Connecting to a computer¶
Plugged into a computer with its USB-C cable, the phone charges, and the two are connected as a small network: you can copy files both ways, and a computer you allow can install updates and apps.
The USB connection¶
Swipe down from the top of the screen: the USB line of the quick settings says what the cable is doing.
| It says | It means |
|---|---|
| Not connected | Nothing is plugged in. |
| Charger only | A charger, or a computer that has not set up the connection yet. |
| Connected to a computer | A computer is connected. |
| Computer · Network and internet | Connected, and the computer shares its internet: the phone uses it when it has neither Wi-Fi nor mobile data. |
| Computer · File transfer | Connected, with file transfer on (see below). |
While a computer is connected, the status bar shows USB: dim for a moment while the two set up their connection, then lit. Settings › Network shows the connection's address under Connections.
The phone uses the computer's internet only when the computer shares it: from the firmware's
sources, just share-internet does, until the computer restarts.
Copying files¶
Photos, music, videos, books, notes and games go between the phone and a computer over the USB cable, as with an Android phone:
- Plug the phone into the computer.
- Swipe down from the top of the screen. The USB line says Connected to a computer, with at its end: tap the line.
- Tap File transfer. The check mark moves to it (the choices are dimmed for a moment while the phone switches), and the USB line says Computer · File transfer.
- On the computer, open PinePhone where phones and drives show up. It has a folder for each app's files, the same ones Files starts with (an app you install adds its own, as Genesis and Doom do):
| Folder | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Photos | Camera's photos and screenshots, what Gallery shows |
| Music | The songs Music plays |
| Videos | The videos Videos plays |
| Books | The books Books lists |
| Notes | Your notes in Notes, a Markdown file each (the first line is its title); a .md or .txt file copied in becomes a note |
| Memos | The voice memos Recorder made |
| Genesis | Once installed, the Genesis app's games (in roms), its Sega CD BIOS and saved games |
| Doom WADs | Once installed, the games Doom plays |
| Logs | The phone's logs, to read or attach to a problem report; they cannot be changed from the computer. See Debugging |
The rest of the phone, such as messages and Wi-Fi passwords, is not shared. Unlock the phone to turn file transfer on: it cannot be turned on from the lock screen. It turns off when you unplug the cable or tap Network only, and after the phone restarts.
Warning
Only checked with a Linux computer so far (GNOME's Files). Windows opens phones like this one in File Explorer; a Mac needs an app for it, such as OpenMTP.
Allowing a computer¶
A computer plugged into the phone's USB port can get full control of it, to install updates and apps or copy files, as Android's USB debugging does. The first time a computer asks, the phone shows Allow this computer? with the computer's name and the fingerprint of its key, the same one the computer prints. With the phone awake:
- Check that the fingerprint matches the one on the computer.
- Tap Allow, or Deny to refuse.
The phone remembers allowed computers, also when its software is updated, and does not ask again. A question left unanswered for a minute counts as Deny. Only computers on the USB cable can ask, not ones on a Wi-Fi network.
Warning
Allow only your own computers: an allowed computer can read and change everything on the phone. To take its access away, see Allowed computers.
Pasting text from the computer¶
An allowed computer can put text in the phone's clipboard, such as a Wi-Fi password or a key
too long to type: from the firmware's sources, just clipboard sends the computer's
clipboard, and the phone's keyboard then offers it under Paste.