Photos+ Cloud Library is an application for iOS that enables users to store their Photos library in B2 Cloud Storage using B2’s S3 Compatible API. This guide will show you how to configure your B2 account, as well as your Photos+ application, so that it integrates with B2 Cloud Storage.

B2 Cloud Storage sign up link: https://www.backblaze.com/b2/sign-up.html?referrer=nopref 

Configuring your Backblaze Account

Step 1: Create your B2 Account

If this is your first time using Backblaze, you’ll need to set up an account to get started. Visit this page, where you will be asked to enter an email address, password, and a region to get started. Click Sign Up for B2.

Step 2: Sign In and Verify your Phone Number

New B2 Accounts will need to verify their phone number. You will be automatically directed to the My Settings page to take care of this. After verifying your number, choose whether or not you’d like to enable two-factor authentication then proceed to the next steps.

Step 3: Create a B2 Bucket

Navigate to the buckets page, then click Create a Bucket.

Photos+ will need to connect to an empty, S3 compatible, bucket. Therefore, some existing users may still need to create a new bucket if their existing buckets are not empty or not S3 API compatible.

In this example, I assigned my bucket a globally unique name and left the “Private” and “Disable Object Lock” options selected.

Step 4: Adjust your Lifecycle Rules

Find your newly created bucket, click Lifecycle Settings, then select the “Keep only the last version” option. This will ensure that files you delete from your Photos+ Cloud Library app will also be deleted from your B2 bucket.

Step 5: Create your Application Key

The application key and key ID will enable you to link your new bucket to the Photos+ Cloud Library application. Create your key and record it for use in later steps.

Name your key, allow access to your new bucket, allow listing bucket names, then create your key.

Once your key is created, your keyID and applicationKey will appear on the page. This will be the only time the credentials are available. It’s recommended that you store them somewhere safe for future reference. If you lose access to this key, you can always create a new one.

Install Photos+ Cloud Library

Step 1: Install Photos+ Cloud Library Application from the App Store

You can search for the app on the store, or visit this page from your iOS device: https://photosplus.app/ 

Step 2: Open Photos+ and Create your Account

Step 3: Configure your Photos+ Settings

Click the profile icon, click the settings gear icon, and finally “Configure.”

Step 4: Authenticate your Backblaze Account

Select Backblaze as your cloud storage provider. Next, complete the authentication using your keyID and applicationKey. After adding your credentials, click “Next.”

Step 5: Choose your Bucket

Select your empty bucket. Your Photos+ library will sync to this location. Click "Save."

At this point you will have successfully linked your B2 account to your Photos+ library. Now you can start creating folders and photo albums in Photos+ and sync them to your B2 Cloud Storage bucket.

Syncing your Photos+ Library with B2

Step 1: Add Media to your Photos+ Library

Step 2: Sync!

After making changes to your library, you will see that files should be sync’d to your cloud storage via the red cloud icon. To sync your files, navigate to the Synchronize page and click Start. Your out-of-sync files will begin uploading automatically!

Congratulations! Your files have been synced to your B2 Cloud Storage bucket. Future changes to your albums, including any new files or deleted files, can be sync’d using these same steps.

Should you need to remove a file from your B2 bucket, delete the file from your album or folder, empty the trash within the Photos+ application and perform another sync.