Files App - Create Folder "On My iPad"

Exactly. You can be like a cuckoo and stash folders in the private storage of other apps. GarageBand seems to be a popular choice. In principle, those apps might be confused to find this corrupted data in their storage, but you can access it through the Files app. Apple has decided not to include local storage in the Files app. Clearly, it would not be impossible to implement it. But you cannot do it at this time. Incidentally, you can use other file manager apps, like FileExplorer or Documents 6, to locally store files of different types in folders you create. And FileExplorer is accessible from Files. So that's a solution to managing random data without hiding it in an app like Acrobat.

Hi. Documents on the iPad are managed in private directory systems by their apps. Notes in Notes, documents in Pages or Word, presentations in Keynote, etc. There is no graceful way to group all items for a project in a folder, as you would on a PC, because the apps cannot access files in the "wild". This is a fundamental shortcoming of an iPad as a computer replacement.

The Files app doesn't change this. It merely lets you access the contents of each app's file storage, provided the app has made this possible. It also includes the prior iCloud Drive app, and integrates other cloud servers, so you don't need to use their apps. This link: iOS 11, thoroughly reviewed | Ars Technica has some hands-on info about the Files app.

I think Pixelmator must be an app you have that's set up to share data with Files.

In my case, Garageband created a folder for me. I found that you can create an folder named for any app by finding a file in iCloud in the Files App, then tap Select, Move, and On My iPad (location). It will open and display the potential folders for all your apps. Move changes to Copy when you select one of the folder. The Copy then creates the App folder and copies your folder. You can then create sub-folders in any existing folder and copy anything you want in there. Apps that use the new file system can save and open files in these folders. For example, Affinity Photo has an Import from iCloud. That displays up the Files app interface picker. Choose On My iPad location and viola! In the Files App, you can select things in iCloud and move to and from these folders so you don't need to use up iCloud storage. Not the optimal solution, but good enough until iOS 12. See these images:

What is your method around this?

An app installed in iOS may install a folder in the Files app that one can use to place documents and files in.

You can't create a folder without an app creating it first. Once created, it will appear in On this "device"

This is how the highly secure iOS filesystem works, An app can make requests to the OS to create folders, you can't.

It is doubtful there will ever be a "Finder for iOS", where one can browse thought all the folders on your device, copying and pasting files and documents at will. iOS is not Android.

This is what some users want and thought the Files app would do.

Not sure if this is a little late or note --- I found a work-around for this I currently use Adobe Acrobat to create sub folders under "On m iPad". Within the Acrobat Directory, I am able to create sub-folders for content that I am working on -- for instance Word, Excel, PDFs, Pictures, etc. While I wish I could use create my own file structure, this work around works for me

Agree with the sentiments here! Baffled that they give us a "Save to files" option in the apps but you cannot create a new folder on your iPhone within files app "On your iPhone/iPad" unless some other app like Pages, Numbers, etc. has already created a folder for you and you can create a (sub) folder within those pre-created folders only or on iCloud or another cloud storage service. I can organize my documents/files on a cloud storage service but I can't on my own iDevice?? Doesn't make sense!!

Hi Jen E. The basic concept of iOS is that apps manage files of specific types. This is different from a computer operating system, where files just exist and are accessed by programs. The GoodReader app in the App Store is a wonderful app for managing pdfs. It creates its own directory structure (not visible to Files) and can sync/backup to many types of server, both on the LAN and in the cloud. See link: http://goodreader.com/index.html.

@ WestVanPete

What kind of files exactly do you need to organize in folders? (docs, pdfs, images, videos?)

Personally, I've just tried using the "Adobe Acrobat Folder" as the main folder and created all my customized folders to organize my files in that folder. In a sense, I use the Acrobat Folder as I would like to use the "On my iPad" folder directly, but it works ok, I just have to do one more click everytime (on Adobe Acrobat Folder).

Have you tried something like that?

Just to clarify, I use mostly documents, texts and images. I haven't tried with music or videos files yet since I don't keep any on my iPad. But some of my documents in the Acrobat folder do open with other apps than Acrobat and it works fine.

Hi there,

I also agree with the feeling of the posts claiming for the possibility to enable the creation of folders ...in the same app folder, through iTunes if no other way, at least.

I was struggling as you to create a set of sub-folders in one app's repository, the Reactable Rotor (music loop player thought) that comes OOTB with a set of folders with samples of each different demo session. Frustrating to realize that this simple and logical action is

After reading all the opinions and answers from the support I understand that despite an excellent media player, the file system is not really usable in the way any other folder system is thought.

I agree that it is a pity this aim to mark a difference, that at last is a frustrating behavior.

sentences as -...apps cannot access files in the "wild"; or -...the idea of an open filesystem would contradict 10 years of iOS history reveals a very little effort of adaption of users' claims in this matter.

Yep, it is frustrating to realize that these logical actions are not only disregarded but deprecated. Hard to understand all the cumbersome process to backup locally in a PC the content in a iOS (move/upload files to the cloud to download them later to PC through). Impossibility to create a logical folder structure as everybody claims here, with the personal projects ...because they are the "wild"!? Come on... Not possible do ease this kind of actions, even to our own risk because 10 years of history of ... incredible; at each new version of iOS or macOS there are many SW editors that get affected because of your new constantly changing rules; and we only have to realize about how many updates of iOS we get in a short period and the short period of any device gets outdated.

Really disapointed aobut the cumbersome process I had to follow with a company iPhone too just to extract the pictures to an external device... and saying that the trending behavior is to upload everything to the cloud might be OK for simple users that their most is to get followers in Instagram or FB.. but sure this is not the whole of us. People also take photos with a camera, extract the memory card and inserts it in another device to backup, edit and share them. Indeed I was expecting something not so idiot proof and more flexible to customize.

Hi DomLogic. FileExplorer and Documents 6 are apps that allow you to manage files on the iPad. FileExplorer also interfaces with cloud and local servers. And FileExplorer is accessible from the Files app. GoodReader is another app that lets you organize documents in local folders and sync them with other servers.

@ Michael Black

About the iOS File System

The iOS file system is geared toward apps running on their own. To keep the system simple, users of iOS devices do not have direct access to the file system and apps are expected to follow this convention.

I read "to keep the system simple" but I don't see "to keep the system more secure" ?

And in my opinion, thinking that things are in a particular way that is set in stone and can never be changed, is a recipe for stagnation and lack of creativity.

Surely they can devise ways to give us what we want (i.e. being able to organize our files in customized folders to be more productive/organized and find our stuff quicker) without undermining the system's security.

For example, define a limited number of types of files that could be organized in that way (e.g. pdfs+docs+images+music files+videos files) and have them tested by some sort of in-build security software for security before being able to put them in the Files app.

Just some random ideas, I'm not an OS expert but I'm sure anything is possible. Just have to find the rights ideas and solutions.

@ Diana.McCall

"There is no graceful way to group all items for a project in a folder, as you would on a PC, because the apps cannot access files in the "wild". This is a fundamental shortcoming of an iPad as a computer replacement."

Are you sure about this?

Seems like they can access the files in custom folders on iCloud Drive just fine, can't they? Wouldn't that be considered "in the wild"?

As long as every file is attached to a particular app, I don't understand why it wouldn't be possible to "organize" them into your own custom folders.

Actually I've just created a sub-folder in the "Acrobate Reader" folder of the "On my iPad" section, and in it I saved a file which opens with Notability and not with Acrobate reader and it does open with Notability.

Maybe I missed something here, but I feel like it wouldn't be impossible to create the custom folder functionality on the "On my iPad" section, but maybe we are incited to use the iCloud Drive instead?