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Use Object Storage with Rclone

Stephanie R.
Updated

Learn how to set up Rclone to synchronize your files to and from Object Storage.

Rclone is a backup tool that can sync to and from various storage backends and can be used on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Detailed documentation is also available on the official Rclone website.

There are two flavors of Object Storage, which you can compare in the table below. You can also click here to view more detailed information about all Object Storage options.

Standard Object Storage High Performance Object Storage
A great storage solution for high volumes of data at a great price. We offer a wide range of S3™* compatible APIs with this solution. A solution adapted to the most demanding needs, where the storage must include high read and write performance.
S3™ compatible API S3™ compatible API
Data protection with erasure coding Data protection with erasure coding
 
NOTE: OVHcloud provides services for which you are responsible for their configuration and management. You are therefore responsible for their proper functioning.

This tutorial is designed to help you as much as possible with common tasks. If you are having difficulty performing these actions, please contact a specialized service provider. OVHcloud can't provide you with technical support in this regard.

 

Requirements

  • a container
  • a user with the required access rights on the container
  • your Object Storage credentials (access_key and secret_access_key)
  • Rclone installed

See our Getting Started with Object Storage guide.

To identify the endpoint corresponding to your storage class, please refer to this guide: Endpoints and Object Storage Geoavailability.

 

Instructions

To configure Rclone, edit or download the Rclone file.

  1. Log into the OVHcloud Control Panel and click Public Cloud.
  2. Click Object Storage on the left-hand sidebar.
  3. Navigate to the Object Storage users tab.
  4. Click the ... next to the user for which you wish to download the file.
  5. Click Download rclone file.

S3rclone01.png

 

In the pop-up menu, select S3 as the File type and then click Download. This option applies to "Standard Object Storage" and "High Performance Object Storage."

s3rclone02-S3.jpg

 

The configuration file should look like this:

NOTE: You may need to manually add the secret_access_key to the file.
[<remote_name>]
type= s3
provider = Other
env_auth = true
access_key_id = <access_key>
secret_access_key = <secret_key>
acl = private
region = <region_in_lowercase>
location_constraint = <region_in_lowercase>
endpoint = https://s3.<region_in_lowercase>.io.cloud.ovh.us

 

Next, copy the downloaded configuration file into the following Rclone configuration directory to make it default:

  • On Windows
%APPDATA%/rclone/rclone.conf
  • On Linux or Mac
~/.config/rclone/rclone.conf

Alternatively, specifying the --config=CONFIG_FILE in the rclone command will override the default file. CONFIG_FILE is the location of downloaded config file.

 

Command examples

NOTE: The default remote name is the first name in brackets in the configuration file.

List all containers:

$ rclone lsd <remote_name>:

Create a new container:

$ rclone mkdir <remote_name>:mycontainer

List the contents of a container:

$ rclone ls <remote_name>:mycontainer

Synchronize /home/user/documents to a container:

In the above below, /home/user/documents is referred as source and <remote_name>:mycontainer is referred as destination. Synchronizing the source to the destination will change the destination only. This command will match the destination with source, including deleting files if necessary from destination. It will not transfer files that are identical on source and destination (size and modification time or MD5SUM used for comparison).
$ rclone sync /home/user/documents <remote_name>:mycontainer

Copy a file /home/user/file.txt into a container:

The copy command is similar to sync with the only difference that it will not delete files from the destination. You can use this command to copy files or folders.
$ rclone copy /home/user/file.txt <remote_name>:mycontainer

Download (restore) a file file.txt from a container:

$ rclone copy <remote_name>:mycontainer/file.txt fichier.txt

Delete a file file.txt from a container:

$ rclone delete <remote_name>:mycontainer/file.txt

You can add -P flag to show the progress and -v flag to show verbose count to the commands above.

Rclone command example with -Pv flags and overriding default configuration file:

$ rclone copy -Pv /home/user/file.txt <remote_name>:mycontainer --config=CONFIG_FILE

You will find on the official Rclone website a detailed documentation of the possible actions: Official Rclone documentation. Here are full lists of Rclone flags and Rclone commands.

 

Go further

For more information and tutorials, please see our other Object Storage support guides or explore the guides for other OVHcloud products and services.

*S3 is a trademark filed by Amazon Technologies, Inc. OVHcloud's service is not sponsored by, endorsed by, or otherwise affiliated with Amazon Technologies, Inc.

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