[SOLVED] reliable wifi file transfer to and from PC and Android

[bwallx]

I have tried many options for simple file transfer on wifi, none seem consistent or easy to use. Some are paid for but I need free and am happy to have ads.

My issues are always the connection. Most use a SQR Code but it rarely works. My PC is connected to a router on ethernet and the mobile is connected to the same router on wifi and that works fine. So both the pc and mobile are on the same network.

I've tried ShareIt, Droid, Feem? and others. There seems to be an inherent problem with wifi connections. None are intuitive or user friendly. And I'm considered a well experience computer guy, web developer and support person!

Can anyone suggest a method or software that actually works please?

Win 10 64, 16Gb RAM, SSD, Android 9

 

[lvt]

Old school methods that work include OTG USB Drive, cloud storage, FPT...

If you want to transfer the files over Wi-Fi reliably, you must use a router with a built-in storage, some have a SD card slot, some have an USB ports, the router can store the files and make them available over the whole network.

 

[Alabalcho]

Have you tried "native" access - sharing a folder on your PC, and connecting to that folder on Android? Most modern Android versions have native support for SMB protocol, and third-party file managers support it as well.

 

[bwallx]

Ah, thank you, so as I thought, not a simple problem! It should be simple in theory! Thanks.

 

[dwd999]

Sorry I missed this thread earlier. I use an app called File Manager Plus which is listed on the Google Play store site. It includes an FTP mode which makes your phone look like a file server that you can move files to and from. Once the FTP is set up on my phone, I use an icon on my desktop that contains the entry to start Windows Explorer:

C:\Windows\explorer.exe ftp://[web address of phone]/device/

which takes me directly from the icon on my desktop to the storage directory on my phone. Then I can copy files directly to or from the phone to whatever folder I'm using on my desktop computer. This has always worked and never failed me. The best thing for me is that it avoids the 4GB file size limitation that I would have to deal with if I were using USBs to move large files from computer to phone.

 

[lvt]

The best thing for me is that it avoids the 4GB file size limitation that I would have to deal with if I were using USBs to move large files from computer to phone.

Only when your USB flash is formatted in FAT32, you should be able to copy files larger than 4GB on USB if you previously formatted it to ExFAT or NTFS.

 

[dwd999]

Only when your USB flash is formatted in FAT32, you should be able to copy files larger than 4GB on USB if you previously formatted it to ExFAT or NTFS.

It depends on your phone and version of Android. On my Pixel 4a Android 11 whenever I insert a USB the phone demands that it be allowed to format the USB to Fat 32, so it doesn't give me a choice. But at least it supports USBs with large volumes, though the largest I've gone is 1TB. (Thinking back, maybe I just need to ignore the phone's demand that it fix the usb, have to double check that).

OK, I went back and checked and the Pixel 4a won't let me ignore its demand to reformat and definitely refuses to recognize a USB formatted as NTFS. But I don't know if that's because its partitioned as GPT so maybe I'll try a different partition format. This is obviously a serious limitation on Android's part although we don't know if its because of patent, trademark or other proprietary restrictions. Anyway its irrelevant to me as I always transfer files using the method described above.

 

[lvt]

It depends on your phone and version of Android. On my Pixel 4a Android 11 whenever I insert a USB the phone demands that it be allowed to format the USB to Fat 32, so it doesn't give me a choice. But at least it supports USBs with large volumes, though the largest I've gone is 1TB. (Thinking back, maybe I just need to ignore the phone's demand that it fix the usb, have to double check that).

OK, I went back and checked and the Pixel 4a won't let me ignore its demand to reformat and definitely refuses to recognize a USB formatted as NTFS. But I don't know if that's because its partitioned as GPT so maybe I'll try a different partition format. This is obviously a serious limitation on Android's part although we don't know if its because of patent, trademark or other proprietary restrictions. Anyway its irrelevant to me as I always transfer files using the method described above.

Unless you still use a very old Android version, you should be able to use an USB flash formatted in NTFS via OTG.

Some Android files managers also have a format function that can format your USB to NTFS.

 

[dwd999]

I guess we can congratulate ourselves on discovering an undocumented shortcoming in the Android 11 that Google installs on its Pixel 4a phones. They will allow one and only one format for external drives through the USB C port. I guess that's OK for a $216 entry level phone that was pretty much obsolete when it was shipped. Maybe they'll change it with the release of Android 12 and the Pixel 6 when they return to the office next year. But I don't care since I'm a senior citizen who only uses the phone to receive calls from doctors! HAHA on you, Google.