Installation and First Config

This lesson walks through a production-safe first setup: install, configure, and verify before any transfer.

Learning Focus

You should leave this lesson with one working remote and a repeatable smoke-test you can run before every migration/backup.

Install Rclone

Debian/Ubuntu

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y rclone
rclone version

RHEL/Fedora

sudo dnf install -y rclone
rclone version

Official Installer

curl https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash
rclone version

warning

The official install script is convenient, but it executes as root. Prefer package managers when your distro packages are acceptable.

Create Your First Remote

interactive-setup.sh

rclone config

In the wizard:

1. Select n for new remote.
2. Enter a remote name (example: remote-prod).
3. Choose backend type (example: s3, b2, drive).
4. Provide credentials and region/endpoint as prompted.

Remote Naming Conventions

• Use environment prefixes: prod-..., staging-..., dev-....
• Keep names short and explicit: prod-s3, prod-r2, prod-drive.
• Avoid ambiguous names like backup.

Understand Where Config Lives

Rclone stores remote configuration in a config file.

rclone config file

note

For automation (cron/systemd), prefer a stable shared path like /etc/rclone/rclone.conf and pass it explicitly with --config.

Validate Before Use

# show configured remotes
rclone listremotes

# test remote root listing
rclone lsd remote-prod:

# write test
rclone mkdir remote-prod:healthcheck
rclone rmdir remote-prod:healthcheck

tip

Use a dedicated test bucket/path during onboarding. Do not point first tests at production data.

Setup Checklist

Check	Command	Expected
Remote exists	rclone listremotes	Remote name appears
Read access	rclone lsd remote-prod:	Directory list returns
Write access	rclone mkdir ...	No auth/permission error
Config location	rclone config file	Path is known and backed up

First Transfer (Safe Sandbox)

sandbox-copy.sh

mkdir -p /tmp/rclone-sandbox && echo "ok" > /tmp/rclone-sandbox/hello.txt

# copy to a lab prefix
rclone copy /tmp/rclone-sandbox remote-prod:labs/rclone-sandbox --progress

# list it
rclone lsl remote-prod:labs/rclone-sandbox

Common Pitfalls

Pitfall	Symptom	Fix
Wrong endpoint/region	Request signature errors	Re-run rclone config with correct region
Expired token	Auth failures after first success	Refresh token or service account
Running as wrong user	Works manually but fails in cron	Keep user/context consistent

What's Next

• If you're using S3-compatible storage: S3, B2, and R2 Remotes
• For automation basics: Cron and Systemd Timers
• For safety fundamentals: Copy, Sync, Move