Ceph vs OpenCloud
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted file sync & storage options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Ceph
Distributed object, block, and file storage platform
VS
OpenCloud
Modern open-source file platform from ownCloud team
| Feature | Ceph | OpenCloud |
|---|---|---|
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | LGPL-2.1 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | C++ | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 4,096 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 16,905 | ★ 5,792 |
| First released | 2006 | 2025 |
| Replaces | Amazon S3, Google Drive | Dropbox, Google Drive |
Why pick each one
Choose Ceph if…
- Released under the LGPL-2.1 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 16.9k GitHub stars
Choose OpenCloud if…
- Modern, fast codebase
- Lightweight footprint
- Permissively licensed
Frequently asked questions
Is Ceph or OpenCloud better?
Neither is universally better. Ceph has the larger community, while OpenCloud is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Ceph and OpenCloud free and open-source?
Yes. Ceph is licensed under LGPL-2.1 and OpenCloud under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ceph and OpenCloud with Docker?
Ceph: yes. OpenCloud: yes.