Until recently, the Nextcloud Files app for Android enjoyed full read\u2010and\u2010write access to all file types on users\u2019 devices\u2014a capability granted back in 2011. However, users of the popular app now discovered an unpleasant surprise – they could no longer upload arbitrary files, only photos and videos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On a related note, in a post titled “Unhappy with the recently lost file upload feature in the Nextcloud app for Android? So are we. Let us explain.<\/a>” from Nextcloud share:<\/p>\n\n\n\n To make it crystal clear: All of you as users have a worse Nextcloud Files client because Google wanted that. We understand and share your frustration, but there is nothing we can do.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n So, what’s happening? A routine update to the app was unexpectedly rejected from the Google Play Store. Google\u2019s review team demanded the removal of the \u201call files\u201d permission and suggested that Nextcloud adopt Android\u2019s Storage Access Framework (SAF) or the MediaStore API instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, according to Nextcloud’s devs, neither alternative met the app\u2019s needs. The SAF is designed primarily for sharing files between apps and doesn\u2019t support Nextcloud\u2019s seamless sync workflow. Likewise, the MediaStore API only handles media content and cannot accommodate documents, archives, or other file types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Consequently, the app\u2019s functionality on Google Play now permits only photo and video uploads, sidelining documents, presentations, and miscellaneous files\u2014thus undermining the very purpose of a full\u2010featured cloud storage client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To make things even worse, despite repeated appeals to Google since mid\u20102024, the company has so far refused to restore the broad permission. According to the Nextcloud team, the responses have been largely formulaic: a copy-and-paste rejection message and generic links to Android developer guidelines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s important to emphasize that this restriction applies only to the Google Play distribution<\/a>. Users who install Nextcloud\u2019s APK from alternative stores, such as F-Droid<\/a>, retain the full \u201call files\u201d permission and experience no upload interruptions. Nevertheless, with nearly one million active installs on Play alone, F-Droid isn\u2019t a practical workaround for most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This episode mirrors historical precedents. In the 1990s, Microsoft famously throttled support for third-party word processors on Windows, ensuring its Office suite enjoyed priority treatment. Today, critics argue that Google wields its platform power similarly, crafting rules that conveniently hobble challengers while leaving its proprietary services unscathed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s also interesting is that similar apps from big companies like Apple and Microsoft, not to mention Google\u2019s own apps, aren\u2019t affected by these kinds of restrictions. So, does this mean there\u2019s a different set of rules for the tech giants compared to smaller open-source projects? In the end, that question might be more rhetorical than anything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In conclusion, this drama illustrates a broader pattern of platform gatekeeping by dominant tech players. In simple words, by controlling app distribution channels, Google can effectively hobble competitors\u2019 functionality under the guise of security or policy enforcement – what exactly happens at the moment with the Nextcloud app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ll monitor developments closely and, as always, inform you if anything changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Update<\/strong>: There\u2019s been some good news in the past few hours\u2014Nextcloud has shared an update, and it looks like everything should be back to normal now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Good news. This morning, May 15, Google reached out to us and offered to restore the permission, which will give our users back the functionality that was lost.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Nextcloud slams Google for blocking full file uploads in its Android app, blaming Big Tech gatekeeping and anti-competitive practices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":168899,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,5],"tags":[3682,3154,3673],"class_list":["post-168779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-software","category-news","tag-file-sharing","tag-google","tag-nextcloud"],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=168779"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168779\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/168899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=168779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=168779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linuxiac.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=168779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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