Find files and scan documents

Know what Photos keeps and what Files keeps

When a document does not turn up, it almost always ended up somewhere other than where you expected. Photos organizes your library of pictures and videos. Files is the app that shows your documents, arranged by location.

• On My iPhone: what is stored on the phone itself.
• iCloud Drive: the folder in iCloud, Apple's service that keeps your information on the internet.
• Other supported storage services.

A download may land in iCloud Drive or on the iPhone itself, depending on your settings. Saving something from an app does not always put it in the folder you expect. Recents only shows what you used last: it is not another copy.

To see what you downloaded from email or the internet, open Files, tap Browse, then Downloads.

Create a folder for your documents

1. Open Files.
2. Tap Browse.
3. Tap the location where you want the folder, for example On My iPhone or iCloud Drive.
4. Tap the More button, the circle with three dots.
5. Tap New Folder.
6. Type a clear name.

Touch and hold a file to see what you can do with it: Rename, Copy, Move or Share. Before moving anything important, read the destination.

If you are about to be without internet, download the files you need beforehand and open them to confirm you have access.

Scan a page instead of photographing it

A readable scan is often more useful than a tilted picture of the page. The result is a PDF, a type of document that opens on almost any device.

1. In Files, tap the More button.
2. Tap Scan Documents.
3. Place the sheet on a contrasting background, in even light.
4. Check that all four corners are visible and hold the iPhone steady: in Auto mode, the page is captured for you.
5. Repeat for every page and tap the Done button.
6. Choose a location and tap Save.

Before sharing the PDF, open it and check the text, the orientation and the order.

You can also scan from Notes: inside a note, tap the Attachments button, the paper clip, then Scan Documents. In that case the PDF is saved in the note.

A scan or a drawn signature is not by itself a certified digital signature.

Decide whether to send a copy or give access

Sending a file and sharing a link with editing permission have different effects: the first hands over a current copy, the second gives access to future changes. To send a copy, touch and hold the file in Files, tap Share and choose how to send it. Always check who can open a link.