# DigitalOcean Spaces Setup Guide

*Updated: January 21, 2026*

---

## 🌊 What is DigitalOcean Spaces?

DigitalOcean Spaces is S3-compatible object storage. Think of it like Dropbox but:
- Programmable (rclone, boto3, etc.)
- 250 GB free for 10 months (new accounts)
- S3-compatible (works with any S3 tool)
- Fast and cheap (~$5/month for 250 GB after promo)

---

## ✅ Prerequisites

```bash
# Check if rclone is installed
rclone --version
# Expected: rclone v1.72.1 or higher
```

---

## 🔑 Step 1: Get Your DigitalOcean API Token

### 1.1 Log in to DigitalOcean
Go to: https://cloud.digitalocean.com/

### 1.2 Navigate to API Tokens
- Click your avatar (top right)
- Select **"API"** from the dropdown
- You're now on the API page

### 1.3 Generate a New Token
- Scroll to **"Personal access tokens"**
- Click **"Generate New Token"**

### 1.4 Configure Your Token
- **Name:** Enter something descriptive like `rclone-spaces-backup-jan2026`
- **Expiration:** Leave blank (never expires) OR set to 1 year
- **Scopes:** Select **"Write"** (you need write access for backups)

### 1.5 Copy Your Token
- Click **"Generate Token"**
- **IMPORTANT:** Copy the token NOW — you'll only see it once
- It looks like: `dop_v1_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx`
- Save it to 1Password with label: "DigitalOcean Spaces API Token - rclone"

---

## 📦 Step 2: Create Your First Space

### 2.1 Go to Spaces
- In the left sidebar, click **"Spaces"**
- Click **"Create Space"**

### 2.2 Configure Your Space
- **Name:** `remix-sniper-backup` (or whatever you want)
- **Region:** Choose the closest to you
  - `NYC3` = New York (recommended for you on East Coast)
  - `SFO2` = San Francisco
  - `AMS3` = Amsterdam
  - `FRA1` = Frankfurt
  - `SGP1` = Singapore
- **CDN:** Leave unchecked (not needed for backups)
- **Visibility:** Select **"Private"** (important!)

### 2.3 Create
- Click **"Create Space"**
- Wait for the space to be created (~5 seconds)

---

## 🔧 Step 3: Configure rclone

### 3.1 Start rclone config
```bash
rclone config
```

### 3.2 Follow the prompts

```
No remotes found - make a new one
n) New remote
s) Set configuration password
q) Quit config
n/s/q> n
```

```
name> do-spaces
```

```
Type of storage to configure.
Choose a number from below, or type in your own value.
 1 / 1Fichier
...
 4 / Amazon S3
...
s/Memtype> 4
```

```
Choose your S3 provider.
Choose a number from below, or type in your own value.
 1 / AWS S3
 2 / Ceph Object Storage
 3 / DigitalOcean Spaces
 4 / Dreamhost DreamObjects
...
s/Memtype> 3
```

```
Get AWS credentials from runtime (environment variables or EC2/ECS meta data only,
no stdin), or enter them in the next step.
Enter a string value. Press Enter for the default (false).
choice> false
```

```
Access Key ID.
Leave blank for anonymous access or runtime credentials.
access_key_id> YOUR_SPACES_ACCESS_KEY
```

### ⚠️ How to find your Access Key & Secret Key

DigitalOcean uses the same API token for Spaces, but you may need to generate a separate "Spaces Access Key":

1. Go to: https://cloud.digitalocean.com/account/api/tokens
2. Look for **"Spaces access keys"**
3. Click **"Generate New Key"**
4. Name it: `rclone-spaces-jan2026`
5. Copy both:
   - **Access Key ID** (shorter, looks like: `xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx`)
   - **Secret Access Key** (longer, base64-encoded)

**Use these for rclone, NOT the token from step 1!**

Continue with rclone config...

```
Secret Access Key.
Leave blank for anonymous access or runtime credentials.
secret_access_key> YOUR_SPACES_SECRET_KEY
```

```
Region to connect to.
Choose a number from below, or type in your own value.
 1 / nyc3
 2 / ams3
 3 / sgp1
 4 / sfo2
 5 / sfo3
 6 / fra1
region> 1
```

```
Endpoint for the S3 API.
Leave blank if using AWS defaults or the previous region default.
endpoint> https://nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com
```

```
Location constraint.
Must be set to match the Region. Used when creating buckets.
Choose a number from below, or type in your own value.
 1 / Empty string (US East, N. Virginia or us-east-1)
...
location_constraint> nyc3
```

```
ACL.
Choose a number from below, or type in your own value.
 1 / Owner gets Full Control, others get no access
 2 / Owner gets Full Control, others get Full Control
...
acl> 1
```

```
Edit advanced config? (y/n)
y/n> n
```

```
Remote config
--------------------
[do-spaces]
type = s3
provider = DigitalOcean
access_key_id = YOUR_ACCESS_KEY
secret_access_key = YOUR_SECRET_KEY
region = nyc3
endpoint = https://nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com
location_constraint = nyc3
acl = private
--------------------
y) Yes this is OK
e) Edit this remote
d) Delete this remote
y/e/d> y
```

```
Current remotes:

Name                 Type
----                 ----
do-spaces            s3

e) Edit existing remote
n) New remote
d) Delete remote
r) Rename remote
c) Copy remote
s) Set configuration password
q) Quit config
e/n/d/r/c/s/q> q
```

---

## ✅ Step 4: Test Your Connection

```bash
# List contents of your space
rclone ls do-spaces:remix-sniper-backup

# Expected: Empty (or files if you already uploaded)
```

If this works, you're set up! 🎉

---

## 🚀 Step 5: Run Your First Backup

Use the existing backup script:

```bash
# Test backup (dry run first)
~/.clawdbot/workspace/backup_to_cloud.sh do-spaces

# This will backup:
# - PostgreSQL database dump
# - Environment files
# - Clawdbot workspace
# - Tracking data (JSON files)
# - Custom scripts
```

---

## ⏰ Step 6: Automate Daily Backups

Add to crontab:

```bash
# Edit crontab
crontab -e

# Add this line (runs daily at 2 AM):
0 2 * * * ~/.clawdbot/workspace/backup_to_cloud.sh do-spaces >> ~/.clawdbot/workspace/cloud-backup.log 2>&1
```

---

## 🔍 Useful Commands

```bash
# Check rclone config
rclone config show

# List all spaces
rclone lsd do-spaces:

# Sync local directory to cloud (mirror)
rclone sync /path/to/local do-spaces:remix-sniper-backup/folder

# Copy to cloud (adds new, doesn't delete)
rclone copy /path/to/local do-spaces:remix-sniper-backup/folder

# Check what would sync (dry run)
rclone check /path/to/local do-spaces:remix-sniper-backup/folder

# Monitor transfer in real-time
rclone sync /path/to/local do-spaces:remix-sniper-backup --progress
```

---

## 🛡️ Security Notes

### ⚠️ NEVER:
- Commit `~/.config/rclone/rclone.conf` to git (contains your secret keys)
- Share your Access Key or Secret Key
- Make your Space public (keep it "Private")

### ✅ ALWAYS:
- Store keys in 1Password
- Use "Private" ACL for backups
- Rotate keys if you suspect a leak:
  1. Delete old key in DigitalOcean
  2. Generate new key
  3. Update rclone config: `rclone config edit do-spaces`

---

## 💰 Pricing After Free Trial

| Storage | Monthly Cost |
|---------|--------------|
| 250 GB  | ~$5.00/month |
| 500 GB  | ~$10.00/month |
| 1 TB    | ~$20.00/month |

Bandwidth (outbound):
- First 500 GB/month: FREE
- After: $0.01/GB

---

## 🆘 Troubleshooting

### "Access Denied"
- Double-check your Access Key and Secret Key
- Make sure you're using the right region

### "No such host"
- Check your endpoint URL
- Should be: `https://REGION.digitaloceanspaces.com`

### "Connection timeout"
- Check your internet connection
- Verify your region is correct

---

## 📞 Need Help?

1. DigitalOcean Spaces Docs: https://docs.digitalocean.com/products/spaces/
2. rclone S3 Docs: https://rclone.org/s3/
3. Tag Buba in Discord

---

## ✅ Checklist

- [ ] DigitalOcean account created
- [ ] API token generated
- [ ] Spaces Access Key generated
- [ ] Space created (name + region)
- [ ] rclone configured with do-spaces remote
- [ ] Test connection works: `rclone ls do-spaces:remix-sniper-backup`
- [ ] First backup completed
- [ ] Keys saved to 1Password
- [ ] Daily cron job added