Dave

A multi-protocol document server platform implemented as a Ruby gem mono-repo.

Dave provides both WebDAV (HTTP) and SMB2 (native file sharing) access to the same underlying storage, using shared pluggable provider interfaces. Write one FileSystemProvider adapter, and users can access their files via WebDAV (browsers, sync clients) or SMB (native OS file managers — Finder, Explorer).

Features

• Two protocols, one provider — WebDAV and SMB2 share the same FileSystemInterface
• RFC 4918 compliant WebDAV — full WebDAV specification
• SMB2 native file sharing — mount as a network drive on Windows and macOS
• Embeddable — mount WebDAV in Rails, Hanami, or any Rack app; run SMB as a standalone TCP server
• Pluggable storage — default local filesystem, or bring your own (S3, database, etc.)
• Pluggable auth — default YAML config with bcrypt, or bring your own (LDAP, OAuth, app passwords, etc.)
• Locking support — WebDAV write locks; SMB sharing semantics
• Thread-safe — designed for concurrent environments

Quick Start

WebDAV (config.ru)

# Gemfile
gem "dave-server"
gem "dave-filesystem"
gem "dave-security"   # optional

# config.ru
require "dave/server"
require "dave/file_system_provider"

run Dave::Server.new(
  filesystem: Dave::FileSystemProvider.new(root: "/var/shares")
)

SMB (standalone)

# Gemfile
gem "samba-dave"
gem "dave-filesystem"

# smb_server.rb
require "samba_dave/server"
require "dave/file_system_provider"

SambaDave::Server.new(
  filesystem: Dave::FileSystemProvider.new(root: "/var/shares"),
  share_name: "files",
  port: 445
).start

Rails (both protocols)

# config/routes.rb — WebDAV
mount Dave::Server.new(
  filesystem: C8OFileSystemProvider.new,
  security: C8OSecurityProvider.new
) => "/dav"

# config/initializers/smb.rb — SMB
Thread.new do
  SambaDave::Server.new(
    filesystem: C8OFileSystemProvider.new,
    security: C8OSmBSecurityProvider.new,
    share_name: "documents",
    port: 445
  ).start
end

Gems

Gem	Description
dave-server	WebDAV Rack application + shared interface definitions
dave-filesystem	Default local filesystem provider
dave-security	Default YAML-based authentication & authorisation
samba-dave	SMB2 TCP server for native file sharing

Custom Providers

Dave uses a pluggable provider architecture. Implement the interface once, and it works for both WebDAV and SMB:

# Works for both protocols!
my_provider = MyS3Provider.new(bucket: "my-files")

# WebDAV
Dave::Server.new(filesystem: my_provider)

# SMB
SambaDave::Server.new(filesystem: my_provider, share_name: "files")

Each provider interface includes a compliance test suite you can use to verify your implementation works with both protocols.

Development

• docs/IMPLEMENTATION-PLAN.md — WebDAV development plan
• docs/SAMBA-DAVE-IMPLEMENTATION-PLAN.md — SMB development plan
• docs/ARCHITECTURE.md — multi-protocol architecture
• docs/SMB-SPEC.md — SMB2 protocol reference

License

MIT