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Best Data Transfer Method Between iPadOS and Windows 10

Hi all, 

I’ll try to make this short.

 

I was a full Windows/Android consumer until Engineering University. I branched back into the Apple World through their iPad (7th Gen. / 32GB) for note-taking and video editing. I fell in love and bought the iPad Mini (5 Gen. / 256GB). Now I own an iPad Pro 2020 (WiFi + Cellular). Yes, I went in deep.

My question is, what is the best way to transfer both small and large files between iPadOS and Windows? I currently use Google Drive. I access it through Chrome on Windows and the My Files app on iPadOS. I need a faster way. I don’t own an iMac or MacBook so AirDrop isn’t an option; but a similar method is welcomed. Please advise. Thank you!

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You could always set up a shared folder on your PC and connect to it a as a network drive on your iPad. Obviously this only works if both devices are on the same network, but it would probably be quite a bit faster and less of a hassle than GDrive.

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If you want to be oldskool about it, get a (fast) USB-C storage stick. 😉

When i ask for more specs, don't expect me to know the answer!
I'm just helping YOU to help YOURSELF!
(The more info you give the easier it is for others to help you out!)

Not willing to capitulate to the ignorance of the masses!

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Syncthing works fine (with the SyncTrayzor app on PC side, Mobius sync app on ios side). As usual with iOS it may get killed after a while in the background but tap the app and it syncs. Transfers are P2P so fast when local.

F@H
Desktop: i9-13900K, ASUS Z790-E, 64GB DDR5-6000 CL36, RTX3080, 2TB MP600 Pro XT, 2TB SX8200Pro, 2x16TB Ironwolf RAID0, Corsair HX1200, Antec Vortex 360 AIO, Thermaltake Versa H25 TG, Samsung 4K curved 49" TV, 23" secondary, Mountain Everest Max

Mobile SFF rig: i9-9900K, Noctua NH-L9i, Asrock Z390 Phantom ITX-AC, 32GB, GTX1070, 2x1TB SX8200Pro RAID0, 2x5TB 2.5" HDD RAID0, Athena 500W Flex (Noctua fan), Custom 4.7l 3D printed case

 

Asus Zenbook UM325UA, Ryzen 7 5700u, 16GB, 1TB, OLED

 

GPD Win 2

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The best way should be to create a shared folder on your PC, and then use the files app to connect to it. Doesn't require any additional software.

How you can do it:

First enable network discovery on your PC. Do so by searching for "sharing" in Windows Search. Then, in the window that opens, click on the "Private" drop down. Then make sure your settings look something like this:

image.png.a5d3248ec98d78b114ba16a7b86ce528.png


To create a shared folder on your PC, you could create a folder(or choose an existing one), right click it on it, Properties, then the sharing tab, and then click on share. Select or add your user, and give it the appropriate permissions(you should give read/write permission). 

Now, you will also need to know your IP address. To do this, open up Task Manager(Ctrl + Shift + Esc), the turn to the Performance tab, and on the left pane, select your network interface, and then you can see your IPv4 address on the right side.

 

Then in the files app on your iPad, click on the 3 dots, then click on "Connect to Server". Then in the field, enter "smb://<IP address>"
Then the credentials for the account you selected previously. 

You should now see the folder you just shared. Try adding some files in it from the PC, and they should reflect on the iPad.

Hope this helps you.

"Coding skill isn’t about knowing how to make things; It’s about being able to find the right Stack Overflow code to copy paste."

 

bruh switch to dark mode its at the bottom of this page

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4 minutes ago, RockSolid1106 said:

The best way should be to create a shared folder on your PC, and then use the files app to connect to it. Doesn't require any additional software.

Except it constantly breaks on the iOS side. When I use samba shares the iPad often fails to connect and needs to be rebooted to fix... 

 

 

F@H
Desktop: i9-13900K, ASUS Z790-E, 64GB DDR5-6000 CL36, RTX3080, 2TB MP600 Pro XT, 2TB SX8200Pro, 2x16TB Ironwolf RAID0, Corsair HX1200, Antec Vortex 360 AIO, Thermaltake Versa H25 TG, Samsung 4K curved 49" TV, 23" secondary, Mountain Everest Max

Mobile SFF rig: i9-9900K, Noctua NH-L9i, Asrock Z390 Phantom ITX-AC, 32GB, GTX1070, 2x1TB SX8200Pro RAID0, 2x5TB 2.5" HDD RAID0, Athena 500W Flex (Noctua fan), Custom 4.7l 3D printed case

 

Asus Zenbook UM325UA, Ryzen 7 5700u, 16GB, 1TB, OLED

 

GPD Win 2

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Just now, Kilrah said:

Except it constantly breaks on the iOS side. When I use samba shares the iPad often fails to connect and needs to be rebooted to fix... 

IKR! I have already created a thread for that issue myself.. The issue I face is "0 items Read Only" being shown, and I think this is what you're talking about. I've observed that this usually occurs when you try to access the shares when the server/PC is down. So I usually avoid trying to accidentally connect when its down. And the only way I have found to solve this issue is by literally trying to reconnect to the shares like 30 times.

 

But when it works, its just really good. You don't have to save it to your device first, then move it to the shares. You don't have to use any third party apps. You can just directly throw it onto the shared folder. I usually have to scan documents with HP Smart(because why not) and have to save it to my server. Its just so much easier to directly put that file onto the shared folder rather than mailing it to yourself or methods alike.

"Coding skill isn’t about knowing how to make things; It’s about being able to find the right Stack Overflow code to copy paste."

 

bruh switch to dark mode its at the bottom of this page

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1 hour ago, RockSolid1106 said:

The issue I face is "0 items Read Only" being shown, and I think this is what you're talking about. I've observed that this usually occurs when you try to access the shares when the server/PC is down.

For me it's just showing an empty window, and there's nothing to force reconnect.

I haven't tried in a while becasue it was so broken, but maybe iOS updates have improved since. It seemed to be that if the server went down anytime after connecting it wouldn't reconnect without rebooting the iPad. The server is my main PC, which gets turned off at night, so if I one day connect the iPad to the share, turn the server off at night, the next day the iPad just won't reconnect.

 

Syncthing works fine though and I'm already using it on all my devices so no prob, if I want to transfer something I just throw it in a shared folder and it's there in seconds.

F@H
Desktop: i9-13900K, ASUS Z790-E, 64GB DDR5-6000 CL36, RTX3080, 2TB MP600 Pro XT, 2TB SX8200Pro, 2x16TB Ironwolf RAID0, Corsair HX1200, Antec Vortex 360 AIO, Thermaltake Versa H25 TG, Samsung 4K curved 49" TV, 23" secondary, Mountain Everest Max

Mobile SFF rig: i9-9900K, Noctua NH-L9i, Asrock Z390 Phantom ITX-AC, 32GB, GTX1070, 2x1TB SX8200Pro RAID0, 2x5TB 2.5" HDD RAID0, Athena 500W Flex (Noctua fan), Custom 4.7l 3D printed case

 

Asus Zenbook UM325UA, Ryzen 7 5700u, 16GB, 1TB, OLED

 

GPD Win 2

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 7/9/2021 at 11:01 AM, RockSolid1106 said:

The best way should be to create a shared folder on your PC, and then use the files app to connect to it. Doesn't require any additional software.

How you can do it:

First enable network discovery on your PC. Do so by searching for "sharing" in Windows Search. Then, in the window that opens, click on the "Private" drop down. Then make sure your settings look something like this:

image.png.a5d3248ec98d78b114ba16a7b86ce528.png


To create a shared folder on your PC, you could create a folder(or choose an existing one), right click it on it, Properties, then the sharing tab, and then click on share. Select or add your user, and give it the appropriate permissions(you should give read/write permission). 

Now, you will also need to know your IP address. To do this, open up Task Manager(Ctrl + Shift + Esc), the turn to the Performance tab, and on the left pane, select your network interface, and then you can see your IPv4 address on the right side.

 

Then in the files app on your iPad, click on the 3 dots, then click on "Connect to Server". Then in the field, enter "smb://<IP address>"
Then the credentials for the account you selected previously. 

You should now see the folder you just shared. Try adding some files in it from the PC, and they should reflect on the iPad.

Hope this helps you.

Bro, I finally came back into my account and saw the solutions that everyone provided. Thanks so much for the detailed explanation. I will be going your way in this matter! All the best.

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