The Files Folder on my iPad is missing many file names. It does not show files saved by the Photos and iMovie apps? Why? How can I deal with these files if they are not in the Files Folder? It will show files created by GarageBand, but not Photos nor iMovie? What is wrong with it?
iPad 2, iOS 9
The iOS/iPadOS filesystem is sandboxed. Not all files can be accessed directly using the native Files App. Some file-types can only be access using the App to which the file(s) relate.
Photos and stored video files (movies) are accessed with the Photos App.
Sandboxing significantly improves device security in significantly reducing susceptibility to malware and viruses. Because the majority of Apps can only see files that are saved on their own sandbox, malware cannot escape and infect the remaining filesystem. This is just one of the reasons that iOS/iPadOS are so resistant to malware and other security vulnerabilities.
Files can be selectively shared with other Apps - this allowing access to the material shared - and nothing else.
Some other system-level sandboxes exist for other reasons. Music downloaded to the Music App can only be accessed within the Music App. Apple has implemented this restriction to prevent unauthorised creation of material protected by copyright and Digital Rights Management (DRM).
As for guidance from Apple, there is an extensive iPad User Guide. The Guide is a rich source of frequently overlooked information about your iPad and iPadOS. The Guide is available both online using a web browser (such as Safari), or as an Apple Books download (the Books version is available for iPadOS 16 and earlier; for some inexplicable reason, the downloadable version is not available for iPadOS 17):
iPad User Guide - Apple Support
https://books.apple.com/book/id1567104892
The Tips App, installed by default on models of iPad, provides a brief introduction - and leads you to the User Guide. In case you missed it, here is a link to the Tips App:
https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/tips/id1069509450
There are some third-party File Manager Apps available from the App Store that offer more flexibility than the native Files App.
Of those available, perhaps consider Stratopherix FileBrowser - Document Manager, or its “pro version” FileBrowser Professional:
https://apps.apple.com/app/filebrowser-professional/id854618029
https://apps.apple.com/app/filebrowser-document-manager/id364738545
You might review the extensive online Manual and help files to determine suitability for your needs.
It might be because you have not downloaded those specific files on that specific ipad, check the cloud possibly?
I do not use the cloud. It is as the user is continuously pushed to access the cloud, I guess for more revenue to Apple. If I had sizable files I would have to have an iCloud account, but my needs are meager. The "sand boxed," system is probably why many do not use iPads because if the files were set free, the device would be much more user-friendly. I continuously struggled with files due to the ambiguity of the terms share, save, import, and export on iPad and sometimes Mac.
I will research a go-around for sandboxing but I doubt I will find it. I also would like to know its purpose. I am finding that the terms save, share, export, and import are ambiguous within iOS and XOS. Getting a photo/video from iMovies or Files to Photos is a challenge and I am finding that drag and drop many times will not function. I find many tutorial instructions to fail I guess and a lack of specific info in instructions from Apple. It is as if the creators of the software do not know how it works, or at least those who write the instructions are not familiar with the operations of current versions.
I can't find an explanation in the User Guide of when to use various commands. Sometimes Export is Share, Share is Export, Export is Save..etc. very confusing.
Why does my files folder not show all files on iPad?
