Private Cloud vs Google Drive
Published
As many would say, the cloud is just someone else's computer.
When you use services like Google Drive, OneDrive, or any cloud provider, you're uploading and storing your files on their servers, and you are subject to their privacy policies and terms of use.
Some privacy concerns arise from these situations, as it is well known that big providers scan stored user content, and can deny your access to their services any time. If your goal was redundancy and file safety, losing access makes that pointless.
What a private cloud means:
Instead of storing your data on a big provider, your files live on a server that is dedicated to you. The idea is that your cloud behaves like Google Drive (auto-sync desktop and mobile), but your data is under your control.
Encryption: when your files are encrypted on the server, even if someone gains access to the storage, the content is not readable without the encryption keys.
How private cloud plans are usually measured:
Storage space (GB/TB) and inode usage. Inodes are index nodes, a type of data structure, and every file and folder count as an inode.
Bottom line
Private cloud is for people that want the convenience of cloud sync without the "your files live under someone else's terms" part.