diff --git a/OpenNest.Data/INestRepository.cs b/OpenNest.Data/INestRepository.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bf34476
--- /dev/null
+++ b/OpenNest.Data/INestRepository.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+namespace OpenNest.Data;
+
+/// <summary>
+/// Storage backend for saved nests. <see cref="RemoteNestRepository"/> talks to the
+/// central nest server; File mode in the desktop app keeps using SaveFileDialog and
+/// does not go through this interface.
+/// </summary>
+public interface INestRepository
+{
+    /// <summary>All stored nests, newest saved first.</summary>
+    Task<IReadOnlyList<NestRecord>> ListAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+
+    Task<NestRecord?> GetMetadataAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+
+    /// <summary>Downloaded .nest archive bytes, or null when the id does not exist.</summary>
+    Task<byte[]?> GetFileAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+
+    /// <summary>Stores a new nest; returns the server-assigned record.</summary>
+    Task<NestRecord> UploadAsync(
+        byte[] nestFile, NestRecord record, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+
+    /// <summary>Replaces the archive and metadata of an existing id, keeping the id.</summary>
+    Task<NestRecord> UpdateFileAsync(
+        Guid id, byte[] nestFile, NestRecord record, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+
+    /// <summary>Replaces metadata only (status, made-by, comments...), leaving the archive.</summary>
+    Task<NestRecord> UpdateMetadataAsync(
+        Guid id, NestRecord record, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+
+    Task DeleteAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default);
+}
diff --git a/OpenNest.Data/NestRecord.cs b/OpenNest.Data/NestRecord.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..faaadb5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/OpenNest.Data/NestRecord.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+using OpenNest;
+
+namespace OpenNest.Data;
+
+/// <summary>
+/// Server-side metadata for one saved nest. The .nest archive itself is stored
+/// alongside; this record is what lists, filters and status tracking read.
+/// Counts are captured by the client at save time.
+/// </summary>
+public sealed class NestRecord
+{
+    public Guid Id { get; set; }
+
+    public string Name { get; set; } = "";
+
+    public string Customer { get; set; } = "";
+
+    public DateTime DateCreated { get; set; }
+
+    public DateTime DateModified { get; set; }
+
+    public string Material { get; set; } = "";
+
+    public double Thickness { get; set; }
+
+    /// <summary>quote | toBeCut | hasBeenCut (camelCase on the wire, case-insensitive readers).</summary>
+    public NestStatus Status { get; set; } = NestStatus.Quote;
+
+    public int PlateCount { get; set; }
+
+    public int PartCount { get; set; }
+
+    public string Comments { get; set; } = "";
+
+    public string MadeBy { get; set; } = "";
+
+    /// <summary>Size of the stored .nest archive in bytes.</summary>
+    public long FileSize { get; set; }
+
+    /// <summary>When the server last stored the nest contents or metadata.</summary>
+    public DateTime SavedAt { get; set; }
+}
diff --git a/OpenNest.Data/NestStorageSettings.cs b/OpenNest.Data/NestStorageSettings.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f092c5d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/OpenNest.Data/NestStorageSettings.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+using System.Text.Json;
+
+namespace OpenNest.Data;
+
+/// <summary>Where the desktop app persists nests: local .nest files or the shared nest server.</summary>
+public enum NestStorageMode
+{
+    File,
+    Database,
+}
+
+/// <summary>
+/// Storage-mode toggle and nest-server address, stored at %APPDATA%\OpenNest\storage.json.
+/// Loading never throws; a missing or corrupt file means File mode so existing installs
+/// keep the original behavior until the operator opts in.
+/// </summary>
+public sealed class NestStorageSettings
+{
+    private static readonly JsonSerializerOptions JsonOptions = new()
+    {
+        WriteIndented = true,
+        PropertyNamingPolicy = JsonNamingPolicy.CamelCase,
+        PropertyNameCaseInsensitive = true,
+    };
+
+    public NestStorageMode Mode { get; set; } = NestStorageMode.File;
+
+    /// <summary>Base URL of the nest server, e.g. http://barge.lan:8090. No trailing slash required.</summary>
+    public string ServerUrl { get; set; } = "";
+
+    /// <summary>True when Database mode is active and a server URL is configured.</summary>
+    public bool IsDatabaseMode =>
+        Mode == NestStorageMode.Database && !string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(ServerUrl);
+
+    /// <summary>%APPDATA%\OpenNest\storage.json.</summary>
+    public static string DefaultPath => Path.Combine(
+        Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.ApplicationData),
+        "OpenNest", "storage.json");
+
+    public static NestStorageSettings Load(string path)
+    {
+        if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(path) || !File.Exists(path))
+            return new();
+
+        try
+        {
+            var settings = JsonSerializer.Deserialize<NestStorageSettings>(
+                File.ReadAllText(path), JsonOptions) ?? new();
+            settings.ServerUrl = NormalizeUrl(settings.ServerUrl);
+            return settings;
+        }
+        catch (Exception ex) when (ex is JsonException or IOException or UnauthorizedAccessException)
+        {
+            return new();
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// <summary>Writes camelCase JSON, creating the parent directory and retrying IO collisions.</summary>
+    public void Save(string path)
+    {
+        var json = JsonSerializer.Serialize(
+            new NestStorageSettings { Mode = Mode, ServerUrl = NormalizeUrl(ServerUrl) },
+            JsonOptions);
+        var directory = Path.GetDirectoryName(Path.GetFullPath(path));
+
+        for (var attempt = 0; attempt < 3; attempt++)
+        {
+            try
+            {
+                if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(directory))
+                    Directory.CreateDirectory(directory);
+                File.WriteAllText(path, json);
+                return;
+            }
+            catch (IOException) when (attempt < 2)
+            {
+                Thread.Sleep(100);
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private static string NormalizeUrl(string? url) => (url ?? "").Trim().TrimEnd('/');
+}
diff --git a/OpenNest.Data/RemoteNestRepository.cs b/OpenNest.Data/RemoteNestRepository.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b893180
--- /dev/null
+++ b/OpenNest.Data/RemoteNestRepository.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,159 @@
+using System.Net;
+using System.Net.Http;
+using System.Net.Http.Headers;
+using System.Net.Http.Json;
+using System.Text;
+using System.Text.Json;
+using System.Text.Json.Serialization;
+
+namespace OpenNest.Data;
+
+/// <summary>
+/// Talks to the central OpenNest nest server over HTTP. Uploads are multipart:
+/// a "metadata" JSON part and a "file" part holding the .nest archive.
+/// Connection and HTTP failures surface as HttpRequestException/IOException to the caller.
+/// </summary>
+public sealed class RemoteNestRepository : INestRepository, IDisposable
+{
+    private static readonly JsonSerializerOptions JsonOptions = new()
+    {
+        PropertyNamingPolicy = JsonNamingPolicy.CamelCase,
+        PropertyNameCaseInsensitive = true,
+        Converters = { new JsonStringEnumConverter(JsonNamingPolicy.CamelCase) },
+    };
+
+    private readonly HttpClient _httpClient;
+    private readonly bool _ownsClient;
+    private readonly Uri _baseUri;
+
+    public RemoteNestRepository(string baseUrl)
+        : this(new HttpClient(), baseUrl)
+    {
+        _ownsClient = true;
+    }
+
+    /// <summary>For tests and hosts that pool HttpClient instances.</summary>
+    public RemoteNestRepository(HttpClient httpClient, string baseUrl)
+    {
+        _httpClient = httpClient;
+        _ownsClient = false;
+        var url = (baseUrl ?? "").Trim().TrimEnd('/');
+        if (!Uri.TryCreate(url, UriKind.Absolute, out var baseUri)
+            || (baseUri.Scheme != Uri.UriSchemeHttp && baseUri.Scheme != Uri.UriSchemeHttps))
+        {
+            throw new ArgumentException($"Invalid nest server URL: '{baseUrl}'", nameof(baseUrl));
+        }
+        // Keep the trailing slash so relative combines replace no path segment.
+        _baseUri = new Uri(baseUri.AbsoluteUri.TrimEnd('/') + "/");
+    }
+
+    private Uri Url(string relative) => new(_baseUri, relative);
+
+    public async Task<IReadOnlyList<NestRecord>> ListAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var response = await _httpClient.GetAsync(Url("api/nests"), cancellationToken);
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, "list nests", cancellationToken);
+        var items = await response.Content
+            .ReadFromJsonAsync<List<NestRecord>>(JsonOptions, cancellationToken);
+        return items ?? new List<NestRecord>();
+    }
+
+    public async Task<NestRecord?> GetMetadataAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var response = await _httpClient.GetAsync(Url($"api/nests/{id}"), cancellationToken);
+        if (response.StatusCode == HttpStatusCode.NotFound)
+            return null;
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, $"get nest {id}", cancellationToken);
+        return await response.Content.ReadFromJsonAsync<NestRecord>(JsonOptions, cancellationToken);
+    }
+
+    public async Task<byte[]?> GetFileAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var response = await _httpClient.GetAsync(Url($"api/nests/{id}/file"), cancellationToken);
+        if (response.StatusCode == HttpStatusCode.NotFound)
+            return null;
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, $"download nest {id}", cancellationToken);
+        return await response.Content.ReadAsByteArrayAsync(cancellationToken);
+    }
+
+    public async Task<NestRecord> UploadAsync(
+        byte[] nestFile, NestRecord record, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var content = BuildMultipart(nestFile, record);
+        using var response = await _httpClient.PostAsync(Url("api/nests"), content, cancellationToken);
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, $"upload nest '{record.Name}'", cancellationToken);
+        return await ReadRecord(response, cancellationToken);
+    }
+
+    public async Task<NestRecord> UpdateFileAsync(
+        Guid id, byte[] nestFile, NestRecord record, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var content = BuildMultipart(nestFile, record);
+        using var response = await _httpClient.PutAsync(Url($"api/nests/{id}/file"), content, cancellationToken);
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, $"update nest {id}", cancellationToken);
+        return await ReadRecord(response, cancellationToken);
+    }
+
+    public async Task<NestRecord> UpdateMetadataAsync(
+        Guid id, NestRecord record, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var content = new StringContent(
+            JsonSerializer.Serialize(record, JsonOptions), Encoding.UTF8, "application/json");
+        using var response = await _httpClient.PutAsync(Url($"api/nests/{id}/metadata"), content, cancellationToken);
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, $"update nest metadata {id}", cancellationToken);
+        return await ReadRecord(response, cancellationToken);
+    }
+
+    public async Task DeleteAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
+    {
+        using var response = await _httpClient.DeleteAsync(Url($"api/nests/{id}"), cancellationToken);
+        await EnsureSuccess(response, $"delete nest {id}", cancellationToken);
+    }
+
+    public void Dispose()
+    {
+        if (_ownsClient)
+            _httpClient.Dispose();
+    }
+
+    private static MultipartFormDataContent BuildMultipart(byte[] nestFile, NestRecord record)
+    {
+        var content = new MultipartFormDataContent();
+        var metadata = new StringContent(
+            JsonSerializer.Serialize(record, JsonOptions), Encoding.UTF8, "application/json");
+        content.Add(metadata, "metadata");
+        var file = new ByteArrayContent(nestFile);
+        file.Headers.ContentType = new MediaTypeHeaderValue("application/zip");
+        content.Add(file, "file", record.Name.Length > 0 ? $"{record.Name}.nest" : "nest.nest");
+        return content;
+    }
+
+    private static async Task<NestRecord> ReadRecord(
+        HttpResponseMessage response, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
+    {
+        var record = await response.Content.ReadFromJsonAsync<NestRecord>(JsonOptions, cancellationToken);
+        return record ?? throw new IOException("Nest server returned an empty record.");
+    }
+
+    private static async Task EnsureSuccess(
+        HttpResponseMessage response, string action, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
+    {
+        if (response.IsSuccessStatusCode)
+            return;
+
+        var detail = "";
+        try
+        {
+            detail = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync(cancellationToken);
+        }
+        catch (Exception ex) when (ex is IOException or InvalidOperationException)
+        {
+            // The status code is the useful part; the body is best-effort.
+        }
+
+        if (detail.Length > 200)
+            detail = detail[..200] + "…";
+        throw new IOException(
+            $"Could not {action} on the nest server: HTTP {(int)response.StatusCode} {response.ReasonPhrase}. {detail}".TrimEnd());
+    }
+}
diff --git a/OpenNest.Tests/Data/NestStorageTests.cs b/OpenNest.Tests/Data/NestStorageTests.cs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..606c024
--- /dev/null
+++ b/OpenNest.Tests/Data/NestStorageTests.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,223 @@
+using System.Net;
+using System.Text;
+using System.Text.Json;
+using OpenNest.Data;
+
+namespace OpenNest.Tests.Data;
+
+public class NestStorageSettingsTests : IDisposable
+{
+    private readonly string _directory = Path.Combine(
+        Path.GetTempPath(), $"opennest-storage-{Guid.NewGuid():N}");
+
+    private string FilePath => Path.Combine(_directory, "storage.json");
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void Load_MissingFile_DefaultsToFileMode()
+    {
+        var settings = NestStorageSettings.Load(FilePath);
+
+        Assert.Equal(NestStorageMode.File, settings.Mode);
+        Assert.Equal("", settings.ServerUrl);
+        Assert.False(settings.IsDatabaseMode);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void Load_CorruptFile_DefaultsToFileModeWithoutThrowing()
+    {
+        Directory.CreateDirectory(_directory);
+        File.WriteAllText(FilePath, "{ not json");
+
+        var settings = NestStorageSettings.Load(FilePath);
+
+        Assert.Equal(NestStorageMode.File, settings.Mode);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void SaveThenLoad_DatabaseMode_RoundTrips()
+    {
+        NestStorageSettings.Load(FilePath)
+            .Save(FilePath); // ensure directory exists pattern
+        var settings = new NestStorageSettings
+        {
+            Mode = NestStorageMode.Database,
+            ServerUrl = "http://barge.lan:8090/",
+        };
+
+        settings.Save(FilePath);
+        var loaded = NestStorageSettings.Load(FilePath);
+
+        Assert.Equal(NestStorageMode.Database, loaded.Mode);
+        Assert.Equal("http://barge.lan:8090", loaded.ServerUrl);
+        Assert.True(loaded.IsDatabaseMode);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void DatabaseMode_WithoutServerUrl_IsNotActive()
+    {
+        var settings = new NestStorageSettings { Mode = NestStorageMode.Database };
+        Assert.False(settings.IsDatabaseMode);
+    }
+
+    public void Dispose()
+    {
+        if (Directory.Exists(_directory))
+            Directory.Delete(_directory, recursive: true);
+    }
+}
+
+/// <summary>Records requests and replies with canned responses.</summary>
+internal sealed class StubHandler : HttpMessageHandler
+{
+    private readonly Func<HttpRequestMessage, HttpResponseMessage> _responder;
+
+    public List<HttpRequestMessage> Requests { get; } = new();
+    public List<string> RequestBodies { get; } = new();
+
+    public StubHandler(Func<HttpRequestMessage, HttpResponseMessage> responder) =>
+        _responder = responder;
+
+    protected override async Task<HttpResponseMessage> SendAsync(
+        HttpRequestMessage request, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
+    {
+        Requests.Add(request);
+        RequestBodies.Add(request.Content is null
+            ? ""
+            : await request.Content.ReadAsStringAsync(cancellationToken));
+        return _responder(request);
+    }
+
+    public static HttpResponseMessage Json(object payload, HttpStatusCode code = HttpStatusCode.OK) =>
+        new(code)
+        {
+            Content = new StringContent(
+                JsonSerializer.Serialize(payload), Encoding.UTF8, "application/json"),
+        };
+}
+
+public class RemoteNestRepositoryTests
+{
+    private static NestRecord SampleRecord(Guid? id = null) => new()
+    {
+        Id = id ?? Guid.NewGuid(),
+        Name = "Job 1",
+        Customer = "Cozy Cat",
+        Material = "Aluminum",
+        Thickness = 0.25,
+        Status = NestStatus.ToBeCut,
+        PlateCount = 2,
+        PartCount = 17,
+        Comments = "rush",
+        MadeBy = "AJ",
+        FileSize = 1234,
+        SavedAt = new DateTime(2026, 9, 29, 12, 0, 0),
+    };
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void Constructor_RejectsInvalidUrl()
+    {
+        Assert.Throws<ArgumentException>(() => new RemoteNestRepository("not a url"));
+        Assert.Throws<ArgumentException>(() => new RemoteNestRepository("ftp://host"));
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task ListAsync_DeserializesCamelCaseRecords()
+    {
+        var handler = new StubHandler(_ => StubHandler.Json(new[] { SampleRecord() }));
+        using var repo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(handler), "http://server:8090/");
+
+        var records = await repo.ListAsync();
+
+        Assert.Single(records);
+        Assert.Equal("Cozy Cat", records[0].Customer);
+        Assert.Equal(NestStatus.ToBeCut, records[0].Status);
+        Assert.Contains("/api/nests", handler.Requests[0].RequestUri!.ToString());
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task UploadAsync_PostsMultipartWithMetadataAndFile()
+    {
+        var record = SampleRecord();
+        var handler = new StubHandler(_ => StubHandler.Json(record));
+        using var repo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(handler), "http://server:8090");
+
+        var result = await repo.UploadAsync(new byte[] { 1, 2, 3 }, record);
+
+        Assert.Equal(record.Id, result.Id);
+        var request = handler.Requests[0];
+        Assert.Equal(HttpMethod.Post, request.Method);
+        Assert.EndsWith("/api/nests", request.RequestUri!.ToString());
+        Assert.StartsWith("multipart/form-data", request.Content!.Headers.ContentType!.ToString());
+        Assert.Contains("metadata", handler.RequestBodies[0]);
+        Assert.Contains("toBeCut", handler.RequestBodies[0]);
+        Assert.Contains("filename=\"Job 1.nest\"", handler.RequestBodies[0]);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task UpdateFileAsync_PutsMultipartToIdFileRoute()
+    {
+        var id = Guid.NewGuid();
+        var record = SampleRecord(id);
+        var handler = new StubHandler(_ => StubHandler.Json(record));
+        using var repo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(handler), "http://server:8090");
+
+        await repo.UpdateFileAsync(id, new byte[] { 9 }, record);
+
+        var request = handler.Requests[0];
+        Assert.Equal(HttpMethod.Put, request.Method);
+        Assert.EndsWith($"/api/nests/{id}/file", request.RequestUri!.ToString());
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task GetFileAsync_NullOnNotFound_BytesOtherwise()
+    {
+        var missing = new StubHandler(_ => new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.NotFound));
+        using var missingRepo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(missing), "http://s");
+        Assert.Null(await missingRepo.GetFileAsync(Guid.NewGuid()));
+
+        var found = new StubHandler(_ => new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.OK)
+        {
+            Content = new ByteArrayContent(new byte[] { 4, 5, 6 }),
+        });
+        using var foundRepo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(found), "http://s");
+        Assert.Equal(new byte[] { 4, 5, 6 }, await foundRepo.GetFileAsync(Guid.NewGuid()));
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task GetMetadataAsync_NullOnNotFound()
+    {
+        var handler = new StubHandler(_ => new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.NotFound));
+        using var repo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(handler), "http://s");
+
+        Assert.Null(await repo.GetMetadataAsync(Guid.NewGuid()));
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task UpdateMetadataAsync_PutsJsonToMetadataRoute()
+    {
+        var id = Guid.NewGuid();
+        var record = SampleRecord(id);
+        var handler = new StubHandler(_ => StubHandler.Json(record));
+        using var repo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(handler), "http://s");
+
+        await repo.UpdateMetadataAsync(id, record);
+
+        Assert.Equal(HttpMethod.Put, handler.Requests[0].Method);
+        Assert.EndsWith($"/api/nests/{id}/metadata", handler.Requests[0].RequestUri!.ToString());
+        Assert.Equal("application/json", handler.Requests[0].Content!.Headers.ContentType!.MediaType);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public async Task DeleteAsync_ThrowsWithStatusDetailOnError()
+    {
+        var handler = new StubHandler(_ => new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.InternalServerError)
+        {
+            Content = new StringContent("disk on fire"),
+        });
+        using var repo = new RemoteNestRepository(new HttpClient(handler), "http://s");
+
+        var ex = await Assert.ThrowsAsync<IOException>(() => repo.DeleteAsync(Guid.NewGuid()));
+        Assert.Contains("500", ex.Message);
+        Assert.Contains("disk on fire", ex.Message);
+    }
+}