This brief tutorial is going to show you how to automatically map Box.net Cloud Online Storage in Ubuntu 12.10 / 12.04 easily so you can backup your important stuff automatically. We’ve written about this before, however, some seem to have problem with it so I am going to write this one as easy as it can be.
For those who don’t know, Box.net is an online file system or storage that enables users to access and share files of all types anywhere with other users. It is one of the leaders in the cloud space. It provides 5GB of free storage for personal accounts and if you wish to upgrade to bigger storage, you can easily do so.
The reason for this is that Box.net has not provided any client software for Linux systems. Windows users have it easy, they can easily download Box.net’s client and access their content from their desktop. Now, if you wish to access your Box.net’s content with Linux systems, you must follow these steps below.
To get started, please make sure you can access your Box.net account online. Without account access, you labor will be in vain.
After verifying your account, sign into Ubuntu and press Ctrl – Alt – T on your keyboard to open the terminal. When it opens, run the commands below to install davfs2 package.
sudo apt-get install davfs2
Next, run the commands below to reconfigure davfs2 to allow non-root to mount shares.
sudo dpkg-reconfigure davfs2
When prompted with the screen below, select Yes.
Next, copy and paste the commands below to create davfs2 folder in your home directory.
sudo cp -r /etc/davfs2/ /home/<username>/.davfs2
Next, run the commands below to take ownership of the folders you just copied.
sudo chown -R richard /home/<your_username>/.davfs2/
Next, run the command below to open davfs2 authentication file. This file is used to authenticate with remote servers.
gedit ~/.davfs2/secrets
Then add the line below with your username and password at the end of the file and save it.
https://www.box.com/dav richard@liberiangeek.net Your_Password
After that, open fstab by running the commands below
sudo gedit /etc/fstab
When it opens, add the line with your username and mount point at the end of the file and save it.
https://www.box.com/dav/ /home/<your_username/box davfs _netdev,rw,user 0 0
After that, add yourself to davfs2 group by running the commands below
sudo adduser your_username davfs2
When you’re done, create a mount point to map Box.net files.
mkdir ~/box
Restart your computer and you’re set.
Enjoy!
Box.net
Replace all <username> with your Ubuntu username.
Thank you, worked beautifully on Quantal Gnome Remix. Thanks for making it simple.
Is there a way to set this up for multiple box accounts simultaneously? I would think webdav wouldn’t have a problem with it but fstab is pointing right to the generic url and reading the username and password from a secret labeled very generically.
Thanks for the great ‘How-To’s’ – much appreciated! Will this also work for 13.04 or are there new steps which should be taken?
Yes, it should work just fine.
Works like a charm! Thanks for the confirmation, Richard :)
Hi,
thanks for this nice post. However, I have a problem when I try to copy files or folders to the box folder. Usually a get a “permission denied”. Any ideas of what could be wrong?
Thanks in advance
It is probably down to file/folder size, if you have a free account. will not let you copy to cloud if over a certain size.
Have to do it in smaller chuncks