Rclone is a powerful command-line tool for managing files between local storage and cloud services. Filen can be officially configured as an Rclone remote, allowing you to easily upload, sync, and manage your files from the terminal.
1. Install Rclone
On Debian or Ubuntu, install the latest Rclone version with:
curl https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash
Check the installation:
rclone version
2. Get Your Filen API Key
Rclone's Filen backend requires a Filen API key.
Run:
curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/FilenCloudDienste/filen-rs/refs/heads/main/filen-cli/export-api-key.sh | bash
The script will ask for your Filen email address and password.
After successful authentication, it will display something like:
API Key for xyz@gmail.com: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Copy this API key. Do not share it publicly, as it provides access to your Filen account.
3. Create the Filen Rclone Remote
Run:
rclone config
Choose:
n) New remote
Give it a name, for example:
filen
When asked for the storage type, select:
Filen
When Rclone asks for:
Option api_key.
API Key for your Filen account
paste the API key you obtained in the previous step.
Complete the configuration and then test it:
rclone lsd filen:
If the configuration is working, your Filen directories will be displayed.
4. Sync Files to Filen
You can now sync a local folder to Filen:
rclone sync /home/mahesh/file filen:backup
For example:
rclone sync /home/mahesh/Documents filen:Documents
The general syntax is:
rclone sync /local/file-or-folder filen:remote-folder
