Offline access and the app shell
VNCfiles is an installable web app, and once it has loaded once it can open again without a connection. There are two different kinds of “offline”, and it helps to keep them apart:
- The app shell - the interface itself (the pages, styles and scripts). The app caches this automatically.
- File contents - the actual bytes of a file. These are offline only for the files you choose to keep, or mirror, on the device.
The app shell (the interface)
Section titled “The app shell (the interface)”After your first visit, VNCfiles caches its app shell. Return to the app with no connection (or a dropped one) and it still renders - you are not stuck on a browser error. Static parts of the app (styles, scripts, fonts, icons) are served instantly from the cache and refreshed in the background when you are online. If nothing has ever been cached yet, you see a small “You’re offline” page with a Try again button, and it reconnects automatically.
Authenticated data - your file list, search results, and the account routes - is never cached by the shell; that is why you may see the interface but not all of its contents until you are back online.
Install VNCfiles to get the best offline experience - see Install VNCfiles as an app.
File contents (the bytes)
Section titled “File contents (the bytes)”For the files themselves, offline access is a per-item choice:
- Keep offline a file or folder to cache it on the device - it shows as Offline · cached and can be opened without a connection.
- A sync space keeps a whole folder in step across your devices.
- Storage settings decide the default policy (all / pinned-only / none).
Edits you make offline queue and replay the moment you reconnect; a change made elsewhere also reaches you then. Full detail - auto sync, the Sync console, per-device policy and conflict handling - is in Offline and sync.
Desktop
Section titled “Desktop”The desktop client adds a local copy and background sync, so files can live on the computer as well as the server. Its sign-in is described in Sign in and sign out; the offline sign-in and sync model is the one above.
In short
Section titled “In short”| You want | What to use |
|---|---|
| The app to open with no connection | The installed app / app shell (automatic). |
| A file to be readable offline | Keep offline on the file or folder, or a sync space. |
| Edits to survive a lost connection | Type normally - writes queue and replay. |
| To free up local space | Free up space / the Storage policy. |