Piktures, a free Android gallery app, shows the photos and videos on your Nextcloud server as albums, next to the ones on your phone, and does the same with any WebDAV server reachable over HTTPS. You type your server's address and your login once; Piktures keeps them on the phone and connects to your server directly, with no Piktures server in between.
Can an Android gallery app show the photos on my Nextcloud server?
Yes. Piktures reaches your Nextcloud through WebDAV, the protocol Nextcloud exposes for files, and shows your folders as albums in the Albums tab, the same way the phone's folders do. It opens your photos where they are: nothing is copied to the phone until you ask for it, and there is no Piktures account to create.
Your server appears in the Storage tab, under CLOUD. The first time you open it, Piktures reads the whole folder structure, which can take a while; the next times are faster, and the thumbnails it has made are kept in its cache so albums open quickly.
Piktures is not associated with Nextcloud.
How do I add my Nextcloud to Piktures?
- In the Storage tab, scroll down to ADD A NEW ACCESS, tap Nextcloud, then GET STARTED.
- In Host:Port, type the address of your server, such as
cloud.example.com. Piktures addshttps://itself. - Type the Login and Password of your Nextcloud account.
- Tap Sign in or register.
Piktures connects to https://<your server>/remote.php/dav/files/<your login>/, the WebDAV address Nextcloud documents, and keeps your login details on the phone. Your first access is free; a second access needs Premium or Prime. The details are in Nextcloud.
How do I add any other WebDAV server?
Many storage services and servers support WebDAV, an open protocol. Piktures has a tile for it:
- In the Storage tab, under ADD A NEW ACCESS, tap Webdav, then GET STARTED.
- In URL, type the address of your WebDAV server. If you leave out
https://, Piktures adds it. - Type your Login and Password.
- Tap Sign in or register.
Three services have a tile of their own, so use it instead: Nextcloud, Koofr and Yandex Disk. Koofr and Yandex Disk need an app password, not your regular one. For a NAS or a computer on your home Wi-Fi network, the Network drive tile (SMB) is the other option: see Network drive (SMB). The details are in Webdav.
What can I do with Nextcloud and WebDAV photos in Piktures?
- Browse and view. Each folder is an album, shown as a Grid or a List, with every sort order except Date. The Mosaic display isn't offered on a WebDAV-based access.
- Copy photos to the phone. Select them, tap the move icon, and pick an album of the phone. From a cloud, Piktures always copies: the originals stay on your server.
- Send photos from the phone to your server. Select them, tap the move icon, tap Current drive, choose your server under CLOUD, open a folder and tap Move here or Copy here. After a move, Piktures sends the phone's copies to Deleted items, where you can still restore them. See Copy and move between drives.
- Back up your phone albums to your server, automatically, with Premium or Prime. Piktures creates a
Pikturesfolder at the destination, sends each album once in full and then only the new photos, and never deletes anything there. See Back up and restore your photos.
With a paid plan, and during your first 3 days, a transfer runs in the background. With the free plan, a Please wait… window shows its progress, with an ad.
Piktures, Nextcloud and WebDAV: the facts
| App | Piktures, by Diune, for Android 11 or later |
| Price | Free, with a few Google ads. The one-time No ads purchase removes them |
| Account | Your Nextcloud or WebDAV login. No Piktures account, no Piktures server |
| Connection | HTTPS only. An address starting with http: is refused |
| Nextcloud address | https://<your server>/remote.php/dav/files/<your login>/, built by Piktures from the host you type |
| Where your login goes | It stays on the phone |
| Where your photos show | In the Storage tab under CLOUD, then as albums in the Albums tab |
| What stays where | Photos stay on your server until you copy them to the phone. Phone photos go to the server only when you copy, move or back them up |
| Displays | Grid and List; no Mosaic |
| Sort orders | Every order except Date |
| Phone to server | Copy, move, and automatic backup (backup with Premium or Prime) |
| Server to phone | Copy, never move |
| Accesses | The first is free, whatever the service; the next ones need Premium or Prime. Each account can be added once |
| Also through WebDAV | Koofr and Yandex Disk, with their own tile and an app password |
| On your home network | A NAS or a computer can also be added as a Network drive (SMB), on the same Wi-Fi network |
Questions
Does Piktures connect to Nextcloud over HTTP?
No. Piktures only connects over HTTPS: an address that starts with http: gives This URL is invalid. If the server's certificate is refused, Piktures shows There is an SSL error.
What do the other sign-in errors mean?
This access already exists means this account is already added. Login failed means the address, the login or the password is wrong. Nextcloud explains WebDAV access in its documentation.
Should I use WebDAV or the network drive for my NAS?
Both work. A network drive (SMB) is reached on your home Wi-Fi network only; a WebDAV server is reached at its HTTPS address. If your NAS offers WebDAV over HTTPS, the Webdav tile is the one to use; otherwise, the Network drive tile.
Is Piktures free?
Yes. The free Basic plan shows a few ads and allows one remote access, so one server. Your first 3 days are without ads. The one-time No ads purchase removes the ads; Premium, a one-time purchase, and Prime, a monthly subscription, also unlock more accesses and automatic backup. See In-app purchases.
Does Piktures upload my phone photos to my server?
Not by itself. Your photos leave the phone only when you share them, or when you copy, move or back them up to a cloud or a drive you connected. No Piktures server receives them. See Our product principles.