Cloud drives are convenient – they synchronize essential data between computers and platforms and offer spontaneous download options on mobile devices with limited storage space. But not everyone likes the fact that a Microsoft, Google (or Apple) server acts as a central storage location. There are self-hosted alternatives for them; a popular one is Nextcloud. The open source project has grown into a versatile and expandable cloud system that you can install yourself. However, the latest update to version 33.0.0 on the Mac means that file sync no longer works. The one on March 24th The released version of Nextcloud Desktop makes a major version leap: Version 4.0.8 is followed by 33.0.0 – so the Mac client adopts the same major numbering as the server software, whose version 33.0.0 was released a good month ago. Mac users are advised of a new version of Nextcloud Desktop. However, after installing it, the app refuses to work: the menu icon turns into an
The error message in the Nextcloud menu doesn’t help.
Sandbox permission is missing
Some people in the Nextcloud forum were already surprised and asked about the cause and how to fix the problem. In fact, there is a reason: users have to grant Nextcloud access to the local folder again. To do this, first click on the profile in the top left and select “Settings” from the drop-down menu. In the window that then appears, select the user account on the left – here you will be greeted by a red stripe. If you click on this, a Finder window will appear. All you have to do is click on “Open” and Nextcloud will synchronize again.
After clicking on the red warning and then clicking “Open”, the error should be resolved under macOS 26 (Tahoe) and macOS 15 (Sequoia).
Does not start under macOS 13
Older Macs may not run the latest version of macOS. In this case there is a bigger problem: After upgrading to Nextcloud Desktop 33, the app no longer starts. The developers have now recognized the problem and are preventing the update to version 33 on older systems. If your Mac has already installed the update, you have no choice but to downgrade manually:
- First delete the Nextcloud app from the Applications folder.
- From the long list of previous Mac installers, select Nextcloud-4.0.8.pkg and download it.
- Open the file from the download folder by double-clicking.
- After the installation is complete, start the “Nextcloud” app again from the Applications folder.
You will then probably have to log in to Nextcloud again and create a new sync folder and download all the content again. In our case, Nextcloud Desktop no longer recognized the original profile, but also did not want to link the existing folder to an account again.
Cause: Sandbox and limited testing resources
In the user forum, the developers justify the hiccups in syncing under macOS 15 and 26 by saying that new sandbox rules required the folder to be relinked. They are aware of the unfortunate form of communication and an improvement is in the works. The fact that Nextcloud Desktop 33 does not start on older systems is mainly due to limited resources: the Mac client is currently only being tested on current systems.
