How to Install Cloud Commander on Zorin OS 18.1 Core and Share Files via a Web Browser | A Lightweight Ubuntu-Based Linux Distribution

An illustration of file sharing between Zorin OS and Windows via a web browser

I previously wrote about how to share files using Samba and Nautilus's sharing features without editing `smb.conf`.

Zorin OS 18.1 Core | Set Up File Sharing Without Using Commands as Much as Possible | Samba | Windows-like, Ubuntu-based lightweight Linux

🕒️2026年5月27日

Since the interface is similar to Windows, I think it’s a great option for switching from Windows to Zorin OS or for installing it on an older Windows machine.Zorin OS uses a file manager called Nautilus by default, and thanks to Nautilus’s features, you can create shared folders without editing the configuration files of the file-sharing software Samba.Additionally, by writing settings to the Samba configuration files and configuring user settings appropriately, you can use it as a file serv...

This time, I’d like to explain how to share files via a web browser by installing an application called Cloud Commander. You can share files over a local network using a web browser.

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1. Install Node.js

Since Cloud Commander runs on Node.js, first check to see if Node.js is installed.

node -v

If it’s not installed, install it.

However, since Cloud Commander only works with relatively new versions of Node.js, it may not run on Node.js installed via the standard apt command.

Therefore, run the following command

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -

Next, install Node.js using the command below.

sudo apt install nodejs npm

Cloud Commander works with Node.js 18.20.5 or later.

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2. Global Installation of Cloud Commander

Next, install Cloud Commander.

Here, we’ll perform a global installation of Cloud Commander. A global installation means installing Cloud Commander so that it can be launched from anywhere on the system, not just from its installation folder. To do this
, add `-g` to the end of the command.

sudo npm i cloudcmd -g

3. Launching Cloud Commander

To launch Cloud Commander, run the command below.

cloudcmd

This will launch Cloud Commander, and you’ll be able to view your folders in a web browser.

Try opening the following address in your web browser:

http://localhost:8000

If you’ve followed the steps correctly so far, a list of folders will appear on the left and right sides of your web browser.

To access it from other PCs on your local network, you’ll need to open port 8000/tcp in your firewall. Open
your firewall settings.

sudo gufw

Click “Rules,” then click the “ ” button in the lower-left corner. Enter the settings shown in the image on the “Simple” tab, and click the “Add” button.

The screen for adding 8000/tcp to the firewall rules

The screen showing that 8000/tcp has been added to the firewall

Once you’ve opened the port, open a web browser on another PC on the local network and go to

http://192.168.xxx.xxx:8000

in a web browser on another PC on the local network. (Replace “xxx” with your Zorin OS local network address.)

If you’ve followed the steps correctly, a list of folders will appear on the left and right sides of the web browser window.

Note that the web browser only displays the contents of Zorin OS.

Whether you use the left or right pane on the screen, you can transfer files to Zorin OS by dragging and dropping them from another PC on your local network into the Zorin OS folder displayed in the web browser.

You can download Zorin OS files to another PC on your local network by right-clicking a Zorin OS file in your web browser and selecting “Download.”

However, modern browsers often block file downloads from unsecured connections, such as http://~.
In Chrome, you can download the file by clicking the download icon in the top-right corner and then selecting “Save.”

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4. Set Cloud Commander to start automatically when your PC boots

Create a configuration file for `systemctl` to set Cloud Commander to start automatically when your PC boots.

sudo gedit /etc/systemd/system/cloudcmd.service

In this file,

[Unit]
Description=Cloud Commander
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=〇〇〇〇
ExecStart=/usr/bin/cloudcmd
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Copy and paste this into the file, then save it. (Replace “User=〇〇〇〇” with your username.)

Next, run the command below.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

sudo systemctl enable --now cloudcmd

This completes the installation and configuration of Cloud Commander.

I think people’s preferences will vary between sharing files using Samba and Nautilus’s sharing features and sharing files via a web browser using Cloud Commander.

Basically, using Cloud Commander feels more like downloading and uploading via the web.

Summary

To use Cloud Commander, first install Node.js and npm.
Next,
install Cloud Commander using the npm command. Launch Cloud Commander and access localhost:8000 in a web browser; the folders within Zorin OS will be displayed on the left and right.Open port
8000/tcp in your firewall. To transfer files from another PC on your local network to Zorin OS, simply drag and drop files onto the Zorin OS folders displayed in your web browser or into the folders themselves.
To copy files from Zorin OS to another PC on the local network, right-click the file in Zorin OS, select “Download,” and download it to copy the file. You
can also configure Cloud Commander to start automatically when your PC boots up.

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