File manager
The file manager shows the parts of the device filesystem that a trusted computer is allowed to see, in a normal two-pane browser.
What you can reach
Section titled “What you can reach”| Area | Contains |
|---|---|
| User files | Documents exposed by apps that share them — the same set the Files app shows, plus media |
| App containers | An installed app’s own Documents, Library and tmp directories |
| System files | The readable parts of the system tree |
| Log files | Diagnostic and crash log directories, including entries the crash module surfaces separately |
What you can do
Section titled “What you can do”- Download a file or a whole directory to your computer.
- Upload a file from your computer into a writable location.
- Create and delete files and directories.
- Rename and move within the device.
All of it over the cable, with no jailbreak and nothing installed on the phone.
Why this is useful
Section titled “Why this is useful”Confirming what shipped. A config file that survived an upgrade, a feature flag cached from a previous session, a database that migrated wrong — none of these are visible from outside.
Retrieving a log your app wrote itself. Plenty of apps log to their own Documents directory. This is how you get that file without adding an export screen.
Seeding a test state. Upload a prepared database or fixture into the app’s container so a hard-to-reach state can be reproduced on demand.
Checking a download. An asset that arrives corrupt is much easier to diagnose when you can open the actual bytes.
App data is encrypted
Section titled “App data is encrypted”Files inside an application container are protected. Reading them as raw bytes gives you ciphertext. KeyMob can decrypt an app’s own data so that images, audio, video and configuration come out readable — see App data.
Limits, and why they exist
Section titled “Limits, and why they exist”- The device must be unlocked and trusted. Data protection classes mean some files are simply not readable while the device is locked, whatever the tool.
- What is visible is what the device exposes to a paired computer. KeyMob does not defeat platform protections to reach further, and there are parts of the system it therefore cannot show.
- Writing into system locations is generally not permitted, and attempting it is a good way to get a device into a state you will have to restore out of.
Handle other people’s data carefully
Section titled “Handle other people’s data carefully”An app container can contain messages, photos, location history and credentials. If the device is a tester’s or a customer’s, take the file you need and nothing else, and delete the copy when you are done. The user agreement is explicit that this tool is for devices you own or are authorized to examine.