Alternative File System

Move moodledata/filedir to the cloud and have Moodle serve/read files directly from remote storage-reducing pressure on local disks and making scalability easier.

✅ Supported today

AWS S3 and DigitalOcean Spaces (S3-compatible).

🚀 Focus

Large environments, clusters, high availability, and painless growth.

Tip: if you already use tool_objectfs, there’s a migration path designed for a smooth transition.

Practical results

Infra-friendly

💾

Less local disk

Takes pressure off the server’s storage and simplifies operations.

📈

Scale without painful migrations

Grow capacity in the bucket/Space-no “surprise disk swap”.

🛡️

More resilience

High availability and durability typical of object storage.

⚡

Performance (with CDN, when applicable)

Files in S3/Spaces can benefit from CDN and edge delivery.

Ideal for sites with a large volume of files and a need to reduce Moodle’s “disk cost”.

🔒 Security and governance

Control access and policies directly in the bucket/Space: encryption, auditing, least-privilege permissions, and environment isolation.

🧩 Operational simplicity

Less local disk maintenance, less impact from infrastructure upgrades, and more predictable scaling.

🌍 Ready for distribution

A great fit for cluster scenarios and multi-node environments-object storage becomes the shared “common point” for files.

What this plugin does

Moodle stores files in moodledata/filedir. In large environments, this becomes a cost and complexity hotspot: constantly growing local disks, heavier backups, forced storage expansion, and operational risk.

With the Alternative File System, you move those files to remote storage (e.g., AWS S3 or DigitalOcean Spaces), and Moodle starts to read/serve the files remotely.

Result: a more scalable and resilient file base, with simpler and more predictable infrastructure operations.

Attention: activation in config.php

For Moodle to use this file system, you configure the alternative class in config.php (before setup.php). See the example further down in the “Quick configuration” section.

Compatibility / Storage

AWS S3 Supported
DigitalOcean Spaces Supported
S3-compatible Depends on the endpoint
CDN Optional

If you want, you can also adapt it for other S3-compatible providers (just endpoint + credentials).

Features you get

📦 Filedir migration

Moves your existing files from moodledata/filedir to the cloud, with a controlled and verifiable process.

🔁 Migration from tool_objectfs

The plugin can read the tool_objectfs configuration and ease the transition (without reinventing everything from scratch).

🧠 Fewer local storage bottlenecks

Reduces local disk growth and the impact of server maintenance/physical expansion.

🌐 Better global delivery (when using a CDN)

Remote storage + CDN can reduce latency and improve the experience for students in different regions.

🔐 Security best practices

Least-privilege permissions, rotatable keys, bucket/Space policies, and encryption options in transit/at rest.

🧰 Predictable operations

Storage becomes a service: easier to plan cost, capacity, redundancy, and availability.

Quick setup (high-level overview)

1) Choose the destination (S3 / Spaces) and configure credentials

Create the bucket/Space and generate access keys. Keep to the principle of least privilege (only the necessary read/write).

2) Point Moodle to the Alternative File System

In config.php, before setup.php, add:

Example:

$CFG->alternative_file_system_class = "\\local_alternative_file_system\\external_file_system";

require_once(__DIR__ . '/lib/setup.php');

Tip

Start in staging first, validate file reading/delivery, and only then replicate the process in production.

Checklist before going to production

Bucket/Space created and region defined
Credentials created with least-privilege permissions
Endpoint and bucket/space confirmed
Read tests (course files, images, PDFs)
Rollback plan and backups
Monitoring (errors, latency, costs)

Migration: choose your scenario

Scenario A

filedir → cloud

For those using the default (local) storage and who want to move everything from moodledata/filedir to S3/Spaces.

Configure the destination (Amazon S3 or DigitalOcean Spaces).
Use the plugin configuration page to start migrating existing files.
Validate file reading and delivery (sample courses + file types).

Scenario B

tool_objectfs → plugin

For those who already use tool_objectfs and want to migrate to local_alternative_file_system.

While Moodle still points to \tool_objectfs\..., open this plugin’s settings.
The plugin can detect/import tool_objectfs configs and run tests.
When everything is OK, change $CFG->alternative_file_system_class to this plugin.

Alternative File System

About Alternative File System

Alternative File System

What this plugin does

Features you get

Quick setup (high-level overview)

Migration: choose your scenario

Scenario A

Scenario B

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