Storage Overview

Storage is the general-purpose filesystem in HomeDock OS. It provides a familiar file management experience for documents, media, downloads, and any other files that don’t require encryption. Unlike Drop Zone, files in Storage are stored as-is, no encryption layer is applied.

Default Folder Structure

Storage comes with a set of default folders to help organize your files from the start:

Notes: Text files, markdown, and quick notes
Documents: General documents and office files
Photos: Image files and photographs
Videos: Video files and recordings
Music: Audio files and music
Downloads: Downloaded files from the web or other apps

You can create additional folders at any level to organize your files however you prefer.

_{Default folders provide a starting point for organization, but you're free to create your own folder structure at any depth.}

Features

File Browser

Storage uses the same unified file browser interface as the rest of File Explorer:

Grid View: Desktop-like layout with positioned file and folder icons
List View: Compact rows with detailed information (name, size, date)
Sorting: Sort by name, size, or date with ascending/descending toggle
Breadcrumb Navigation: Clickable path segments for quick navigation
View Sync: View mode preferences sync in real-time with Drop Zone

File Operations

All standard file operations are available:

Operation	Endpoint
List files	`GET /api/storage/files`
Search	`GET /api/storage/search`
Upload	`POST /api/storage/upload`
Download	`GET /api/storage/download`
Download multiple	`POST /api/storage/download-multiple`
Delete	`POST /api/storage/delete`
Create folder	`POST /api/storage/create-folder`
Rename	`POST /api/storage/rename`

Every endpoint returns the same shape as the other File Explorer backends: { files: [], current_path: "" }, where each file follows the common FileEntry interface.

Upload

Drag and Drop: Drop files or entire folders onto the window
Folder Structure: Uploaded folders maintain their directory hierarchy
Hidden File Filtering: Files starting with ”.” are automatically filtered out
Progress Tracking: Unified upload progress indicator in the system tray

Search

Storage provides a global search that scans files and folders recursively within the current path. Results are grouped by parent directories with full path context displayed.

Multi-Selection

Ctrl+Click: Add or remove individual files from selection
Drag-to-Select: Click and drag to create a selection rectangle
Batch Download: Download multiple selected files as a ZIP archive
Batch Delete: Delete all selected items at once

Right-click any file or folder for quick actions:

Open, download, rename, delete
Add to Favorites
File properties (size, date, path)
Touch-friendly long-press support on mobile

File Display

Each file shows rich metadata:

Size Badges: Compact human-readable sizes (KB, MB, GB)
Relative Timestamps: “5m ago”, “1h ago”, “Now”
NEW Indicators: Recent uploads within the last hour are highlighted
File Type Icons: Automatic detection with appropriate icons for documents, images, videos, audio, archives, code files, and more

Opening Files

Double-clicking a file in Storage routes it to the appropriate built-in utility based on its extension (Notepad for text, Image Viewer for images, Media Player for audio/video, PDF Viewer for PDFs). Unrecognized extensions trigger a direct download. See File Explorer for the full extension routing table.

Storage vs Drop Zone

	Storage	Drop Zone
Encryption	None, files stored as-is	AES-256-GCM at rest
Use case	General files, media, documents	Sensitive or private files
Performance	Direct read/write	Encrypt on upload, decrypt on download
Default folders	Notes, Documents, Photos, Videos, Music, Downloads	User-created only
Interface	Shared File Explorer UI	Shared File Explorer UI

_{Use Storage for everyday files and Drop Zone when you need encryption. Both backends share the same interface within File Explorer.}

Security

Even without encryption, Storage is protected by the same security measures as the rest of File Explorer:

CSRF tokens: Every request requires an X-HomeDock-CSRF-Token header
Login authentication: All routes require an active session
Path traversal protection: validate_safe_path() blocks ../ and similar attacks
Symlink prevention: validate_no_symlinks() blocks symlink escape attacks
Filename sanitization: validate_filename() validates safe characters
User isolation: All paths scoped to the authenticated user’s home directory

Limits

Limit	Value
Directory size calculation	10,000 files / 2 seconds
ZIP downloads	50,000 files / 30 seconds
Search	100,000 files / 5 seconds

Touch Support

Storage is fully optimized for touch devices:

Long Press: Opens context menu
Double Tap: Opens folders or downloads files
Touch Selection: Tap to select, tap again to deselect
Mobile Upload: Dedicated floating upload button on small screens