RFile

RFile documentation

DIAGNOSE SAFELY

Check state, permission, and route before retrying.

Status: Production

Most connected-feature failures can be narrowed to one of four areas: an offline endpoint, missing authorization, an unapproved path, or a transfer/format limitation. Preserve the error text before retrying.

Transfers do not complete

  1. Open Transfers

    Read the exact failed, interrupted, paused, or waiting state instead of relying only on the file list.

  2. Check both locations

    Confirm that source and destination still exist, have sufficient permission and space, and are not blocked by another process.

  3. Review the engine

    Check the actual engine and fallback reason, not only the selected preference. Robocopy remains recommended for eligible folders. Review any retained partial output before deliberately starting another copy.

  4. Retry deliberately

    Resume only when the job offers a safe resume action. Otherwise begin a fresh copy after checking for partial destination data.

Google Drive is unavailable

  • Hidden until connected

    Open Settings > Storage connections > Connect Google Drive. A disconnected entry is intentionally absent from This PC and the sidebar; Refresh connection after returning from authorization.

  • Account

    Confirm that the desktop is signed in to the same RFile account used on rfile.app.

  • Device permission

    Enable Google Drive for this PC in the account controls.

  • Google authorization

    Reconnect the Google account or the desktop direct-transfer authorization when the token or scope is missing.

  • Rollout

    Google Drive remains Limited rollout, so availability can differ between accounts.

A paired computer is offline or cannot be browsed

  • Both apps

    Keep both RFile desktop apps running. Closing a window keeps RFile available only when close-to-background is enabled; tray Quit stops it completely.

  • Identity

    Confirm that the intended trusted device entry—not an older duplicate—is connected.

  • Permissions

    Enable Browse for that peer and grant it access to an active shared root.

  • Path

    Start from an approved root. Requests outside it are rejected even when the peer is online.

Trusted-device send actions are disabled or an offer is missing

  • Route

    Send files, Send folder, Send selection, and device-card drops require the trusted peer to be connected over the LAN. Offline and iroh-only entries are intentionally disabled.

  • Permissions

    Confirm Send on the sending computer and Receive on the exact recipient identity. Pair again only when the identity is genuinely stale or revoked.

  • Background state

    If the other person closed RFile, confirm it is still present in the notification area or reopen it. Choose Auto on the Nearby devices page if sharing should turn on whenever RFile launches.

  • Consent

    The Windows notification is informational. Open RFile's right-side offer card to Accept or Decline; filenames remain hidden until consent.

  • Destination

    Accepted content uses Downloads\RFile by default. If a custom destination is unavailable or no longer permitted, select an existing writable folder on the Nearby devices page.

rfile.app cannot open PC files

  • PC online

    The desktop must show an active account connection.

  • Approved location

    Set the fixed drive or custom folder to Read or Read & write in the desktop account page.

  • Browser session

    Refresh the authenticated dashboard and confirm it belongs to the account paired with the PC.

  • Operation level

    A read-only root cannot accept write, rename, move, create, or delete operations.

A preview has no picture or sound

Recognition of a container does not guarantee that every embedded codec is available. RFile uses locally bundled ArtPlayer to own the Windows/WebView HTML-media and decoder lifecycle first for reported-playable MP4, M4V, WebM, and MOV, falls forward once to compatible installed VLC after a decode error, and uses VLC directly for other eligible containers. RFile supplies the visible controls, and ArtPlayer does not replace VLC as a decoder. Try the file in a dedicated local player when metadata appears but neither path starts playback or audio is missing.

Open Settings > Plugins to check VLC status and whether Use VLC in Inspector is on. If trusted WinGet installation is available, review the package and license prompt before continuing; otherwise open VideoLAN's official Windows download page, install VLC separately, return to RFile, and choose Refresh. Turning the integration off does not uninstall VLC; system-wide removal has its own confirmation and a Windows Installed Apps fallback.

If the frame has unwanted side bars, choose Fill to center-crop it to the player. Fit intentionally shows the complete decoded frame, and Fill cannot guarantee removal of bars encoded inside the movie itself.

A cached poster can appear before an AV1, HDR, high-resolution, indexed, or otherwise difficult video produces its first decoded frame. That preparation time depends on the file, codec, VLC, storage, hardware, and drivers and is not evidence that RFile is scanning the whole file.

A CAD file needs a content-thumbnail provider registered with Windows by its CAD application unless that exchange format supports RFile's bounded text-source fallback. RFile reports an unavailable CAD preview instead of presenting a generic file-type icon as decoded geometry.

Very large, malformed, compressed, or unsupported content can fall back to metadata because previews are deliberately bounded. Compatible encrypted ZIP and 7z listings instead offer Unlock archive. A wrong password, unsupported method, or damaged encrypted data can still prevent opening; password-protected RAR is not supported. RFile should not allocate unbounded memory merely to render a preview.

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