Best cloud storage services with CLI for Ubuntu MATE: (Guide)

Top Cloud Storage Solutions with CLI Support on Ubuntu MATE

Leveraging cloud storage from the command line on Ubuntu MATE combines flexibility, scripting potential and remote backup capabilities without leaving your terminal. Below is a comprehensive overview of some leading services—pCloud, MEGA, Proton Drive, Filen, Tresorit, Icedrive—plus a few additional options (Dropbox, Google Drive via rclone) to help you choose and get started quickly.

Comparison Table

Service	Free Tier	Paid Plans	Encryption	CLI Tool	Official Link
pCloud	10 GB	Premium 500 GB / Premium Plus 2 TB	Client-side optional (pCloud Crypto)	pcloudcc	pCloud.com
MEGA	20 GB bonuses	Pro LITE 400 GB / PRO I, II, III	End-to-end	megacmd	mega.nz
Proton Drive	1 GB	100 GB – 10 TB	End-to-end	proton-drive-cli	proton.me/drive
Filen	3 GB	100 GB – 10 TB	End-to-end	filen-cli	filen.io
Tresorit	3 GB	200 GB – Business	End-to-end	tresorit-cli	tresorit.com
Icedrive	10 GB	150 GB / 1 TB	Client-side optional	icedrive-cli	icedrive.net
Dropbox	2 GB	Plus 2 TB / Professional 3 TB	TLS at-rest	dropbox-cli	dropbox.com
Google Drive	15 GB	100 GB – 30 TB	TLS at-rest	rclone	drive.google.com

Which One to Choose?

• Budget-friendly Large Free Quota: MEGA (20 GB) or Icedrive (10 GB).
• Privacy Encryption: Proton Drive, Filen or Tresorit for true end-to-end protection.
• General Purpose Ecosystem: Google Drive via rclone or Dropbox for wide integration.
• Scripting Bulk: rclone (Google Drive) or megacmd for high-speed transfers.

Installing and Using Each CLI

1. pCloud (pcloudcc)

pCloud provides a native CLI daemon pcloudcc with mount support.

1. Download and install:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install wget unzip
wget https://download.pcloud.com/cli/pcloudcc_2.2.1_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i pcloudcc_2.2.1_amd64.deb
sudo apt -f install

2. Authenticate and start:

pcloudcc --login your@email.com --passwd yourpassword
# To mount at /mnt/pcloud
pcloudcc --mountpoint /mnt/pcloud

Common Issues:

• Mount fails without FUSE: sudo apt install fuse
• Authentication errors: verify credentials or use --auth token login.

2. MEGA (megacmd)

1. Install via snap or .deb:

sudo snap install megacmd
# or via .deb
wget https://mega.nz/linux/MEGAsync/xUbuntu_20.04/amd64/megacmd-xUbuntu_20.04_amd64.deb
sudo apt install ./megacmd-.deb

2. Login and use:

mega-login your@email.com yourpassword
mega-ls             # list root
mega-put file.txt /Root
mega-get /Root/file.txt ~/Downloads

Typical Problems:

• “Error: Not logged in”: run mega-login again.
• Rate limits: avoid too many small requests in loops.

3. Proton Drive (proton-drive-cli)

1. Install via pip or binary:

sudo apt install python3-pip
pip3 install proton-drive-cli

2. Authenticate:

proton-drive login
# follow on-screen browser auth
proton-drive ls        # list root
proton-drive upload file.txt /MyDrive

Issues Tips:

• 2FA prompts: ensure you have browser session active.
• Slow uploads: check your network and try splitting large files.

4. Filen (filen-cli)

1. Download precompiled binary:

wget https://github.com/filen-io/filen-cli/releases/download/v1.0.0/filen-cli-linux-amd64
chmod  x filen-cli-linux-amd64
sudo mv filen-cli-linux-amd64 /usr/local/bin/filen

2. Login and sync:

filen auth login
filen fs sync ~/Documents filen:/MyDocs

Typical Problems:

• “permission denied”: ensure ~/.filen is writable.
• Network timeouts: retry with smaller batch sizes.

5. Tresorit (tresorit-cli)

1. Install official binary:

wget https://download.tresorit.com/linux/tresorit-cli_latest_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i tresorit-cli_latest_amd64.deb
sudo apt -f install

2. Authenticate and start agent:

tresorit login
tresorit --daemon start
tresorit add ~/TresorName TresorAlias
tresorit sync TresorAlias ~/LocalFolder

Common Issues:

• Daemon won’t start: check logs at ~/.tresorit/daemon.log.
• Sync conflicts: resolve using the web UI or CLI tresorit resolve.

6. Icedrive (icedrive-cli)

1. Install via AppImage or binary:

wget https://icedrive.net/download/linux/icedrive-cli.AppImage
chmod  x icedrive-cli.AppImage
sudo mv icedrive-cli.AppImage /usr/local/bin/icedrive

2. Login mount:

icedrive login
icedrive mount /mnt/icedrive
icedrive upload file.txt /MyDrive

Issues Tips:

• “mount failed”: install fuse3.
• Bandwidth limit: upgrade plan or split tasks.

7. Dropbox (dropbox-cli)

1. Install official CLI:

sudo apt install nautilus-dropbox  # includes daemon and CLI
dropbox start -i

2. Use:

dropbox status
dropbox filestatus ~/Dropbox/file.txt
dropbox sharelink ~/Dropbox/file.txt

Issues:

• Daemon not starting: run dropbox update.
• Missing events: install inotify-tools.

8. Google Drive (via rclone)

1. Install rclone:

curl https://rclone.org/install.sh  sudo bash

2. Configure remote:

rclone config
# choose n for new, name gdrive, select drive, follow OAuth

3. Copy files:

rclone copy ~/Projects gdrive:Backups/Projects
rclone sync ~/Photos gdrive:Photos --progress

Common Problems:

• OAuth timeouts: retry within browser lifetime.
• Rate-limits: use --tpslimit 10.

Conclusion

For Ubuntu MATE users comfortable with terminal workflows, MEGA and pCloud excel in free storage and mount performance, while Proton Drive, Filen and Tresorit lead on zero-access encryption. Dropbox and Google Drive (via rclone) remain strong for cross-platform automation and ecosystem ties. Evaluate your priorities—storage size, encryption level, scriptability—and follow the CLI quickstarts above to streamline your cloud backup and sync operations on Ubuntu MATE.