Self Install on Raspberry Pi 4 (or 3)

HomeDrive runs on 64-bit Raspberry Pi. You can self-install it on your existing 64-bit Raspberry Pi for free. It works on both Raspberry Pi 3 and 4, but we suggesting using a Raspberry Pi 4 for more acceptable Nextcloud performance.

Raspberry Pi 2 or earlier is not supported, as they are 32-bit only.

Preparation

• A Raspberry Pi 3 or 4 with power cable
• A computer that can flash a micro SD card.
• A micro SD card that is at least 16GB.
• An Ethernet cabel network that provides Internet connectivity. This is normally your home network router.
• A monitor with HDMI and a keyboard, or alternatively serial console connector via Raspberry Pi's GPIO pins.

Installation

1. Create an endpoint on HomeDrive website. This endpoint account will be used for fetching future HomeDrive software updates, and also for establishing the end-to-end encrypted proxy tunnel so that you can visit your HomeDrive from the Internet. The endpoint account name is a sub domain label.
2. Download the image here and flash it to the SD card. You can use a tool like Balena Etcher.
3. Plug the SD card into the Raspberry Pi board.
4. Plug in the monitor and the keyboard (or connect the serial console).
5. Connect the board to the Internet via an Ethernet cable.
6. Connect the board to its power and boot it up.
7. Wait until you see the burmilla$ prompt on the console.
8. Run sudo /opt/homedrv/install.
9. When prompt for the endpoint's name, enter the endpoint name that you created.
10. It will then ask you for the one-time installation code. You can find the code on the endpoint's page. If the code has expired or about to expire, you can click the button on the endpoint's page to receate a new one.
11. After filling in the endpoint's name and the one-time installation code, it will start the installation. Depending on the performance of the board, the SD card and the network, it might take 10 to 40 minutes to complete the full installation.

You can track the installation progress with this command: docker logs --follow core.homedrv (and press Ctrl-C to exit following at any time).

After HomeDrive is successfully installed, you can visit it at domain your-endpoint.homedrv.com (or your-endpoint.homedrv.eu for ones in the Europe region). The installation generates a password with random characters, and you can find the password on the endpoint's page. The username is admin.

After installation, please change your Nextcloud password and set up some form of 2-factor authentication. Since your Nextcloud is exposed to the Internet, setting up 2-factor authentication is very important to keep your service and data secure.

The keyboard and the monitor will be no longer needed after the installation.

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If you need help, feel free to chat with us using the chat bottom on the bottom right corner, or send us an email at support@homedrive.io .

If you still find these steps too complicated to follow, you can buy a preinstalled HomeDrive device.