# Mobile access

> Open your private folders from your phone or tablet with the DooFiles app: turn it on, connect a device with a QR code, view, play, download and upload files, see the Space totals and the integrity check, and disconnect a device.

Source: https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/mobile-access

---

## Overview

Mobile access lets you open your private folders from your phone or tablet, with the DooFiles app at [connect.doofiles.com](https://connect.doofiles.com). You connect the device once with a QR code from **DooFiles › Settings**, and from then on you can:

- browse your private folders, as a list or as a grid with thumbnails;
- view photos, play videos and music, and download any file;
- upload photos, videos and other files from the device;
- see the totals of the Space view and the result of the last integrity check.

The app is a web app: it runs in the browser of your device, and you can add it to your home screen like any other app. Your files go straight from your site to your device. They never pass through Doothemes, and the app keeps no copies of them.

:::info
Mobile access needs DooFiles 1.0.13 or newer, an active license, and a site that uses HTTPS. It is off until an administrator turns it on.
:::

## What you need

- **DooFiles 1.0.13 or newer**, with an active license.
- **HTTPS on your site.** The app only connects to sites with a secure address.
- **An administrator account.** Only administrators who can use DooFiles can connect a device.
- **At least one private folder with you on its list.** The app only opens private folders, and only the ones you can open in the file manager. See [Private folders](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/security/private-folders).
- **A phone or tablet** with an up-to-date browser: Chrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox or Samsung Internet.

## Turn it on

An administrator turns on Mobile access once for the whole site.

1. Go to **DooFiles › Settings** and open the **Mobile access** card.
2. Under **For the whole site**, turn on **Let devices connect**.
3. Change the limits if you want, and click **Save changes**. DooFiles asks for your password.

| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| **Let devices connect** | Lets administrators connect their devices. Turning it off stops every connected device right away | Off |
| **Devices per administrator** | How many devices each administrator can connect. 0 means no limit | 5 |
| **Days a device stays connected without use** | A device that is not used for this long is disconnected by itself. 0 means never | 30 |

[SCREENSHOT_HERE: DooFiles › Settings › Mobile access, the card with Your devices and For the whole site]

## Connect a device

1. On a computer, go to **DooFiles › Settings › Mobile access**.
2. Under **Connect a device**, click **Connect**. DooFiles asks for your password, and for your 6-digit code if you use a [second factor](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/security/second-factor).
3. A QR code appears. The code works once and expires in 5 minutes.
4. Scan the code with the camera of your phone or tablet. It opens the DooFiles app at connect.doofiles.com.
5. The app shows the address of your site. Check that it is yours, give the device a name, such as *Work phone*, and tap **Connect**.

:::note
Anyone who scans the code gets to your private folders. Do not share it, and do not show it on a video call.
:::

**Check that it works:** the app opens your private folders, and the device appears under **Your devices** in the card, with the date it was connected. The activity log shows *Connected a device*.

[SCREENSHOT_HERE: the Connect dialog with the QR code and the countdown]

### On iPhone and iPad

On iPhone and iPad, an app added to the home screen keeps its data apart from Safari. If you connect a site in Safari, it does not appear in the installed app. Install the app first (see [Install the app](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/mobile-access#install-the-app)), open it from the home screen, and tap **Scan a code** to scan the QR code from inside the app.

### Connect more sites

The app can open several sites with DooFiles. To add one, open the app, go to **Device** and tap **Connect another site**, or tap the scan button in **Your sites**. Each site has its own connection, and you disconnect each one apart.

## Use the app

The app has five buttons at the bottom:

| Button | What it opens |
|---|---|
| **Files** | Your private folders and what is inside them. Tap a folder to open it, and the back arrow to go up |
| **Space** | How much the site takes and its breakdown by type of file, from the last full scan |
| **Upload** (in the middle) | Uploads files to the folder you have open. Outside a folder it is grayed out |
| **Integrity** | The result of the last integrity check: WordPress and each plugin, and the files that do not match |
| **Device** | This device: its name, since when it is connected, your sites, connecting another site, installing the app and disconnecting it |

[SCREENSHOT_HERE: the app, a private folder in grid view with the five buttons at the bottom]

### Browse your folders

- **List or grid:** the button at the top switches between a list with the size and date of each file and a grid of thumbnails.
- **Refresh:** pull the list down.
- **Thumbnails:** photos, videos and music with a cover show a thumbnail, like in the file manager. See [Thumbnails](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/settings/thumbnails).
- **The bars** at the top and the bottom slide away while you scroll down, and come back when you scroll up.

### View, play and download

- **Photos, videos and music** open in the viewer. Pinch or double-tap a photo to zoom, swipe to the side for the next file, and swipe down or tap **×** to close. Videos and music play with the same player as the media viewer of DooFiles, with the [cinematic lighting](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/files/media-viewer#cinematic-lighting) around them.
- **PDF files** open in the browser of the device.
- **Other files** show their name and size, with **Download**.
- **Download** in the viewer saves the file on the device.

If your device cannot play a video or show a photo, such as some MKV videos on iPhone or HEIC photos on Android, the viewer says so and offers to download it.

### Upload

1. Open the folder where the files go.
2. Tap **Upload**, in the middle of the bottom bar.
3. Choose photos, videos or other files. On most phones you can also take a photo or record a video right away.

The panel at the bottom shows each file and its progress. Keep the app open until the uploads finish: the screen stays on while they run, and a locked phone stops them. A file with the same name as one already in the folder is saved with a number, such as *photo (1).jpg*. Nothing is ever replaced.

### Space and Integrity

**Space** and **Integrity** only show what the last scan found. They never start a scan. To scan again, use **Scan now** in the Space view of DooFiles, on a computer. Space shows the totals and the breakdown by type, but not the names of your folders or files. See [Space](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/views/space) and [File integrity](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/security/file-integrity).

### Language

The app uses the language of your device, in any of the [languages of DooFiles](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/translations). Otherwise, it shows English.

## Install the app

- **Android:** tap **Install app** in the app, or **Add to home screen** in the menu of your browser.
- **iPhone and iPad:** in Safari, tap **Share**, then **Add to Home Screen**. Install it before you connect a site.

The installed app opens full screen, like any other app. On a computer, connect.doofiles.com only explains how to open it on your phone.

## Disconnect a device

- **From the device:** open **Device** and tap **Disconnect this device**.
- **From DooFiles:** in **DooFiles › Settings › Mobile access**, click **Disconnect** next to the device, or **Disconnect all** to disconnect every device of your account.

A disconnected device stops opening your files right away, even a video that is playing. To use it again, connect it with a new code.

DooFiles also disconnects devices by itself:

- **after the days without use** set in **Days a device stays connected without use**;
- **when you change your password:** every device of your account;
- **when an administrator can no longer use DooFiles**, or Mobile access is turned off for the site.

:::note
If you lose your phone or tablet, click **Disconnect all**, or change your WordPress password.
:::

## What a connected device can do

| A connected device can | A connected device cannot |
|---|---|
| Open the private folders that have you on their list | Open any other folder of your site |
| View, play and download their files | Rename, move or delete files |
| Upload files to them | Upload PHP files or server files such as `.htaccess`, or replace a file |
| See the totals of the Space view and the last integrity check | Start a scan, change settings or open the file manager |

Each device has its own key. Connecting a device asks for your password and, if you use one, your second factor, so a device does not ask for them again. The app opens each file with a link that expires after 4 hours.

## In the activity log

Every connection is recorded in the [activity log](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/views/activity), with the name of the device:

| Entry | When |
|---|---|
| **Made a code to connect a device** | Someone clicked **Connect** and confirmed their password |
| **Connected a device** | A device scanned the code and connected |
| **Disconnected a device** | A device was disconnected, from the app, from Settings or by DooFiles |
| **A device tried to open a file** | A device asked for something outside its private folders. Shown as **Blocked** |

## Troubleshooting

| Problem | What to do |
|---|---|
| The card says *Devices cannot connect yet* | Turn on **Let devices connect** below it, and click **Save changes** |
| *You already have 5 devices connected. Disconnect one first.* | Disconnect a device you no longer use, or raise **Devices per administrator** |
| *This code expired. Close this and make a new one.* | The code lasts 5 minutes. Close the dialog and click **Connect** again |
| The app says *This code expired or was already used* | Each code works once. Make a new one in **DooFiles › Settings** |
| The app says *Mobile access is off on this site* | An administrator has to turn on **Let devices connect** in **DooFiles › Settings › Mobile access** |
| The app says *Could not reach the site. Check your connection.* | Check that the device is online and that your site uses HTTPS. A security plugin or a firewall can block the REST API of WordPress (the addresses with `/wp-json/`): allow it for the app at connect.doofiles.com |
| The app says *This is not a DooFiles code.* | Scan the QR code from **DooFiles › Settings › Mobile access** |
| The app shows *No private folders* | You are not on the list of any private folder. Make a folder private, or ask an administrator to add you, with **Who can open it…** |
| The app says *This device was disconnected* | The site no longer accepts this device: someone disconnected it, the password changed, or it went unused for too long. Connect it again with a new code |
| *Too many failed attempts. Wait a few minutes and try again.* | After several wrong codes from the same network, DooFiles waits 10 minutes. Wait and try again |
| *This device cannot upload PHP or server files.* | The app never uploads them. Upload them from DooFiles on a computer, where they ask for your password |
| The uploads stop when the phone locks | Keep the app open until they finish |
| On iPhone, the site you connected does not appear in the installed app | You connected it in Safari. Open the installed app and connect it again with **Scan a code** |

Need more help? [Open a support ticket](https://doothemes.com/account/tickets/new).

## For developers

Mobile access has a constant and four filters. A constant in `wp-config.php` or a filter wins over the setting of the page, and the setting shows as locked. See [Filters and constants](https://doothemes.com/docs/doofiles/developers/filters-and-constants).

| Constant or filter | What it does |
|---|---|
| `DOOFILES_MOBILE` | `true` or `false` turns Mobile access on or off |
| `doofiles_mobile` | Return `true` or `false` to turn Mobile access on or off |
| `doofiles_mobile_devices` | Devices each administrator can connect. 0 means no limit |
| `doofiles_mobile_days` | Days a device stays connected without use. 0 means never |
| `doofiles_connect_origin` | The address of the app. Only an `https://` address is accepted; anything else is ignored |

```php
// Keep Mobile access off on this site, whatever Settings says.
add_filter('doofiles_mobile', '__return_false');

// Let each administrator connect up to 2 devices, and disconnect them after a week without use.
add_filter('doofiles_mobile_devices', fn() => 2);
add_filter('doofiles_mobile_days', fn() => 7);
```