GoodReader User Manual
How-Tos
How Do I ...
... transfer files to/from GoodReader?
... automatically sync files and folders to remote servers?
... delete a file that I no longer need?
... save a file from Safari to GoodReader?
... save an embedded HTML5 video from Safari to GoodReader?
... read my e-mail attachments in GoodReader?
... get files from WebDAV servers?
... get files from Google Drive?
... get files from FTP servers?
... get files from SFTP servers?
... get files from AFP servers (shared Mac folders, Apple Time Capsule, etc.)?
... get files from SMB servers (shared Windows folders, various NAS drives, etc.)?
... upload files (including annotated PDF files) back to a remote server?
... send an e-mail with files from GoodReader?
... stop GoodReader from putting default Subject and Message texts in my e-mails?
... transfer files from GoodReader on one device to GoodReader on another device?
... "un-sync" a synced file/folder?
How Do I ...
... show or hide navigation menu when viewing files?
... write a note on top of a PDF file? highlight or markup a PDF text? make a drawing on a PDF file?
... copy text from a PDF page to clipboard?
... find a particular annotation/highlight/markup in a large PDF file?
... delete an unwanted PDF highlight/markup?
... change a color of a PDF drawing (PDF annotation)?
... solve a problem when opening my PDF takes too long?
... solve a problem when I see some unreadable text instead of a real one in my TXT file?
... quickly enlarge the found text in a PDF file without hiding navigation menu?
... convert my Microsoft Office files to PDFs?
... print files from GoodReader?
How Do I ...
... open files to view in GoodReader from another application?
... export a file from GoodReader to another application?
How Do I ...
... clear all the history of search strings? visited web-sites?
... solve some other problem that is not listed here?
There are several ways to do that:
* - unavailable in "GoodReader for SECTOR" app
Please find the manual here.
Either swipe a file name from right to left, or use our File Management features.
If you browse the Web with Safari, and open a file that is of interest to you, there is a way of saving this file into GoodReader's internal local storage, so you will be able to view this file with GoodReader without loading it from the Internet every time (like it happens in Safari).
(for directions to save an embedded HTML5 video from Safari to GoodReader see this article)
To save a file from Safari to GoodReader:
If you plan to do this often, you can simplify this process substantially. In GoodReader's settings, General section, tap the button called Bookmark for files and webpages. Then go to Safari and create a new bookmark. Bookmarking absolutely any page will do. Name this bookmark, for example, Save to GoodReader. Then press the bookmark button, and then Edit. Select this new bookmark. Now Safari will let you modify an address of this bookmark. Delete the old address and paste the text from the pasteboard (GoodReader has prepared this special text for you). Save the modified bookmark address. Selecting this bookmark when a page of interest is opened is the same as adding the g letter in front of this page's address.
Please note that this technique doesn't always work with secure servers. If it doesn't, then try browsing for this file in GoodReader's built-in web-browser, rather than in Safari.
There's an easy way to save an embedded HTML5 video currently opened in Safari. You have to create a special bookmark in Safari first. Later, when you'll have a webpage with an embedded HTML5 video opened in Safari, you can simply select this special bookmark, and the video file will be downloaded to GoodReader. To create this special bookmark, open GoodReader's settings, General section, and tap the button called Bookmark for video. Then go to Safari and create a new bookmark. Bookmarking absolutely any page will do. Name this bookmark, for example, Save video to GoodReader. Then press the bookmark button, and then Edit. Select this new bookmark. Now Safari will let you modify an address of this bookmark. Delete the old address and paste the text from the pasteboard (GoodReader has prepared this special text for you). Save the modified bookmark address.
There are two ways to get your E-Mail file attachments into GoodReader - by using Apple's Document Interchange feature (you can use this feature to copy Apple's Mail app attachments into GoodReader by selecting GoodReader in the Open In... menu of the Mail app) or accessing online E-Mail servers via IMAP or POP3 protocol directly from GoodReader to find a message with a file attachment and to download such attachment into GoodReader.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to WebDAV servers. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to Dropbox. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to OneDrive. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to Google Drive. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to SugarSync. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to FTP servers. See the Connect to Servers Manual. Please note that FTP protocol is insecure. Use SFTP access for confidential documents.
* - unavailable in "GoodReader for SECTOR" app
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to SFTP servers. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to AFP servers. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
You can use Connect to Servers feature to connect to SMB servers. See the Connect to Servers Manual.
Do what you usually do to connect to a remote server, and then use the Upload button at the bottom of a connection window.
Use our File Management features to send e-mails, and also to do other things like copying/moving/deleting/renaming files and folders and creating new folders.
Open Application Settings, General Settings section, turn the Fill subject and message option off.

You can restrict the access to the built-in web browser by setting a password for it in application settings, Security Settings section.
If you wish to stop syncing a local file or a folder, you have to delete the corresponding sync record. Open the Connect control panel, find the sync record you wish to delete and use the Trash mini-button.
Use the "back" button in navigation menu.
To show or hide the navigation menu and the button bar when viewing files you have to quickly tap in the middle of the screen.
There's a very special case with PDF files, when tapping in the middle of the screen is not desirable. For example, the middle of the screen can be occupied by a big PDF Link, which will take you to a very different place if you tap it. For cases like this we have provided another way to turn the navigation menu on/off - a quick tap with three fingers anywhere on the screen.
All of these features are a part of PDF Annotations.
Use two main gestures use to work with annotations - quick single tap, and tap & hold. Depending on where you tap (on a text, on an existing annotation, or on a free space on a page), different menus will be presented to you.
To edit or delete an existing annotation, tap it briefly, or tap and hold it for a while. Two special cases to note: text note popups and highlights/markups. When you tap a text note, a default action (opening a note) is invoked right away. To access more options (deletion, color adjustment, etc.), tap and hold it for a while. On the contrary, when you tap and hold a highlight/markup, you activate a default action - text selection, which is more natural for an underlying text. To access special options for a highlight (deletion, color adjustment, etc.), you have to tap it briefly.
Just memorize the following very simple rule - one of two gestures (quick tap or tap & hold) should always work. If one of them doesn't, try another.
To copy a piece of text from a PDF page you have to select it first. To activate text selection mode tap on a text and hold your finger for a while.
You can see a summary of all annotations in a file by opening Locations window with this button:
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Also you can send this summary via email, or print it via AirPrint with the Actions button:
Tap a highlight/markup briefly to see the menu with available actions. There you will find the Delete button.
Tap a drawing (PDF annotation) briefly to see the menu with available actions. The newly selected color will become a default one, and will be used for all subsequent drawings that you will create.
Use pinching/panning with two fingers for zooming/panning.
This is actually a Troubleshooting topic, so the solution is discussed here.
This is actually a Troubleshooting topic, so the solution is discussed here.
You have to select proper Text Encoding in Application Settings. Read more here.
Double-tap somewhere near found text. Double-tapping not just zooms in, but it also brings the double-tapped point to the center of the screen.
On Mac computers PDF support is a part of operating system. PDF creation is available via any Print menu.
On PC computers, if you have Adobe Acrobat (not "Reader"!) software, you use either special MS Office add-ons automatically installed by Acrobat, or you print to a special Adobe PDF printer, also installed by Acrobat.
On PC computers, if you don't have Adobe Acrobat software, you can use Microsoft Office add-in by Microsoft. Go to http://www.microsoft.com/download and enter microsoft office save as pdf in a search string. This will lead you to a download page of the 2007 Microsoft Office Add-in: Microsoft Save as PDF.
GoodReader supports AirPrint capabilities of iOS for wireless printing (AirPrint-enabled printer is required). To print a file, open it and use the Actions button:
It depends on what you mean by that:
If that other application supports Apple's Document Interchange feature, then use the Open In... button on the Manage Files control panel. The Open In... action can also be found under the Actions button when you have the file opened in GoodReader:
Select a piece of text in that other app, copy it to the system clipboard, then go to GoodReader and use the New TXT button (a part of File Management functionality). A new empty TXT file will be created in editing mode. Paste your text and save a new TXT file.
GoodReader takes advantage of iOS's Data Protection API, which encrypts your files to keep your data confidential, even if your device gets lost or stolen. However, this feature requires performing special procedures, and also some limitations apply. Please be absolutely sure to read the Data Protection manual, if you want to use this feature.
Open Application Settings, General Settings section, press the Clear History button.
Use our friendly and experienced customer support service. Please make sure that your spam-filters will not block mail from goodreader.com mail domain.