Nephele vs Pydio Cells
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted file sync & storage options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Nephele | Pydio Cells |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 46 · Fair | 86 · Excellent |
| Category | File Sync & Storage | File Sync & Storage |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, binary, source | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 108 | ★ 2,252 |
| First released | 2022 | 2018 |
| Replaces | ownCloud, Box | Dropbox, Box, Google Drive |
What are Nephele and Pydio Cells?
Nephele
Nephele is a WebDAV server for Node.js that supports file system and other storage backends through an extensible adapter system. It can run standalone or be embedded in an Express application to provide standards-compliant file sync and sharing.
- Standards-compliant WebDAV
- Pluggable storage adapters
- Embeddable in Express apps
- Authentication and locking support
Pydio Cells
Pydio Cells is a content collaboration platform for organizations, offering file sharing, workspaces, and access controls. It is designed for teams and enterprises needing governed document collaboration. It is deployed via Docker or native binaries.
- Workspace-based collaboration
- Granular access control
- Built-in search and metadata
- Mobile and desktop clients
Nephele vs Pydio Cells: key differences
Nephele is written in TypeScript, while Pydio Cells is built with Go. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for Nephele versus AGPL-3.0 for Pydio Cells. Nephele is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Pydio Cells. Pydio Cells is the more established project (first released 2018), while Nephele arrived in 2022. Pydio Cells has the considerably larger community, at 2,252 GitHub stars versus 108. Pydio Cells lists first-class Docker deployment; Nephele does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Nephele if…
- Flexible adapter system
- Lightweight Node.js stack
Watch out for
- No bundled web client
- Smaller community
Choose Pydio Cells if…
- Strong enterprise features
- Modern Go codebase
- Good access governance
Watch out for
- Heavier than simple tools
- Smaller community
Frequently asked questions
Is Nephele or Pydio Cells better?
Neither is universally better. Pydio Cells has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Nephele and Pydio Cells free and open-source?
Yes. Nephele is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Pydio Cells under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Nephele and Pydio Cells with Docker?
Nephele: check the project docs for container support. Pydio Cells: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Nephele or Pydio Cells?
Nephele has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Pydio Cells. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.