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DeskRanger in Finder and Explorer

The shared folders of your devices right in your system's file manager: open, edit and save without opening the DeskRanger app.

FreemacOSWindowsiPhone & iPad · Coming soonAndroidLinux

DeskRanger shows up as a place of its own in your system's file manager: in Finder, in Explorer, in the Files app of iPhone and iPad and in the Files app of Android. Below it you see exactly what the Files page in the app shows: your devices with their shared folders. Every computer, server and NAS of your account is listed there once, as in the device list, as soon as it shares at least one folder with this device; phones, tablets, browsers and devices without a shared folder are not listed. You open a file, edit it in the app of your choice and save it – and the change ends up on the device the file lives on.

It is the same path as in the app: files go directly from device to device, end-to-end encrypted, and the same folders, rights and sharing rules as under Files apply. See “Shared folders” for more.

What you can do there

Open. A folder's content is loaded only when you open it. DeskRanger does not put copies of all files on your device in advance.
Rights. You may read and write wherever the folder allows it. A folder shared as read-only stays read-only; new files, renaming and deleting do not work there.
Devices without a connection. A device that sleeps or is offline is greyed out in the list. Its folders open again as soon as it can be reached.
Conflicts. If the file was changed on the device while you were editing it, DeskRanger overwrites nothing: you get your version as a conflict copy next to the file, and both versions stay.
Deleting. Whether deletion and replacement are available depends on the device holding the files. If it supports a trash folder, deleted or replaced files go there.
Moving. Between two devices or folders, DeskRanger copies instead of moving.

macOS

In Finder

Settings › Files › Show in Finder. macOS then asks once whether DeskRanger may appear in Finder: Open System Settings takes you to the switch in System Settings. In Finder, “DeskRanger” is then in the sidebar under “Locations”. While it is off in System Settings, the switch says so: Turned off in System Settings, with Turn On… next to it.

In Finder you open the folders and files of your devices and work in them like in a folder of your own: save files, add new files and folders, rename, move within a shared folder, and delete. Deleted items go to the device's trash when the device has one. A shared folder that is shared read-only stays read-only: you copy its files and folders to your Mac without an error and without a lock, an edit made right inside it is refused by the device at upload, and Finder says the folder is read-only.

If someone changed the file on the device in the meantime, DeskRanger overwrites nothing: your version goes next to it as a copy with Conflict in its name, and Finder shows the device's version again. If the device can't be reached when you save, Finder shows the file as not uploaded; it goes up as soon as the device is back.

If the sign-in on this Mac ends without you signing out yourself – for example because the Mac was removed from the account –, files that still wait for their upload stay on the Mac. After the next sign-in with the same account, DeskRanger shows how many files were not sent: Send now uploads them, Discard deletes them. With another account there is only Discard; the files never go to another account's devices. If you sign out yourself in Settings, DeskRanger asks first while files are still waiting: Wait keeps you signed in so they can still upload; Sign out anyway signs you out and deletes them from the Mac, which does not keep them.

If a device refuses a saved file for good – for example because the folder is read only now, is not shared any more or does not accept the name –, the Finder shows the device's version again. Your file stays on the Mac as a copy: DeskRanger lists it in the device overview, Save as … saves it wherever you choose, Discard deletes the copy.

Searching in Finder also finds files on your devices that you haven't opened yet – on devices that are connected right now. When something changes on a device in a folder you're using, Finder shows it by itself.

Windows

In Explorer

“DeskRanger” sits in the navigation pane on the left of Explorer. Below it are your devices, below them their shared folders.

You need to be signed in to the DeskRanger app. You turn the entry on and off under Settings › Files › Show in File Explorer.
A folder loads when you open it, a file when you open it. Explorer shows the progress. After that the file stays on your PC until Windows needs the space.
Only what you open yourself makes a connection. Windows Search, the virus scanner, the preview and other programs in the background open no session and make no device ask; for them a file not yet loaded stays “not available”.
A device that is not reachable right now shows “Not reachable” in the status column.
When you save a file, DeskRanger uploads it to the device. If the device is not reachable, the file shows “Not uploaded” and DeskRanger tries again as soon as the device is back. If you sign out before that, DeskRanger asks first while files are still waiting. If the sign-in ends without you signing out yourself – for example because the PC was removed from the account –, the files stay on the PC. After the next sign-in with the same account, Send now uploads them and Discard deletes them; with another account there is only Discard.
If a device refuses a saved file for good – for example because the folder is read only now, is not shared any more or does not accept the name –, DeskRanger does not keep trying: the file stays in Explorer with “Not uploaded” and a copy stays on the PC. DeskRanger lists it on the device overview; Save as … saves it wherever you choose, Discard deletes the copy. The number of copies kept per account is limited.
A conflict copy shows “Conflict copy” in the status column.
Explorer's search finds only files in folders you have opened already. Servers (SFTP) do not appear in Explorer yet.

iPhone & iPad

In the Files app of iPhone and iPad

When you are signed in to DeskRanger, the app adds the location “DeskRanger” to the Files app. iOS adds a new location switched off; while it is off, the page Files shows the hint “Turn on DeskRanger in Files” at the top. In the Files app, tap “Browse”, then “…” at the top, then “Edit”, and switch on “DeskRanger” under “Locations”. Later hides the hint.

Under “DeskRanger” you see your devices and below them their shared folders. A folder loads when you open it, a file when you open it; the Files app shows the progress.
Your iPhone or iPad connects to the device itself for this, directly and end-to-end encrypted, even when the DeskRanger app is not open. When you open the app, the Files app hands the connection over to it and connects again the next time you open something.
You can write in the Files app too: edit and save files, create folders, put files into them, rename, move within one shared folder and delete. Deleted items go to the device's trash. Between two devices or shared folders the Files app copies instead of moving. The device decides what is allowed, by the rights of the shared folder.
If someone changed the file on the device since you opened it, nothing is overwritten: your version goes next to it as a copy with „Conflict“, the name of your iPhone or iPad and the time in its name; both stay.
A device that cannot be reached right now carries a note in the Files app. A change goes up as soon as it is reachable again and the Files app tries once more.
If a device refuses a file saved in the Files app for good – for example because the folder is read only now, is not shared any more or does not accept the name –, your file is not lost: it stays on the iPhone or iPad as a copy. DeskRanger lists it in the device list; Save as … opens the file picker so you can put it wherever you choose, Discard deletes the copy. The number of copies kept per account is limited; if you are signed out without wanting it, they stay for your account.
When something doesn't work, the Files app tells you in one sentence what is going on and what you can do – for example that the device can't be reached or that a session is running in DeskRanger.
With DeskRanger Secure, the Files app connects only to devices in your confirmed device list, just like the app. If it can't confirm a device, it loads nothing from it; open DeskRanger once so the list is up to date again.
If the Files app shows “Authentication required”, tap “Open DeskRanger”. DeskRanger then sets everything up by itself and tells you in “DeskRanger in Files” whether it is done or what is still missing – for example that you need to sign in first. If DeskRanger says it is setting up Files in a moment, that happens by itself within a few minutes; then open the Files app again.
When you sign out of DeskRanger, the location “DeskRanger” disappears from the Files app.

Android

On Android

Open your phone's Files app and choose “DeskRanger” in the menu at the top left. Below it are your devices, and below them their shared folders.

You must be signed in to the DeskRanger app. The app does not have to be open: it starts in the background as soon as you tap a folder in the Files app.
When you open a file, the app you edit it with saves back when you close it. DeskRanger then uploads the file to the device and shows a DeskRanger is uploading notification. A file you did not change is not uploaded.
If the device cannot be reached when you save, the file waits on your phone and is uploaded as soon as the device is back. If you sign out before that, DeskRanger asks when files are still waiting. If the sign-in ends without you signing out yourself – for example because the phone was removed from the account –, the files stay on the phone. After the next sign-in with the same account, Send now uploads them and Discard deletes them; with another account there is only Discard.
If a device refuses a saved file for good – for example because the folder is read only now, is not shared any more or does not accept the name –, DeskRanger does not keep trying: the Files app shows the device's version again, a notification says the file was not uploaded, and your file stays on the phone as a copy. DeskRanger lists it at the top of the library; Save as … saves it wherever you choose, Discard deletes the copy. The number of copies kept per account is limited.
The search in the Files app searches devices you currently have a session with, and your own reachable devices that have Let my devices connect without asking on. For other devices, the Files app asks you to open them first: open it once, and it is included in the next search. A search never asks anything on a device.
DeskRanger keeps a limited amount of data on the phone. It clears what is no longer needed by itself; files still waiting to be uploaded stay.
Servers (SFTP) do not appear in the Files app yet.

On Linux

DeskRanger is not part of the Linux file manager yet. The Files page of the DeskRanger app, though, already has the place for files a device refuses for good: when DeskRanger keeps a copy, a notice at the top of the page counts them, “… files not uploaded”, with a line per file that says why. Save as … opens the save dialog so you can put the file wherever you choose, Discard deletes the copy. If saving fails, the copy stays and the notice says so. The number of copies kept per account is limited, and only for the account you are signed in with.