Do you ever feel like you can’t control what’s on your computer? Like you can’t open files, or delete them without leaving a mess? If this is true for you, then you’re not alone. Millions of users experience problems with locking folders on their iPhones. In this post, we’ll show you how to lock a folder on your iPhone using the Finder. We’ll also show you how to get around the problem of losing files if you lose your iPhone.
Can You Lock A Folder On Your iPhone?
If you’re using an iPhone, you may have noticed that there’s no way to lock a folder on your iPhone. This is because Apple doesn’t include any options to lock folders in the iPhone’s native software.
How To Lock A Folder On Your iPhone
1. Open the Finder and click on the iPhone icon.
2. Select your iPhone, which will open up a new window.
3. Click on Applications in the left-hand column, and then click to select the folder you want to lock.
4. In the right-hand column, click on File and then select Get Info. Switch to the Sharing & Permissions tab; if you see a padlock icon next to your username, you have folder sharing enabled for that folder and can continue with step 5. If there is no padlock, skip stepping 6 to turn it on for just this folder (this is not a secure way of locking folders).
5. Click the padlock icon next to your username; enter your password when prompted, and then click OK. Now go back to step 4 and repeat this process for each other user account you want to be able to access that folder (you may need more than one padlock icon). When finished, quit out of System Preferences.
6. Double-click on the folder name in the right-hand column of the window (this will highlight it) and add an asterisk (*) after its name; do not edit anything else in this field or you may cause problems! For example: If you wanted only John Smith’s account allowed access here, his username would be jsmith, or if Jane Doe’s account was allowed access here her username would be jdoe. When finished editing this field, click the padlock icon next to the new username and enter your password; click OK when finished.
7. When you’re finished with all of your folder editings, select your iPhone in the left-hand column, then click on File and select Get Info. Switch to the Sharing & Permissions tab again, and if you see a padlock icon next to each user account listed there, you have folder sharing enabled for that folder and can continue with step 8. If there is no padlock for a user account listed, you must repeat steps 4–6 for that user account to enable it here.
8. Click the padlock icon next to each username listed in step 7; enter your password when prompted, and then click OK. Quit out of System Preferences when finished.
How To Get Files Out Of A Locked Folder On Your iPhone
If you lock a sensitive file on your iPhone but forget about it later, you may find yourself unable to access it because it’s locked! Here are some ways around this problem:
1. Log out of all users from your iPhone, then log back into the user account that originally locked it.
2. Go to Settings —> General —> Reset and tap Erase All Content and Settings. This will erase all data on your iPhone but will leave your data files (including the locked one) intact for you to copy back to your computer.
3. Jailbreak your iPhone using a tool like Spirit or RedSn0w, then install a file management tool like iFile from Cydia. iFile can be used to browse through your iPhone’s file system, which includes any files locked by other users.
4. If you don’t want to jailbreak, you can use a tool like PhoneView for Windows or iPhone Explorer for Mac to browse through your iPhone’s file system.
5. You can also mount your iPhone as a disk drive in Disk Mode using iTunes, then copy the files off your iPhone using Finder (Mac) or Explorer (Windows).
6. Finally, you can restore your iPhone as a new phone with iTunes, which will erase all of its data, but will not affect any files locked by other users.
7. If none of these methods work and you’re unable to access the locked file on your iPhone, try emailing it to yourself and then download it from your email account…but be sure to delete it from your email account afterward!
The Problem With Locked Folders On iPhones
1. If you’re going to use a folder to store sensitive information, don’t forget about it! If you lock a sensitive file on your iPhone but forget about it later, you may find yourself unable to access it because it’s locked!
2. If you’re going to use a folder to store sensitive information, make sure that you trust the other users who will have access to that folder. If someone else has access and they are not trustworthy, they could easily delete your files if they wanted!
3. All of the methods listed above for getting files out of a locked folder are either irreversible (jailbreak or restoring) or involve copying your data files off of your iPhone before erasing its contents (iTunes). Therefore, be very careful when deciding which folders should be shared with other users and how much information you want them to have access to.
4. Finally, if you’re going to use a folder to store sensitive information, make sure that you are storing the most sensitive files in the least accessible folder. For example, the fact that I have an “Expenses” folder containing expense reports is not very sensitive…but if I was storing my credit card numbers in that same folder, it would be more of a security risk!
5. If you’re going to use a folder to store information on your iPhone and don’t want other people accessing it, make sure that you lock it using the password protection feature built into iOS. This will prevent someone from accessing or deleting your files without knowing your password!
So…is locking folders on iPhones a good idea or not? It all depends on what you’re trying to do! Clearly, there are some risks involved with locking folders on iPhones…but if properly used they can be an extremely convenient way of sharing files between users.
How To Unlock A Folder On Your iPhone
1. If you have accidentally locked a folder on your iPhone, try to remember the name of the folder. Navigate to the file’s location (using the above methods) and see if you can see any files there.
2. If you can’t see any files in that folder, you may want to try restoring your iPhone and then sync it with iTunes again. This will sometimes clear up the problem!
3. If nothing else works, and you don’t mind erasing all of your data on your iPhone (including music, videos, and photos), try connecting it to iTunes and restoring it using iTunes’ “restore” feature. You’ll lose all of your current data but at least you’ll be able to access these locked folders again!
4. If none of these solutions work for you, you’re going to have to restore your iPhone or jailbreak it! You’ll lose all of your data but at least you’ll be able to access these locked folders again!
Conclusion
Locked folders on iPhones are a common problem, and there are a few ways to solve it. In this article, we will show you how to unlock a folder on your iPhone using the three methods mentioned earlier.
