How to use the inbuilt File Explorer in Samsung phones?

Most Samsung Galaxy phones offer the versatile My Files app, an in-built file explorer application. With My Files, users can easily access and manage photos, videos, documents, audio recordings, and downloaded files residing on their smartphones from one place. In addition to file management, My Files allows them to free up their device’s memory by moving files to an external memory card or cloud service in the event of a storage deficiency.

It is a free-to-use app that can be located in the phone’s apps list or under the “Samsung” app folder.

The article's next section provides a complete guide to using Samsung’s versatile file management application, letting users utilize its features to their advantage.

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How you can use Samsung’s in-built file manager or the My Files app

Before handling files via the My Files application, users must make sure that their device’s software is up-to-date. Go to Settings > Software Update to check for available updates and download and install any pending ones.

Now, open the My Files app to start accessing the files on a Samsung phone. For starters, users can access all the downloaded files from under Categories > Downloads. Note that all downloaded content may not be available in this space.

For example, videos on Netflix and YouTube that are downloaded for offline viewing will not be accessible from the in-built file explorer; such content is available within the streaming app’s “Downloaded videos” section.

Under Categories, users can also find other sections of the phone’s internal storage, including folders for pictures, videos, audio, app installation files, compressed files, and more. There’s also a “Recent files” section where all the recently downloaded or created files are displayed.

In addition to internal storage, My Files also allows users to access files on Samsung’s Cloud Storage and other cloud services.

File management also involves deleting outdated files to free up space. To delete files via Samsung’s My Files app, simply tap and hold the file/folder and then choose Delete from the options in the bottom section of the screen.

Deleted files will be transferred to the Trash folder, where they will stay for 30 days before being permanently removed from the device.

One can move their files from the internal storage to an SD card (if a slot is available on the device) or PC from the My Files app itself. Follow these steps to send files to an SD card:

1. In the My Files app, locate the file/folder that needs to be moved to an SD card.
2. Touch and hold the file and select Move. One can also choose Copy to simply copy the file/folder to a new location instead of deleting it.
3. Return to the main page of My Files and select the SD Card option.
4. Here, go to the folder where the file/folder needs to be moved and then select Move here.

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One can also use their PC to explore and move files on a Samsung device. All they have to do is connect their phone to a computer using a USB cable and select Transferring files / Android Auto on their phone when prompted.