Building a Simple Cloud Server with Node.js on Raspberry Pi

Introduction

This lightweight cloud server solution uses Node.js with Express and Multer to create a simple file storage system. Unlike complex solutions, this focuses on basic file upload/download functionality with minimal setup requirements.

Key Features

• Simple file upload/download interface
• Works on Raspberry Pi or any computer with Node.js
• Default upload limits: 10GB total storage, 999 files
• No database required - runs with just Node.js and dependencies
• Easy to modify and extend

Installation Guide

1. Install Node.js on Raspberry Pi

Run these commands in your terminal:

# For Raspberry Pi OS (Debian-based)
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_lts.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

# Verify installation
node -v
npm -v

2. Setting Up the Server

After downloading and extracting the package:

1. Place the files in the directory where you want files to be stored
2. Install dependencies:

npm install

3. Start the server:

node server.js

4. Access the web interface at http://localhost:8080

3. Running on Windows

The process is similar on Windows:

1. Install Node.js from nodejs.org
2. Extract the package to your desired storage location
3. Open Command Prompt in that directory
4. Run npm install then node server.js

Configuration Options

You can modify these settings in config.js:

module.exports = {
  port: 3000,                   // Server port
  maxFiles: 999,                // Maximum number of files
  maxStorage: 10 * 1024 * 1024 * 1024,  // 10GB in bytes
  uploadDir: './uploads',       // Storage directory
  allowedFileTypes: ['*']       // All file types allowed
};

Security Notes

• This is a basic solution - not recommended for sensitive data
• For remote access, consider adding authentication
• Use behind a firewall or VPN for better security