macOS Access iPad files from a Mac

[waggers]

I want to write a simple program to run on a Mac that can access files on an iPad connected via USB. Any pointers to information how I would go about this would be appreciated.
Do I need to use iOS SDK? Does any software need be installed on the iPad to do this?

Waggers

Hope I've posted in the correct forum

 

[jnoxx]

Hmmm, Connected via USB. Impossible, unless it's jailbroken, and then it's out of my league, since I do native only.

 

[waggers]

How does DiskAid manage it? And iTunes come to that...

Waggers

 

[jiminaus]

How does DiskAid manage it? And iTunes come to that...

iTunes can do it because Apple knows the wire protocol. Perhaps the creators of DiskAid know it too. But that wire protocol is not general knowledge. Nor is there any API in the iOS SDK that allows this.

 

[jnoxx]

You can acces your files of a special application, within his sandbox, for example, you call your app AWESOMEAPP.
And you do all the programming to acces the files within the app.
Then in Itunes, you can put files in there or get them off, but only within your sandbox.
If they do something else --> hypocricy of Apple, allowing stuff that normal developers don't, which is very rare.
So, be sure what you are saying OR try to explain a tad better.

 

[waggers]

You can acces your files of a special application, within his sandbox, for example, you call your app AWESOMEAPP.
And you do all the programming to acces the files within the app.

Specifically yes, they're the only files I wish to access from my Mac. Is there any documentation as to how one does this?

Since my first post I've also found Macroplant's Phone Disk which almost does what I need - it even allows access to the iPad in Terminal. Unfortunately with both Phone Disk & DiskAid the timestamp gets reset when copying files from the Mac->iPad (though it doesn't in the other direction) even using Unix cp -p. iTunes doesn't change the timestamp, but then I can't easily put the files where I want them with iTunes.
More specifically, I just want to sync files between iPad-Mac, which is difficult if the timestamp gets altered.

Waggers

 

[jnoxx]

Sorry, that's out of my league, haven't encountered anything like this before, so cannot provide you reliable information, you will have to wait for the others to answer.

 

[waggers]

Ok, thanks

Waggers

 

[kainjow]

Specifically yes, they're the only files I wish to access from my Mac. Is there any documentation as to how one does this?

No. Apps that do this are either using Apple's private APIs that iTunes uses, or they've reverse engineered the protocol and are talking to the device themselves.

More specifically, I just want to sync files between iPad-Mac, which is difficult if the timestamp gets altered.

Dropbox?