How to store your videos on pCloud and deliver them via SmartVideo
This route requires pCloud’s Public Folder, which is included in pCloud Premium and Business plans and is not enabled by default. Enable it in your pCloud account before uploading, following pCloud’s Public Folder guide. If your account does not include this feature, choose another source from Where to host your source files.
Only put videos intended for public access in this folder. Every file gets a public URL, and Public Folder direct links cannot be password-protected.
- Upload your video to the Public Folder in pCloud.
- Once the video is finished uploading, select the file in the Public Folder to copy its direct link, as described in pCloud’s guide. The older interface shown below uses Get Link → Direct link. Use the file’s direct link, not a folder link or a regular pCloud shared link that opens a sharing page. The URL must be public: an anonymous HTTP GET must return the video bytes without a login, password, or session cookies.
3a. If you use our WordPress plugin, add a SmartVideo block and paste the copied direct link into Video URL in the block’s settings sidebar. The clip below shows an older version of the plugin.
3b. If you are not taking advantage of our WordPress plugin, or are on another CMS platform entirely, simply use the URL you copied in step 2 as the source in a SmartVideo tag.
And that’s it! 🎉
After previewing or publishing the page, SmartVideo will download, encode, and store your video on our global delivery network. A video usually takes about as long as it runs to convert, and longer when our encoders are busy. Keep the original file in your pCloud Public Folder and its direct link public for as long as the video is embedded. SmartVideo re-fetches the original for fallback playback and re-conversion, so keeping it accessible is required, not just a backup precaution.