You can access the following files from Files app
Here are the files that you will be able to access from the Files app:
Files on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Pages, Numbers, and Keynote documents on iCloud drive. Files from other cloud services and apps, such as Dropbox, OneDrive, Adobe Creative Cloud, Google Drive, and others.
This could be a surprise to you, but the Files app doesn’t have support for the iPhone’s photo library. We have mentioned the steps for that in one of the following sections.
Enable access to third-party apps in Files
By default, the Files app doesn’t have access to certain file formats inside your iPhone. I guess Apple took user privacy protection a bit too seriously. So to access the files of these apps, you need to:
Check files stored locally on iPhone or iPad
Since the main purpose of the Files app is to view the documents inside your iPhone or iPad, here’s how you can view the files on your iPhone: If you do not see the option for On My iPhone, follow the steps as mentioned above, and toggle on On this iPhone.
Save items to Files app
You can also use the Files app to save files to your iPhone and then access them. Here’s how you can do it.
Save files on iPhone or iPad
Let’s say you saw an interesting image on Safari or want to save a document to your iPhone. How can you save it to Files? It’s quite simple if you follow the following steps:
Save pictures from Photos app to Files
Connect external devices to Files app
Besides accessing the files from iPhone and cloud storage, the Files app can also read external devices. All you have to do is connect external devices to your iPhone or iPad, and then you will see it under Locations in the Files app.
Create new folders
You can also create folders inside the app and then move them. For those who are wondering how to create folders on iPhone, here’s how you can do that. You can also tap the three dots on the top and select New Folder to create one.
Move documents
How to use drag and drop to move files
Another great feature of the Files app is the option to drag and drop. All you have to do is tap and hold the file until it lifts. After that, tap and hold again, then drag and drop where you want to save the file.
Move multiple docs at once in Files app manually
Create a Duplicate
Another file will be created with the same name, except it will have a number next to it to show that it’s a copy of the original file.
Duplicate multiple docs at once
Duplicates of the selected files will be created. These files will have the word ‘2’ at the end of the file name. (The file name will depend on the number of times you have duplicated.)
Search files or folders in Files app
It won’t be easy to find the right file that you want to find if there are lots of them. So here’s how you can search in the Files app:
Create a Favorite folder
If there are a lot of files on your iPhone, it is best to mark the important ones as favorites so that you don’t have to look around or even search the next time you want them. Here’s how you can mark the files as favorites in the Files app: That’s it! Now, you will see the selected folder under the Favorites section on the Browse page.
Remove folders from Favorites
No one can be the favorite of someone every day. That’s the same case for those folders you have marked as favorites. It’s time to remove them from your favorites list. Here’s how: You can also tap and hold the folder. Select Remove to delete them from Favorites.
View recently accessed files
From here, you can see the recent files that you have accessed through the Files app. You can organize the view by tapping the four squares on top and selecting the option of your choice.
Share docs or folders from Files app
To share multiple Docs and Folders in Files App, tap the three dots and choose Select. Then select all the files, tap the Share button, and choose how you want to share the file.
Add Tags
Add Tags for multiple files
To find the tagged files, go to Browse and tap the tag which you have added to the file, and you will see it there.
Customize Tags in Files app
Other than adding tags, you can also customize the tags of those apps. Since this needs quite a lot of explanation, we have prepared a detailed guide on how to customize tags in the Files app. Here, we have mentioned how you can add, remove or even change the tags in Files app.
Delete document
To permanently delete the files:
Delete multiple docs
To permanently delete multiple files:
Recover recently deleted items in Files app
Let’s accept it, life is a mess, and we won’t be able to recover the moments with people who have been gone forever. But at least you can recover the deleted documents from the Files app. Here’s how:
Recover multiple items
Use coloring or drawing tools in Files app
You can use markup tools on certain file types in the Files app to color and draw. For example, you can add a signature, text, magnifier, sketch, draw on images, and Edit PDFs. For this:
Zip and unzip files on iPhone
It is effortless to zip and unzip files in the Files app. You can learn more about it here with proper screenshots. But keep in mind the Files app won’t be able to open password-protected and encrypted files.
Use keyboard shortcuts in Files app
You can quickly carry out your tasks using keyboard shortcuts if you have paired your device with a physical keyboard. Go through our guide to learn how to use keyboard shortcuts in the Files app on the iPad. That’s it! Phew! That was a long ride, wasn’t it? But still, with this detailed guide, I hope you can understand all the features you can use with the Files app. If you still have any doubts or queries, let me know in the comments. Read more:
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