Wuala

{{Infobox software

| name = Wuala

| logo = Wuala logo.svg

| logo size = 200px

| screenshot =

| caption =

| author = Dominik Grolimund, Luzius Meisser

| developer =

| released = {{Start date and age|2008|08|14}}

| latest release version = Nadelhorn{{cite web |url=https://support.wuala.com/release-notes/#30-09-2014-nadelhorn |title=Nadelhorn Release Notes |access-date=2015-01-01 |archive-date=2015-01-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150101105540/https://support.wuala.com/release-notes/#30-09-2014-nadelhorn |url-status=dead }}

| latest release date = {{Start date and age|2014|09|30}}

| latest preview version =

| latest preview date =

| operating system = Microsoft Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, Linux, Mac OS X 10.4 and greater, Android, iOS

| platform = Java

| language = English, German, Portuguese, French, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Italian, Dutch

| discontinued = yes

| genre = Online file storage

| license = Proprietary

| website = {{URL|http://www.wuala.com}}

}}

Wuala {{IPAc-en|w|ɑː|ˈ|l|ɑː}} was a secure online file storage, file synchronization, versioning and backup service originally developed and run by Caleido Inc.Wuala | FAQ | General Questions | [http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/1#id000114 Who is behind Wuala?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110424000705/http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/1#id000114 |date=2011-04-24 }} It is now part of LaCie, which is in turn owned by Seagate Technology. The service stores files in data centres that are provided by Wuala in multiple European countries (France, Germany, Switzerland).Wuala | [http://www.wuala.com/en/learn/technology How it Works] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207173856/http://www.wuala.com/en/learn/technology |date=2010-12-07 }} An earlier version also supported distributed storage on other users' machines, however this feature has been dropped.{{Cite web |url=http://www.eurecom.fr/fr/publication/3772/detail/a-measurement-study-of-the-wuala-on-line-storage-service |title=A measurement study of the Wuala on-line storage service |access-date=2012-11-12 |archive-date=2013-12-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230030250/http://www.eurecom.fr/fr/publication/3772/detail/a-measurement-study-of-the-wuala-on-line-storage-service |url-status=dead }} On 17 August 2015 Wuala announced that it was discontinuing its service and that all stored data would be deleted on 15 November 2015.{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/08/17/wuala-enters-deadpool/|title=Wuala, The Secure P2P Cloud Storage Service Acquired By LaCie, To Shut Down|last=O'Hear|first=Steve|website=TechCrunch|date=17 August 2015 |access-date=2017-04-03}} Wuala recommended a rival cloud storage startup, Tresorit, as an alternative to its remaining customers.{{Cite news|url=https://www.cloudwards.net/news/wuala-shutting-down-p2p-storage-service-recommends-tresorit-9405/|title=Wuala Shutting Down, P2P Storage Service Recommends Tresorit|date=2015-08-18|work=Cloudwards|access-date=2017-04-03|language=en-US|archive-date=2016-12-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222001141/https://www.cloudwards.net/news/wuala-shutting-down-p2p-storage-service-recommends-tresorit-9405/|url-status=dead}}

History

Most research and development occurred at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zürich.

File:Wuala logo.png

14 August 2008

:An "open beta"-java-applet, available from the website, could be run from a web browser.

19 September 2008

:The Wuala Webstart[http://sourceforge.net/projects/wualawebstart/ Wuala Webstart | Download Wuala Webstart software for free at SourceForge.net] project was registered on SourceForge.net.[http://wualawebstart.sourceforge.net/ SourceForge.net: Wuala Webstart - Project Web Hosting - Open Source Software]

26 October 2008

:An Alpha release REST API, at a very early stage of development, supported HTTP GET requests for content that was either public, or shared through a keyed hyperlink.{{Cite web |url=http://www.wuala.com/en/api |title=Wuala Rest API {{!}} Wuala API (Alpha) |access-date=2010-12-04 |archive-date=2010-12-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101210072413/http://www.wuala.com/en/api |url-status=dead }}

16 December 2008

:The Uniform Resource Locator changed from http://wua.la/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100928091204/http://wua.la/ |date=2010-09-28 }} to http://www.wuala.com/ and files that were public, or shared through a keyed hyperlink, were made accessible through web browsers.Wuala Blog | [http://www.wuala.com/blog/2008/12/jingle-bell-rock.html Jingle Bell Rock] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090125224527/http://www.wuala.com/blog/2008/12/jingle-bell-rock.html |date=2009-01-25 }}

19 March 2009

:LaCie announced a merger with Caleido AG.{{Cite web |url=http://www.lacie.com/us/company/news/news.htm?id=10468 |title=LaCie and Wuala Merge to Create a Cloud of Storage Devices |access-date=2010-12-03 |archive-date=2011-04-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110417140505/http://www.lacie.com/us/company/news/news.htm?id=10468 |url-status=dead }}Wuala | FAQ | [http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/27 Wuala and LaCie] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101208033741/http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/27 |date=2010-12-08 }} Wuala described the merger as being between Wuala and LaCie{{Cite web |url=http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/1#id000114 |title=Who is behind Wuala? |access-date=2010-12-03 |archive-date=2011-04-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110424000705/http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/1#id000114 |url-status=dead }} (not Caleido AG and LaCie).

5 January 2010

:Post-merger announcement of the first joint products.{{Cite web |url=http://www.wuala.com/blog/2010/01/introducing-lacie-cookey-and-lacie.html |title=Introducing: LaCie CooKey and LaCie WhizKey with Wuala Inside |access-date=2010-12-02 |archive-date=2010-04-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100406013642/http://www.wuala.com/blog/2010/01/introducing-lacie-cookey-and-lacie.html |url-status=dead }}[http://www.lacie.com/us/company/news/news.htm?id=10534 LaCie Unveils New USB "Keys" with Wuala Online Storage Inside]

23 May 2011

:All pro features - backup, sync, file versioning and time travel - are available for everyone at no cost.[https://archive.today/20130209145514/http://www.wuala.com/blog/2011/05/hottingen-new-style-full-feature-set.html Hottingen: New Style & Full-Feature Set]

28 September 2011

:The "trade storage" feature was discontinued.{{Cite web |url=https://forum.wuala.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=2231 |title=Wuala dropping p2p trading |access-date=2011-10-03 |archive-date=2011-10-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005170637/https://forum.wuala.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=2231 |url-status=dead }}

11 June 2014

:The storage plan was shifted to a paid-only service {{Cite web |url=https://support.wuala.com/2014/06/shifting-to-paid-only-service/ |title=Shifting to paid-only service – Wuala Support |access-date=2014-06-24 |archive-date=2014-06-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625073726/https://support.wuala.com/2014/06/shifting-to-paid-only-service/ |url-status=dead }}

31 October 2014

:Wuala announced that existing free-only storage would be terminated at the end of 2014 and customers wishing to save their data should migrate away or purchase a paid plan.{{Cite web |title=Termination of Free Storage and Storage Promotion |url=https://cdn.wuala.com/files/termination_free_storage.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141031004916/http://cdn.wuala.com/files/termination_free_storage.pdf |archive-date=2014-10-31 |access-date=2014-11-01}}

17 August 2015

:Wuala announced that it would allow no further renewals or purchase of storage. The service will transition to read-only on 30 September 2015 and all stored data will be deleted on 15 November 2015.{{Cite web |url=https://support.wuala.com/2015/08/wuala-shutdown-notice/ |title=WUALA SHUTDOWN NOTICE – Wuala Support |access-date=2015-08-17 |archive-date=2015-08-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150818000227/https://support.wuala.com/2015/08/wuala-shutdown-notice/ |url-status=dead }}

Features

Any registered user can:

keep files private
share files with other registered users
share files with unregistered users, through a keyed hyperlink
publish files
backup
file synchronization
file versioning.

Registered and unregistered users can: receive streaming media.Wuala | FAQ | Files and Folders | [http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/6#id000623 How do I stream my files?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101208225816/http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/6#id000623 |date=2010-12-08 }}

When a user adds a file to Wuala, or saves changes to a file that is served by Wuala, the user's local copy of file is: first encrypted, then chunked into redundant fragments using Reed-Solomon error correction codes. The fragments are then uploaded to the data centers.

Storage

Wuala offered free accounts that had 5 GB of storage for no charge. As of 11 June 2014 they shifted to a paid-only service. As of the end of 2014 they will no longer support any form of free-only storage, shifting entirely to a payment based usage model.

Users of joint products may start with greater amounts of storage for a limited period:

with a LaCie external hard disk drive, 10 GB for one year

or with a LaCie USB flash drive, 4 GB for two years.comment from Wuala, 2010-12-03 at [http://www.wuala.com/blog/2010/01/introducing-lacie-cookey-and-lacie.html Introducing: LaCie CooKey and LaCie WhizKey with Wuala Inside] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100406013642/http://www.wuala.com/blog/2010/01/introducing-lacie-cookey-and-lacie.html |date=2010-04-06 }}

Additional storage may be bought.{{cite web|title=Wuala Knowledge Base|url=https://support.wuala.com/knowledgebase/how-can-i-increase-my-storage/|access-date=7 July 2014|archive-date=17 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140817210953/https://support.wuala.com/knowledgebase/how-can-i-increase-my-storage/|url-status=dead}} As of June 2014, the referral system was shut down due to the new paid-only policy.

For bought storage: prices range from 29 EUR/year for 20 GB to 999 EUR/year for 1 TB.Wuala | [http://www.wuala.com/en/pricing/ Pricing] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101203103237/http://www.wuala.com/en/pricing |date=2010-12-03 }}

Pricing changed in June 2014: The storage plan starts with 0.99 € per month (9 € per year) for 5 GB and ends at 159.90 € per Month (1799 € per year) for 2 TB of storage.{{Cite web |url=https://www.wuala.com/en/pricing/ |title=Wuala - Secure Cloud Storage - Backup. Sync. Share. Access Everywhere |access-date=2014-06-24 |archive-date=2014-06-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625071710/http://wuala.com/en/pricing/ |url-status=dead }}

=Trading=

One of the distinguishing features of Wuala, the ability to trade local disk storage space against cloud storage, is no longer available.

User interfaces

=Desktop application=

The user interface offers most of the features that are normally associated with a file manager. Additional features come through integration.

A registered user can install the Java-based client application (SWT-GUI):

on any number of Linux, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows computers
with FUSE, MacFUSE and Dokan respectively for file system integration.

=Wuala Webstart and web browsers=

Through a web browser, on a computer that has Java installed:

the user can start/trust a Java applet,Wuala | [http://www.wuala.com/launch/ Remote Access]{{Dead link|date=November 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} which downloads and runs a class loader allowing fast start of the latest version of the Wuala application.[http://jazoon.com/portals/0/Content/ArchivWebsite/jazoon.com/jazoon09/en/conference/presentationdetails2bf2.html Wuala Webstart: Launching a Java Application directly from a Website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713092342/http://jazoon.com/portals/0/Content/ArchivWebsite/jazoon.com/jazoon09/en/conference/presentationdetails2bf2.html |date=2011-07-13 }}, 2009-06-25 presentation to Jazoon09, the international conference on Java technology

If the computer is without Java, or if running of the class loader is prevented:

any folder that is public, or shared with a weblink, can be browsed.

=Non-graphical interfaces=

Support for the following may be limited:

Security

According to Wuala's FAQ,[http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/20#id002003 FAQ. Security and Privacy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100121143306/http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/20#id002003|date=2010-01-21}} the software uses AES-256 for encryption and RSA-2048 for key exchange and signatures. Keys are organized in a key management scheme called Cryptree."Cryptree: A Folder Tree Structure for Cryptographic File Systems" by Meisser et al. http://www.dcg.ethz.ch/publications/srds06.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205075007/http://www.dcg.ethz.ch/publications/srds06.pdf |date=2009-02-05 }}

According to the FAQ,FAQ entry at http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/20#id002001 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100121143306/http://www.wuala.com/en/support/faq/c/20#id002001 |date=2010-01-21 }} Wuala employs full client-side encryption. All files and their metadata – most OS X metadata is not supported – get encrypted before they are uploaded. The encryption key is stored such that no one, not even LaCie that operates the service, can decrypt the stored files. The disadvantage of this is that Wuala has no password recovery and all data processing needs to be done in the client (for example creating a search index). The advantage is significantly improved privacy.

Since the source code to Wuala has not been released, it is difficult to ensure that the software does what it states it does (including proper client-side encryption). Also, updates are pushed automatically to the client machine. These facts mean that users of Wuala are not safe from possible backdoors in code.

Reviews

2007-10-18: [http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-9800042-2.html Unlimited online storage for free, almost: Wuala | Webware - CNET] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510082953/http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-9800042-2.html |date=2011-05-10 }}
2008-05-22: [http://www.linuxjournal.com/content/online-storage-wuala Online Storage with Wuala | Linux Journal]
2008-08-14: [https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2328036,00.asp Wuala Makes Online Storage Social | News & Opinion | PCMag.com]
2008-08-14: [http://www.downloadsquad.com/2008/08/14/wuala-p2p-online-storage-service-goes-live Wuala P2P online storage service goes live] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090203063622/http://www.downloadsquad.com/2008/08/14/wuala-p2p-online-storage-service-goes-live |date=2009-02-03 }} (Download Squad)
2008-07-18: [https://techcrunch.com/2008/07/18/you-have-three-days-to-check-out-wualas-social-grid-storage You Have Three Days To Check Out Wuala's 'Social Grid' Storage] (TechCrunch)