Fix Folder Creation/Renaming Issues In Nextcloud Team Folders

Nov 27, 2025 by Alex Johnson 62 views

Troubleshooting Folder Creation and Renaming Failures in Nextcloud Team Folders

If you're encountering issues with folder creation or renaming within team folders in Nextcloud, particularly when using the shareDiscussion category, you're not alone. This article delves into a specific bug encountered in Nextcloud snap installations that prevents users from renaming folders within subdirectories of team folders shared with another user group. We'll explore the problem, the steps to reproduce it, and potential solutions or workarounds. This is your comprehensive guide to understanding and resolving this frustrating issue.

Understanding the Issue: Nextcloud Folder Renaming Bug

In Nextcloud, team folders are designed to facilitate collaboration and file sharing among users. However, a bug has been identified that affects the ability to rename or create folders within team folders under specific conditions. This issue arises when a team folder, or a subfolder within it, is shared with multiple user groups. Specifically, the problem occurs when a user attempts to rename a folder within a shared subdirectory, resulting in an error message and the inability to complete the action. This can disrupt workflows, hinder collaboration, and create significant frustration for users who rely on Nextcloud for their daily file management needs. The core of the problem lies in how Nextcloud handles permissions and shareable nodes within team folders, particularly when multiple groups are involved. This bug prevents the smooth operation of Nextcloud in collaborative environments, making it crucial to understand its causes and find effective solutions.

Why This Bug Matters

Data integrity and seamless collaboration are crucial for team productivity. When users cannot create or rename folders, it disrupts their workflow and can lead to confusion and errors. For organizations relying on Nextcloud for file management, this bug can severely impact their operations. The inability to rename folders can lead to organizational chaos, as users may struggle to maintain a logical folder structure. This can also impact data retrieval, making it difficult to locate specific files or documents. Furthermore, the error messages and failed attempts to rename folders can create a sense of distrust in the platform, leading users to seek alternative solutions. Therefore, addressing this bug is critical to maintaining user satisfaction and ensuring the continued effectiveness of Nextcloud as a collaborative platform.

Reproducing the Bug: Step-by-Step Guide

To fully grasp the issue, let’s walk through the exact steps to reproduce the bug. This will help you confirm if you're experiencing the same problem and provide a clear understanding of the conditions under which it occurs:

Create a Team Folder: Begin by creating a new team folder in your Nextcloud instance. Let’s name this folder “team_folder”.
Establish a User Group: Create a user group, for example, “group a,” and grant this group all rights to the newly created “team_folder”.
Create a Subfolder: Inside the “team_folder,” create a subfolder. We'll call it “sub”.
Share the Subfolder: Share the “sub” folder with another user group, such as “group b,” ensuring that “group b” also has all rights to the folder.
Create a New Folder: As a member of “group a,” navigate to the “sub” folder and attempt to create a new folder. For instance, create a folder named “test”. You should be able to create the folder without any immediate errors.
Attempt to Rename: Now, try to rename the “test” folder to something else, like “test1”. This is where the bug manifests.
Observe the Error: You should encounter an error message indicating that the folder cannot be renamed. Additionally, you might find an entry in the system log that reads, “Information | no app in context | Forbidden You cannot move a non-shareable node into a share.” This message is a key indicator of the bug.

If you follow these steps and encounter the described error, you have successfully reproduced the bug. This confirms that you are experiencing the same issue and can proceed with exploring potential solutions or workarounds.

What the Steps Reveal

These steps highlight that the bug occurs specifically when a folder within a team folder, shared with multiple groups, is subjected to a renaming operation. The error message points to a conflict in how Nextcloud handles shareable nodes, suggesting that the system incorrectly interprets the renaming action as an attempt to move a non-shareable item into a shared location. This bug appears to be related to the interaction between team folders, subfolder sharing, and the underlying file management system within Nextcloud.

Diving Deeper: The Technical Details

To better understand the root cause of this issue, let's delve into some technical details. The error message, “Forbidden You cannot move a non-shareable node into a share,” provides a crucial clue. In Nextcloud, nodes represent files and folders within the storage system. A “shareable node” is an item that can be shared with other users or groups, while a “non-shareable node” is not intended to be shared directly.

The error message suggests that when a user attempts to rename a folder within a shared subdirectory, Nextcloud incorrectly perceives this as an attempt to move a non-shareable node into a shared location. This is likely a misinterpretation of the renaming operation, possibly due to the complex permission structure involved when team folders and subfolder sharing are combined. The system may be struggling to correctly identify the permissions and sharing contexts associated with the folder being renamed, leading to the erroneous error message and the blocked operation.

Understanding the Nextcloud Architecture

Nextcloud's architecture involves several layers, including the file storage system, the sharing system, and the permissions management system. The interaction between these layers is complex, and bugs can arise when certain operations trigger unexpected behavior. In this case, the combination of team folders, subfolder sharing, and renaming operations appears to expose a flaw in how Nextcloud handles shared nodes. It is essential for Nextcloud developers to understand these interactions thoroughly to identify and fix the root cause of this issue.

Impact on Windows Sync Client

The bug's impact extends beyond the web interface and affects the Nextcloud Windows sync client as well. The sync client's behavior exacerbates the problem, particularly when creating new folders. When a user creates a new folder in Windows, the operating system first creates a generic folder (e.g., “New folder”) and then prompts the user to rename it. The Nextcloud sync client immediately synchronizes this newly created folder, even before the user has a chance to rename it locally.

This sequence of events leads to a conflict when the client attempts to sync the renamed folder. The server-side bug prevents the renaming operation, causing the sync process to fail. This can result in the creation of duplicate folders, synchronization errors, and a frustrating user experience. The Windows sync client's behavior, while generally efficient in synchronizing files, becomes problematic in this specific scenario due to the underlying bug in Nextcloud's folder renaming logic.

Why This Matters to Windows Users

Many Nextcloud users rely on the Windows sync client for seamless file access and synchronization between their local machines and the Nextcloud server. The inability to create and rename folders through the sync client significantly disrupts this workflow. It can lead to data inconsistencies, lost files, and a general sense of unreliability in the synchronization process. For Windows users, this bug represents a major impediment to their productivity and can undermine their trust in Nextcloud as a reliable file management solution.

Checking Your Setup: OS, Snapd, and Snap Versions

To effectively troubleshoot this issue, it's crucial to gather information about your system configuration. This includes the operating system, snapd version, and Nextcloud snap version. This information helps identify potential compatibility issues or known bugs specific to certain versions.

To check your Nextcloud snap version, run the following command in your terminal:

snap list nextcloud

The output will display the version number, revision, and channel of your Nextcloud snap installation. For example:

nextcloud 32.0.2snap1 51274 latest/stable nextcloud✓ -

This output indicates that the Nextcloud snap version is 32.0.2snap1.

To check your snapd version, run the following command:

snap version

The output will provide details about the snapd version, series, operating system, kernel, and architecture. For example:

snap 2.72+ubuntu24.04
snapd 2.72+ubuntu24.04
series 16
ubuntu 24.04
kernel 6.8.0-88-generic
architecture amd64

This output shows that the snapd version is 2.72+ubuntu24.04.

Why This Information is Important

The versions of Nextcloud, snapd, and the operating system can all play a role in the occurrence of this bug. Certain versions may contain specific fixes or known issues related to folder renaming and sharing permissions. By providing this information when reporting the bug or seeking support, you help developers and support staff narrow down the potential causes and identify the most effective solutions. Keeping your software up-to-date is generally recommended, as updates often include bug fixes and performance improvements. However, in some cases, a recent update might introduce new issues, so it's essential to be aware of the versions you're running.

Workarounds and Solutions

While a permanent fix for this bug requires a code-level solution from Nextcloud developers, there are a few workarounds you can try in the meantime:

Remove the Share: The most direct workaround is to remove the share on the subfolder. If you remove the share to “group b” in our example, users in “group a” should be able to rename folders within the subfolder again. However, this workaround defeats the purpose of sharing the subfolder with multiple groups, so it may not be a viable long-term solution.
Rename via Web Interface: Some users have reported that renaming folders via the Nextcloud web interface works more reliably than through the Windows sync client. If you're encountering issues with the sync client, try renaming the folder directly in your web browser.
Avoid Creating Folders Directly in Shared Subfolders: As a preventative measure, try to avoid creating new folders directly within subfolders that are shared with multiple groups. Instead, create the folder in the main team folder and then move it to the subfolder if necessary. This might bypass the bug in some cases.

Long-Term Solutions

The ultimate solution to this problem is a fix from the Nextcloud developers. It's essential to report the bug through the appropriate channels, such as the Nextcloud forums or GitHub repository, providing detailed information about your setup and the steps to reproduce the issue. This will help the developers understand the problem and prioritize a fix in a future release. Staying informed about Nextcloud updates and release notes is crucial to know when a fix for this bug is available.

Reporting the Bug: How to Help

If you encounter this bug, reporting it to the Nextcloud community is crucial. Detailed bug reports help developers identify and fix the issue more effectively. When reporting the bug, be sure to include the following information:

Description of the Bug: Clearly describe the issue, including the steps to reproduce it and the error messages you encountered.
System Information: Provide details about your operating system, snapd version, Nextcloud snap version, and any other relevant system information.
Steps to Reproduce: Outline the exact steps you took to trigger the bug. This is essential for developers to replicate the issue on their systems.
Expected Behavior: Describe what you expected to happen and how the actual behavior differed.
Workarounds Tried: Mention any workarounds you attempted and whether they were successful.

Where to Report

Nextcloud Forums: The Nextcloud forums are a great place to discuss issues with other users and seek help from the community.
Nextcloud GitHub Repository: If you're comfortable with GitHub, you can open a new issue in the Nextcloud server repository. This is the preferred method for reporting bugs directly to the developers.

Providing detailed and accurate bug reports is a valuable contribution to the Nextcloud community and helps ensure the platform's continued improvement.

Conclusion

The folder creation and renaming bug in Nextcloud team folders with shareDiscussion category can be a significant inconvenience for users. By understanding the bug, the steps to reproduce it, and the potential workarounds, you can mitigate its impact on your workflow. However, the ultimate solution lies in a code-level fix from the Nextcloud developers. Reporting the bug with detailed information is crucial to ensure that it is addressed in a future release.

Remember to stay informed about Nextcloud updates and release notes to know when a fix is available. In the meantime, consider using the workarounds discussed in this article to minimize the disruption caused by this bug.

For more information and community support, visit the Nextcloud official website. This resource offers valuable insights, updates, and discussions related to Nextcloud and its features.