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Why can't I access 3rd party cloud services (OneDrive, Google Drive, etc.) in iOS apps?
- Thread starter Oneechan69
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it is in the Taio manual:
Are there file services other than iCloud?
Taio currently supports iCloud Drive, and we are considering adding services like OneDrive or other commonly used cloud storage services. In addition, a WebDAV based file transfer method is also planned.
@Slartibart Well I notice it in other apps too, Like A-shell when I write pickFolder in the app. I noticed this happens in all 3rd part iOS apps so I don't think it has to do with Taio in particular. What do you think?
This clearly depends on the individual app. I have no problems to access the file space of other apps (here from Carnets, another program from the a-shell developer; and no, I do not use the Dropbox or OneDrive apps, if needed, I access these - as others like Amazon S3 etc. - via e.g. FileBrowser Pro):
Did you contact the developer, ask in the a-shell discussion forum, or report an issue?
Did you contact the developer, ask in the a-shell discussion forum, or report an issue?
What they said. The app simply does not support other cloud services. Just because a cloud service is install on a device does not equate to all apps can access said service.
For example, the app developer would need to download the Dropbox SDK for Objective-C and develop the interface between the two.
github.com
And another example, Readdle Documents can access some but not all my cloud accounts (looks like they don't do OneDrive).
For example, the app developer would need to download the Dropbox SDK for Objective-C and develop the interface between the two.
dropbox-sdk-obj-c/README.md at master · dropbox/dropbox-sdk-obj-c
Official Objective-C SDK for the Dropbox API v2. Contribute to dropbox/dropbox-sdk-obj-c development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
And another example, Readdle Documents can access some but not all my cloud accounts (looks like they don't do OneDrive).
I just wanted to make my point that there weren't any iOS I've seen that supported 3rd party cloud storage like A-Shell. I installed A-Shell and I can in fact access OneDrive files. It doesn't make sense that an app would have to support it, shouldn't this be a thing baked into iOS, where the OS presents the storage to apps?
Disclaimer: I might not understand the above correctly -
there are the system frameworks/APIs provided by Apple; the developer of an app can decide wether they implement any of them in their app. They might choose not to.
Actually this holds for e.g…. any system provided function/underlying framework. Talking iOS/iPadOS: Want to allow access from other apps to the file space of your app? Well, you, as a developer, has to/can use the system provided File Provider framework. Want to develop a driver (USB, HID, networking, et cetera) which runs in the user space? You can use the DriverKit framework (and the extensions to the API) provided by the system. And so on…
But in any case it has to be implemented into your and - in the context of this thread - the other app. Of course it has to be supported.
That an app shows up under »Locations« in the iOS/iPadOS sidebar does not mean that its file space can be access from any other app which implements the sidebar.
(Just for the protocol: additionally if an app supports access to it‘s file space, you will have to authorize it for the other app - AFAIK from a users point of view this means the apps have to run and then any authorized access within them is indeed available.)
I knew the general idea, I just wish that whenever an app does ask for files or folders to open, that iOS allows opening them from anywhere. If privacy or security is a concern, then it would just be the users, since iOS would only give access to the chosen file(s) or folder(s) in the picker. If necessary, iOS could ask for permission to access 3rd party cloud services and directories.
That would be the sidebar on iOS/iPadOS - still the 3rd party developer has to implement/support additional things like e.g. the protocol they use to access data.
But the general mechanism is already available - via Apple’s Files. The 3rd party can support it, if they choose to.
And for that the 3rd party service additionally has to grant/implement/support the use of the their protocol. I mean if you want to access an ftp-server, the ftp protocol must be implemented… dropbox, onedrive, S3, the list goes on and on - it is not just „grant permission“.
The iOS/iPadOS implementation actually seems quite elegant to me - 3rd party app handles all protocol-related things and access within (nicely integrated with keychain) and - if the developer chooses to do so - integrates with Apple’s Files to allow access to their file space without compromising security. A continuous consistent file space accessible from a single, shielded point - and the user does not to bother with file systems, et cetera.
But I get it, it would be nice if there were broader support for that. And as I wrote, IMHO it is currently quite elegant - Apple has room to improve here... as well as in other areas in iOS/iPadOS. 🤓
If only they wouldn’t do it at a seemingly glacial pace… 🤣😂🤪
Besides that, my recommendations is contact the developers - in my experience (YMMV) many are very nice and extremely helpful to get things related to their programs done.