When setting up RClone for the first time, you will be presented with an option to setup your link to be encrypted or not. There are advantages for using either option but it depends on what you are going to be using the files for.
Encrypted
When using the Encrypted option, any and all files will show as a series of numbers, letters and even special characters. When looking at Google Drive directly, you won’t know which folder belongs to what, and the same applies for files. See our example below.
However, because of the RClone setup, when you want to view files in Plex or Emby, they will be unencrypted and so you’ll know what you are watching. As long as you keep a copy of your passwords (encryption password and salt password) then you and quickly and easily set up the mount again.
This option is good for those who want that extra layer of security, or who would be sharing their drive with other users and don’t want them to see those files.
Unencrypted
As I am sure you can guess by now, if you choose the unencrypted option, then all of the options above don’t apply. This option is more suited to a 1 user setup where only yourself will be using the mount.
Whilst there is some resources needed for the encrypted option, there is a negligible performance hit. You won’t see any differences in streaming, reading and writing to the space if you decide to use the encrypted or unencrypted option.
