nextcloud/all-in-one · error · InvalidSettingConfigurationException

The path must not be a children of or equal to NEXTCLOUD_DAT

Error message

The path must not be a children of or equal to NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR, which is currently set to ${nextcloudDatadirMount}

What it means

Guard in validateBorgLocationVars(): the backup location must not be equal to or a child of the configured NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR mount (checked via str_starts_with($location.'/', rtrim($datadir,'/').'/')). AIO refuses because a backup stored inside the datadir would be destroyed when a restore re-initializes the datadir (nextcloud/all-in-one#6607). Throws InvalidSettingConfigurationException → HTTP 422 with the current datadir value included in the message.

Source

Thrown at php/src/Data/ConfigurationManager.php:749

            throw new InvalidSettingConfigurationException("Location and remote repo url are mutually exclusive!");
        }

        if ($location !== '') {
            $isValidPath = false;
            if (str_starts_with($location, '/') && !str_ends_with($location, '/')) {
                $isValidPath = true;
            } elseif ($location === 'nextcloud_aio_backupdir') {
                $isValidPath = true;
            }

            if (!$isValidPath) {
                throw new InvalidSettingConfigurationException("The path must start with '/', and must not end with '/'! Another option is to use the docker volume name 'nextcloud_aio_backupdir'.");
            }

            // Prevent backup to be contained in Nextcloud Datadir as this will delete the backup archive upon restore
            // See https://github.com/nextcloud/all-in-one/issues/6607
            if (str_starts_with($location . '/', rtrim($this->nextcloudDatadirMount, '/') . '/')) {
                throw new InvalidSettingConfigurationException("The path must not be a children of or equal to NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR, which is currently set to " . $this->nextcloudDatadirMount);
            }

        } else {
            $this->validateBorgRemoteRepo($repo);
        }
    }

    private function validateBorgRemoteRepo(string $repo) : void {
        $commonMsg = "For valid urls, see the remote examples at https://borgbackup.readthedocs.io/en/stable/usage/general.html#repository-urls";
        if ($repo === "") {
            // Ok, remote repo is optional
        } elseif (!str_contains($repo, "@")) {
            throw new InvalidSettingConfigurationException("The remote repo must contain '@'. $commonMsg");
        } elseif (!str_contains($repo, ":")) {
            throw new InvalidSettingConfigurationException("The remote repo must contain ':'. $commonMsg");
        }
    }

View on GitHub (pinned to 6b788eec5e)

Solutions

1. Choose a location outside the datadir tree, e.g. '/mnt/backup' when the datadir is '/mnt/ncdata'
2. Or use the dedicated docker volume name 'nextcloud_aio_backupdir'
3. If a shared disk is the constraint, create and mount a separate directory for backups

Example fix

# before
NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR=/mnt/ncdata
borg_backup_host_location = '/mnt/ncdata/backup'
# after
NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR=/mnt/ncdata
borg_backup_host_location = '/mnt/backup'

// Mirror the mastercontainer's prefix check against the configured datadir
$datadir = '/mnt/ncdata'; // read from the same source as NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR
if (str_starts_with(rtrim($location, '/') . '/', rtrim($datadir, '/') . '/')) {
    $errors[] = "Backup path must not be inside or equal to $datadir";
}

use AIO\Data\InvalidSettingConfigurationException;

try {
    $configurationManager->setBorgLocationVars($location, $repo);
} catch (InvalidSettingConfigurationException $e) {
    // message names the current datadir; suggest a sibling directory instead
    $formErrors[] = $e->getMessage();
}

When it happens

Trigger: NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR=/mnt/ncdata with borg_backup_host_location='/mnt/ncdata/backup' or '/mnt/ncdata' itself; sibling paths like '/mnt/ncdata-backup' or '/mnt/other' are accepted because the check is a proper path-prefix test.

Common situations: Single-disk setups where users try to keep everything under one data tree; not knowing the datadir is wiped during a borg restore.

Related errors

• The path must start with '/', and must not end with '/'! Ano
• Please enter a path or a remote repo url!
• Location and remote repo url are mutually exclusive!
• The remote repo must contain '@'. For valid urls, see the re
• The remote repo must contain ':'. For valid urls, see the re

AI-assisted analysis of nextcloud/all-in-one@6b788eec5e (2026-08-21). Data as JSON: /api/errors/d52c87b8a3a0a3cb. Report an issue: GitHub.