App instead.
The Desktop app supports Windows and Mac and is much faster, easier to use, and more secure than WebDAV.
However, some customers need to use WebDAV for very specific reasons, and if you know that those reasons apply to you, follow the instructions below to connect to Files.com via WebDAV.
Files.com operates a proprietary WebDAV server software that we build and maintain in-house using our full-time employees. Our server is compatible with the WebDAV standards.
Open Windows Explorer by going to Start > Computer or pressing Windows + E on your keyboard. Then click Map Network Drive. Your computer may look different depending on what version of Windows you're using.
Input https://SUBDOMAIN.files.com/ where SUBDOMAIN is your Files.com subdomain into the folder field. Then check the "connect using different credentials" box and click Finish.
On the next screen enter your Files.com username and password then click OK.
If all was entered correctly, Windows Explorer will now show the files on your site. You can now browse and access it as any other drive, including via drag and drop.
Below are some potential issues that Windows users may encounter when connecting to Files.com via WebDAV, along with recommended steps to resolve them.
Not to sound like a Broken Record, but these issues are one of the reasons that we prefer not to recommend WebDAV in the first place. Consider this one more plea to use the Files.com Desktop App instead.
One common issue that Windows 7 users encounter with WebDAV is the lack of proper encryption support for making secure WebDAV connections (TLS 1.2 to be specific).
Microsoft provides instructions for enabling TLS 1.2 support in Windows here.
We recommend using the Easy Fix download solution published there, rebooting, and then trying the drive mapping again.
By default, Windows will not allow a WebDAV upload that takes over 30 minutes. Microsoft provides instructions for making a registry setting change to address the issue here (see Scenario 2).
Windows has a default limit of 50MB for WebDAV downloads. Microsoft provides instructions for making a registry setting change to address this issue here (See Scenario 1).
The Windows operating system has a path length limit of 260 characters. This means that if you have a path that exceeds that limit, Windows will not display any files or folders within that path, even though the files will appear in the Files.com web interface.
You can read more about this Windows limitation in the Microsoft article here.
One way to work around this OS limitation is to shorten your folder names, or rearrange your folder hierarchy to reduce the length of your folder paths. You may also consider using the Files.com desktop app, which works around this OS limitation.
According to this Microsoft KB article, this behavior is by design in Windows.
In Windows 7 Basic authentication cannot be persisted by the Credential Manager in Windows 7, this is new to the OS. The only way with Basic authentication mode to reconnect is to disconnect the drive and reconnect again, because WinHttp is not able to retrieve saved Basic and Digest credentials.*
The workaround they suggest is to use a logon script that reconnects the DAV share at user logon. Here is an example, where Z is the drive letter to map to, your_username is your username, and your_password is your password:
net use Z: https://app.files.com /user:your_username your_password
This is normal behavior for WebDAV mapped drives on Windows, as explained in this article in the Microsoft knowledge base.
You can always see your actual usage in the web interface at Settings > Usage.
This error may occur when attempting to map a network drive if the Windows WebDAV client service is not currently running on your machine.
To check this, follow these steps:
- Launch the Windows Services Manager (run: services.msc)
- Locate the WebClient service in the list of services, and verify that its status is listed as "running". If not, double-click on the service, and then click the Start button under Service status.
- To ensure that the service is started automatically on boot, you can also change the Startup type to "Automatic".
- Finally, click OK and then close the Services Manager window.
Then try the drive mapping again after ensuring the service is running.
If you are using a Windows Server operating system like Windows Server 2008 or later, you need to install the Desktop Experience feature to enable support for WebDAV drive mapping.
To do so, use the following steps (source: Microsoft):
- Start the Windows Server Manager.
- In the tree view, highlight the Features node.
- In the details pane, click Add Features.
- In the Add Features Wizard, check the Desktop Experience box, and then click Next.
- Click Install.
- When the Add Features Wizard has finished, click Close.
- Click Yes when promoted to restart the computer.
This is caused by a default security setting in Windows that was introduced in Windows XP SP2, and is present in all subsequent versions of Windows.
Here is the explanation from Microsoft:
This issue occurs because a security change that was introduced in Windows XP SP2 affects the Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) redirector. This security change makes sure that an unauthorized server cannot force a client computer into a denial of service attack. If you try to download a file that is larger than 50000000 bytes, the client computer interprets this download as a denial of service attack. Therefore, the download process stops.
Microsoft does provide a resolution, which involves making a registry setting change. You can find the details here under "Resolution".
First, you need to set up your Mac so that Finder and WebDAV play nicely together.
- Disable .DS_Store over network connections by following Apple's directions.
- Disable icon previews by following these directions.
Now you're ready to connect your Mac via WebDAV.
Open Finder and and choose Go > Connect to Server, or press ⌘ + K. In the Connect to Server dialog box, enter https://SUBDOMAIN.files.com/ where SUBDOMAIN is your Files.com subdomain in the Server Address box and then click Connect.
Make sure you select Registered User on the prompt. When prompted for your username and password, enter your Files.com credentials. You can select the option to store your login information in your keychain for easy access.
If all was entered correctly, a new Finder window will open showing the files on your site.
You can now browse and access it as any other drive.
To connect the Nautilus file manager to your Files.com site with WebDAV, simply use the path davs://SUBDOMAIN.files.com, replacing SUBDOMAIN with your Files.com subdomain.
To connect the Dolphin file manager to your Files.com site with WebDAV, simply use the path webdavs://SUBDOMAIN.files.com, replacing SUBDOMAIN with your Files.com subdomain.
Follow these steps to create a WebDAV mount from the Linux command line:
Install the davfs2 WebDAV filesystem driver if not already installed.
sudo apt-get install davfs2or:
sudo yum install davfs2Add yourself to the davfs2 group (afterward, you will need to log out and back in for this to take effect):
sudo usermod -aG davfs2 {'<username>'}Create a files.com directory in your home directory for the mount point, and .davfs2 directory for your personal configuration file:
mkdir ~/files.com
mkdir ~/.davfs2Copy /etc/davfs2/secrets to ~/.davfs2, set yourself as the owner, and make the permissions read-write owner only:
sudo cp /etc/davfs2/secrets ~/.davfs2/secrets
sudo chown <username>:<username> ~/.davfs2/secrets
sudo chmod 600 ~/.davfs2/secretsAdd your Files.com site URL and login credentials to the end of the secrets file:
https://SUBDOMAIN.files.com <username> <password>Add the mount information to /etc/fstab:
https://SUBDOMAIN.files.com /home/<username>/files.com davfs rw,user,noauto 0 0You should now be able to mount your Files.com site with WebDAV using this command:
mount ~/files.comGet Instant Access to Files.com
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