About ADrop

Move a file, not your whole workflow

ADrop is a browser-based utility for sending files between nearby phones and computers. It is designed for the ordinary moment when a photo, video, document, or archive is on one device and needs to reach another without installing software, creating an account, or uploading it to cloud storage.

What makes ADrop different

Most cross-platform sharing tools ask every participant to install an application or place the file on a remote server first. ADrop works from a modern browser on Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, and Mac. Open the site on both devices, select the destination, choose the files, and let the receiver approve the transfer.

ADrop is intended for direct device-to-device transfer. The service uses a signaling server to show eligible devices and help their browsers negotiate a WebRTC connection. File bytes travel through the encrypted WebRTC data channel between the devices. They are not uploaded to, cached by, or downloaded from the ADrop application server.

Designed for local networks

Devices on the same Wi-Fi network are discovered automatically. A mobile hotspot also works and can be useful when a public or office network blocks communication between connected devices. A device may also be added with its full ID when automatic discovery is unavailable.

ADrop deliberately does not operate a TURN relay for file content. That keeps the server out of the data path, but it also means that a strict firewall, network address translation policy, VPN, or Wi-Fi client isolation can stop a direct connection. The interface reports a failed transfer instead of silently routing the file through a relay.

Practical limits

Transfer speed is determined primarily by the wireless network, signal strength, router load, browser, and devices—not by the ADrop web server. Both pages should remain open during a transfer. Mobile operating systems may suspend browser activity when the screen locks, so keeping the sender awake is important for large files.

Desktop Chromium browsers can save large incoming files directly to a location selected by the user when the browser exposes the required file-system capability. Other browsers may buffer data using browser-managed storage or memory before presenting a download, so their practical file-size limit depends on the device and browser.

Who writes and reviews this site

ADrop's maintainers write the product documentation and technical guides while developing the application. Articles are reviewed against the client and signaling implementation: connection claims are checked against the WebRTC configuration, storage claims against the receiver's actual fallback order, and privacy claims against the data passed through the signaling protocol.

We mark each technical guide with its review date and revise it when the relevant behavior changes. We do not publish generic articles on unrelated topics, paid rankings, or rewritten vendor material. The purpose of the guide library is to explain decisions users actually face when transferring files in a browser.

How to evaluate our claims

The architecture walkthrough separates signaling from file transport, the security model states what metadata remains visible, and the diagnostic guide maps failures to observable stages. We deliberately document limitations such as the lack of a TURN relay, mobile suspension, storage quotas, and the session-only boundary of resume rather than promising universal connectivity.