Security > Software >

(on Wikipedia)
https://github.com/vgough/encfs
was https://www.arg0.net/encfs

EncFS provides an encrypted filesystem in user-space. It runs without any special permissions and uses the FUSE library module to provide the filesystem interface.

2016-12-28 - I have no memory of using this. Boy will it be awkward if I come across stuff encrypted with it.

Abandoned

---

• EncFS reviews
• EncFS troubleshooting

• rlog, created by the EncFS author, is a dependency.

  • http://freshmeat.sourceforge.net/projects/rlog

--

• https://sourceforge.net/projects/encfs/lists/encfs-users

• K-EncFS is a GUI tool.

Notes ∞

• Can set the encryption type on filesystem creation.
• MAC checksums help avoid any possibility of an application loading up modified data.

• Patch: Simple Two Factor Authentication

Related reading ∞

• https://web.archive.org/web/20100611133404/http://wiki.boum.org:80/TechStdOut/EncryptedBackupsForParanoiacs

• https://web.archive.org/web/20100727194954/http://wiki.boum.org:80/TechStdOut/LinuxCryptoFS

• Creating a safe directory with PAM and Encfs.

• "stealth" encrypted home directory filesystem using encfs on GNU/Linux -- Simple stuff.

Usage ∞

Tested 2006-09-03 with EncFS 1.23 on

Note that only the user who mounted the directory can use it. Not even root can look inside!

Creation or Mounting:

mkdir ~/.crypt-raw
mkdir ~/crypt

# encfs ./encrypted-dir /mount-point
encfs ~/.crypt-raw ~/crypt

# (fill out your preferences)

cd ~/crypt
echo "this is stored in an encrypted file" > foo

echo "Everything is good here:"
ls

cd ~/.crypt-raw
echo "Everything is encrypted here:"
ls

Unmounting:

# fusermount -u ~/mount-point
fusermount -u ~/crypt

echo "Not mounted anymore:"
ls ~/crypt

echo "Still encrypted:"
ls ~/.crypt-raw

Deleting temporary directories:

fusermount -u ~/crypt
rm -rf ~/.crypt-raw
rm -rf ~/crypt

Automatic mounting with a shell script ∞

Davide Canova d.canova at tiscali.it writes:

I use /home/encfs/$USER/.rootdir as rootdir so I can save unencrypted data in /home/encfs/$USER if I need. Here is my script (very basic):

#!/bin/sh
if [ -d /home/encfs/$USER/.rootdir ]; then   # if rootdir exists
  if ! mount | grep -q $HOME; then   # if nothing mounted in $HOME
    cd /home/encfs/$USER   # get out of the mount point
    until echo "$answer" | grep -iqx "no\?"; do
      answer="n"
      if ! encfs /home/encfs/$USER/.rootdir $HOME; then
        read -ep "Retry (Y/n)? " answer
      fi
    done
    cd
  fi
  # X authority file must be outside of the EncFS volume
  # until FUSE get lock operations support
  export XAUTHORITY="/home/encfs/$USER/.Xauthority"
fi

Automatic mounting with PAM ∞

PAM integration allows encfs to be mounted when a user logs in (using the login password)

https://web.archive.org/web/20121123213310/http://hollowtube.mine.nu:80/wiki/index.php?n=Projects.PamEncfs

Renaming .encfs5 ∞

Valient Gough said on the mailing list:

You'd have to modify the source code and recompile it.

Look in the file encfs/FileUtils.cpp around line 87 (or search for ConfigFileMapping). There is a list of filenames which are mapped to different config file support code. You can add your own by editing the .encfs5 line. I recommend you have the filename start with a dot (.), although it should work without it as well..

Unencrypting a single file without mounting everything ∞

If your crypt directory contained "foo" as the unencrypted filename, you could do:

encfsctl cat .enc foo

Last updated 2021-10-30 at 03:05:53