IOS App iPhone/iPad - downloads and uploads stuck

HansDE · November 14, 2025, 4:36pm

Dear forum contributors.

I am writing to you now because I am having trouble fixing a problem with the Seafile IOS app on an iPhone or iPad that prevents files (like PDFs, JPGs, etc.) from downloading.

The iOS app’s file browser displays all the files; however, they are unable to be accessed because the download stucks at 0%.

Pre-Info: I have not yet provided any LOG files, but I will promptly provide it upon request to prevent the article from being flouted. Kindly tell me what you need from me. I appreciate your assistance in advance.

Background

I’ve been successfully installing Seafile Professional (12.0.14) on Docker for three users, and Seafile has been up-and-running for a few weeks. The software is self-hosted on a Raspberry 5 with 16 GB of RAM, running Debian (Raspberry), and an external SSD raid (with backup).

I love it, and the performance is outstanding!

Over the years, the files were managed with Nextcloud, which was also self-hosted, but there were too many issues with keeping the files in sync, the sync-speed, and downloading files (like photos) to use it, when not online. Overall, it doesn’t work properly and as expected.

After a significant learning curve, I was able to configure Seafile Professional and ensure a file-based backup (via RCLONE) to my Synology servers (archives). In the event of a crash, the files are accessible on one of the Synology servers.

Back to the problem

What is not working (IOS, iPhone, or iPad):

Neither downloading, uploading, nor opening files within the IOS app on the iPhone is possible, with the same behavior also on the iPad.
Uploading files within the Seafile IOS app stuck at 0% with the message “waiting for upload.” The way for an upload is: open the Seafile app → press the button add files → select files → upload.

What is working (IOS, iPhone, or iPad):

I can observe that new files were “synchronized” with the Seafile app for iOS, and they are also visible within the app. The appropriate date/time and size are also visible.
Safari for iOS (iPhone/iPad) browser: all functions are functioning properly. I am able to download, open, or upload files.
Everything works fine on the iPhone with Apple’s “Files” app. To achieve this, it is necessary to disable face detection, which is acceptable to me.
If an app besides Seafile starts the upload, it will happen pretty quickly. For instance, there won’t be any issues if I am in the Photos app and want to upload one or more photos from the Photos app to the Seafile server using the iOS Seafile app (IOS sharing).

Now it becomes a bit crazy to me:

If I upload a file (DNG/JPG) from photos via the iPhone and the IOS app to the Seafile server, then it is possible to open the file within the Seafile IOS app. Additionally, the files will be synchronized with the MAC.
As already mentioned, other files that were downloaded from the server stuck within the IOS Seafile app.
e.g., open Apple Photos → select a DNG or JPG → upload via the Seafile IOS app → then open Seafile app → browse to the file → click on the file = ok (I can download and see the photo).

What is working (macOS, MacBook Pro M):

On any of the Macs within the household, everything is working fine, independent of using the browser or the client app.

My question to you:

What could be wrongly configured so that only the IOS app causes problems and the rest is working fine, also using the browser on the IOS device?

Again, if you need dedicated LOGs (Docker, Seafile), please tell me; I would be pleased to provide the requested information.

Thanks in advance for your support.

BR Hans

daniel.pan · November 15, 2025, 11:34am

In this case, the server configuration is generally okay.

To troubleshoot the upload issue with the Seafile iOS app, I recommend checking the server Nginx access log. This log will provide insights into the requests the server received when you attempted to upload a photo via the iOS client, as well as the server’s responses. This information can help identify any potential misconfigurations or errors during the upload process.

HansDE · November 17, 2025, 12:22pm

Thank you for your prompt response. Unfortunately, I only found these files when searching for an entry. However, I am not sure whether there are LOG files in other locations.

At 13:00, I used the Seafile app on my iPhone to try to download a PDF. I’m sorry, but I couldn’t find an entry. Could it be that I’m looking in the wrong place?

/var/log/nginx => #shell via Docker

Folder: /var/log/nginx #within the Docker 
-rw-r----- 1 www-data adm  2.5M Nov 17 12:39 error.log
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root  536 Nov 17 12:39 notification.error.log 
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root  250 Nov 17 12:39 notification.access.log 
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root 8.9K Nov 17 13:09 seafdav.access.log 
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root  19M Nov 17 13:09 seahub.access.log 
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root 286K Nov 17 13:10 seafhttp.access.log

Here are the results of my external disk, where the Seafile data are stored.

/media/raid/seafile/logs/var-log

drwxr-xr-x 2 root root             20K Nov 16 06:50 nginx
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root            4.0K Nov 17 13:00 apt
-rw-r–r-- 1 root root             524 Nov 17 13:00 alternatives.log
-rw-r–r-- 1 root root             811 Nov 17 13:00 dpkg.log

Within the NGINX folder, the newest files are this one:

-rw-r----- 1 www-data root  250 Nov 17 12:39 notification.access.log
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root 8.9K Nov 17 13:09 seafdav.access.log
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root  19M Nov 17 13:17 seahub.access.log
-rw-r----- 1 www-data root 312K Nov 17 13:17 seafhttp.access.log

May I ask you to give me a hint where I can look for the log file you have mentioned in your answer?

Thanks in advance.

Edit: add. information.

daniel.pan · November 18, 2025, 2:14am

/media/raid/seafile/logs/var-log/nginx is the correct place in version 12.0 for Nginx logs.

If there is no corresponding logs, the iOS client may have not begin to upload files. Can you try to select a photo and upload a phone? I see you used a numbers file in your screenshot.

Can you try to create an account on plus.seafile.com and try to reproduce the issue? If plus.seafile.com cannot work too, it is a client side issue.

HansDE · November 18, 2025, 8:48pm

The problem is solved!

Positive result: I created an account on “plus.seafile.com” and everything worked perfectly—in both directions (up and download).

Somehow, I then looked at the settings on the iPhone, as I had left more or less everything in default on the server settings, except for the data directory and my local IP address.

However, everything is well documented. It “has to be” on the iPhone (iPad).

So I went through the iPhone’s settings once more. Step by Step.

I examined each setting individually in the iPhone’s settings. And this time I clicked on downloads and uploads.

Both displayed a “0,” (!) which always indicated to me that nothing was happening. It was foolish to assume that “nothing” was taking place.

When I selected “Downloads,” I discovered that some files were ones I had previously renamed (Update: the files were renamed on my Mac). Maybe during the download of the files to the iPhone, I don’t know.

Now I clicked “Cancel Download” and suddenly all the files were downloaded to my iPhone.

Tests in which I then uploaded images (via Seafile, from Apple Photos) were suddenly successful as well.

TL;DR:

The downloads (and also the uploads) were blocked because they contained one or more files that were no longer available, but waiting for the download.
After clicking “Cancel Download” everything works as expected and in the past.
The same issue was on the other devices, because of the photos.

Yeah … I am happy again.

Is this maybe a bug?

EDIT: add. information (see Update)