Published: February 27, 2026
Last updated: May 1, 2026
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What is WebDAV?

WebDAV is a feature in FileBrowser that will let you access and manage your files directly from your devices remotely.

It’s also an alternative to the WebUI since you can mount/use one (or multiples) of your sources directly on your devices and manage the files stored in them. This allows the use of native applications to create/edit/organize files via WebDAV that are not possible via WebUI. For example, you can edit documents using native office suites without Office Integration enabled, or organize folders/files using native apps like Explorer on Windows (In versions before Nov 2023), Finder on macOS, Thunar/Dolphin in Linux, etc. You can also use any third party client or app that support WebDAV to access your files!

How to use WebDAV

WebDAV is enabled by default. Clients connect with Basic Auth: the password must be a full, uncustomized API token issued in the Web UI. Before you configure a client, make sure these line up:

  1. Server URL — Starts with /dav/<source name> and matches how you reach FileBrowser (direct host, port, or path behind a reverse proxy). See Server URL below.
  2. HTTP or HTTPS — Use the same scheme (and port) as in the browser. Some clients call this WebDAV vs WebDAVS or plain HTTP vs HTTPS; pick the one that matches your deployment (TLS on 443 vs plain HTTP on your FileBrowser port).
  3. Password — The uncustomized API token. Customized tokens may not work with many webdav clients.

For a step-by-step example on WinSCP, see the WinSCP guide.

API tokens

Settings → API Tokens is only available if your user has api or admin permissions. If you are logged in as a normal user and do not see API Tokens, make sure your user has permissions set correctly.

Create an API token for WebDAV

  • Log in to FileBrowser and open Settings → API Tokens:

Enter a name and an expiration that fits your use case.

Important: Create the token without customization enabled (the option is off by default). WebDAV needs the short/minimal token form; many clients cannot use the long customized tokens as a password.

When you create the token, copy the full value and use it only as the password in your WebDAV client.

Username and password

FileBrowser ignores the WebDAV username. It can be left empty, or set to any placeholder (for example a). Some clients require a non-empty username—in that case, any value is fine.

The password must be the complete minimal API token string, with no extra spaces or truncation.

Server URL

Examples:

  • https://files.example.com/dav/<source-name>/
  • http://192.168.1.210:8080/dav/<source-name>/
  • http://localhost/dav/<source-name>/

Reverse proxy: If FileBrowser is served under a host or path prefix, use the same origin you use in the browser. For example:

  • https://sub.example.com/dav/<source-name>/
  • https://sub.example.com/prefix/dav/<source-name>/ — when the app is mounted under /prefix

That pattern is valid for clients such as DAVx5 as long as the URL matches how you reach the instance.

To open a folder inside a source instead of the whole source:

  • https://files.example.com/dav/<source-name>/my-folder/

Quick method: In the Web UI, open the folder you want, copy the address bar URL, then replace /files/ with /dav/. Example: https://files.example.com/files/data/folder/ → https://files.example.com/dav/data/folder/

Tested Clients

Some clients working with FileBrowser are:

  • rclone - Cross-platform (desktop only) and supports mount.
  • WinSCP - Third party client for Windows (see the linked guide).
  • MixPlorer - File manager for Android.
  • Symfonium - Music Player for Android.
  • Material Files - File Manager for Android.
  • ONLYOFFICE Mobile apps - Mobile devices only. (Clouds > Sign in > Other WebDAV storage)
  • Desktop file managers such as Finder in macOS and Thunar, Dolphin, Nemo, Nautilus… in Linux.

You may need to omit https:// or http:// when setting the server URL depending on the client you are trying to connect. If you use https you will need to use port 443, or the port number that was used with FileBrowser.

Some clients also may use DAVS or DAV instead of https or http.

Disable WebDAV

The WebDAV feature in FileBrowser is enabled by default, if you want to disable it you’ll need to edit an option in your config file, the option can be found under the server section:

YAML 
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server:
  disableWebDAV: true # Set to true to disable WebDAV

After you edit the config file, remember to restart FileBrowser for the changes to take effect.

Troubleshooting

Mount as a drive for Windows

WebDAV support was deprecated since November 2023, so this is not currently supported in newer versions of Windows when trying from the File Explorer. You’ll need to install rclone and winfsp to mount WebDAV as a drive. You can see this guide to set up rclone for WebDAV.

Alternatively, you can use WinSCP as file manager itself without mapping as a drive. The only downside is that you can’t manage files with any other software more than WinSCP interface.

Access Denied

If you get access denied could be for the following reasons:

  • The API Token expired: Try setting a longer duration time for the API Token.
  • The path that you’re trying to access is not valid: Make sure that you access to the path by checking in the WebUI.
  • You don’t have enough permissions: Check that your user has the necessary permissions to access WebDAV, you’ll need download permission to view, and modify/create/delete permission to modify files. Also see Access control.

Connection or configuration issues

If WebDAV still fails after checking URL, scheme (HTTP/HTTPS), and a fresh minimal token, inspect FileBrowser server logs around the time of the request. Failed auth, wrong paths, or proxy misconfiguration often show up there. Log configuration is described in Logging configuration.

Next Steps

  • WebDAV Guides - How-to guides to connect filebrowser with some WebDAV supported software.
  • rclone guide - Basic rclone guide for desktop.