From the time I stopped paying for cloud storage and migrated from OneDrive to Nextcloud, I've constantly been in search of alternatives to platforms like Google Drive, iCloud, etc. Apart from the cost, a big factor that pushed me to move all my data from cloud servers is privacy. Uploading files to cloud storage means that my data is stored on third-party servers, which always poses a risk — especially when uploading sensitive documents and files. With a self-hosted solution like Nextcloud or Seafile, both of these issues are automatically eliminated. That said, even Nextcloud can get rather clunky for some users, especially since it offers a bucket load of features apart from just file sharing.

So if you're only looking for a solution to access your files remotely without a productivity suite or other such additions, you will have to look elsewhere. After a little bit of looking around and trying multiple services, I found Syncthing to be the best-suited replacement for that kind of usage. It's an open-source, peer-to-peer file sync tool that works across multiple devices — phones, laptops, computers, and even devices like your NAS and Raspberry Pi. Apart from the fact that it saves you money, Syncthing also eliminates any sort of sluggishness associated with cloud storage or heavier alternatives like Nextcloud. If that's what you're looking for, you need to set up Syncthing right away.

Super simple to set up

Only takes a few minutes

Syncthing offers downloads for several popular platforms. I use a Mac as my primary computer, so all I had to do was download the ZIP file from the website depending on my CPU architecture. Both X86 and ARM-based CPUs are supported. Extract the file you downloaded and run the Syncthing executable file. You should now be able to access Syncthing by entering the following URL in your browser:

http://localhost:8384

This is where you'll see the Syncthing dashboard. It's now time to configure the right settings for your usage. First, go to Settings -> GUI, and set your username and password. You will use this to access the dashboard going forward. Then, head to Actions -> Show ID. Take a screenshot of the device identifier, since we will use it later to connect to other devices.

With that out of the way, it's time to set up a folder that contains all the items to sync. Create a folder named Sync in the following directory, depending on the OS you're using. On macOS:

/Users/Username/Sync

On Windows:

C:\Users\Username\Sync

On Linux:

/home/username/Sync

Let's add this folder to Syncthing. In the dashboard, click on the Add Folder button. Enter a name for the folder, followed by the path to the Sync folder. Syncthing will now scan the folder. In the meantime, you can adjust various parameters of the folder by using the Edit button.

Connecting devices and sharing files

Also works with phones

With Syncthing set up on one device, it's time to set it up on all your other devices so that you can access your files from all of them. Note that you will need an instance of Syncthing on every device that you want to use to access your files. Unlike cloud storage, where you can simply access and download files from any device using a browser, Syncthing doesn't function like that. So, you will have to follow the process mentioned earlier to set up an instance on another machine. Then, obtain the Device ID of that particular machine.

Access your first computer, and click on Add Remote Device on the dashboard. Paste the device ID from all the machines you wish to add. You will also have to enter the first computer's device ID on all the other machines. Then, approve the connection when prompted on both devices. Finally, click on the Edit button next to the Sync folder, and choose all the devices with which you wish to share the folder. You will see another prompt on all the selected devices. Once you confirm, anything you add to the Sync folder on your primary computer will be synced across all your devices. You will be asked to choose the path to store the synced files on all the computers. Choose any destination as per your preference. Now, if you wish to upload files from all the other computers too, create the Sync folder and share access to all your other devices.

Access your files privately

Syncthing is a prime example of how you can set up a file-syncing and sharing solution without paying a corporation, sending data to remote servers, or even dealing with complex setup processes. Once you decide which computer you want to use as your host device, it only takes a couple of minutes to configure Syncthing, and you're ready to go. It's also nice not to have a storage cap, since Syncthing relies on your local storage capacity. You can start with the capacity of your existing hard drive or SSD, and then add as many drives as you want, depending on the amount of storage you need. It also helps that Syncthing is extremely fast when all my devices are connected to the same network, since it employs P2P sync instead of uploading a file to a server and then downloading it again on my other devices.