Permissions

In short. DRL-FileSync asks only for what a feature needs to work, and each permission below says what it is for and what happens without it. We never ask for your location, contacts, microphone, messages, calls or calendar. You can take any permission back at any time. How we handle information is described in the Privacy Policy.

1. Android app: asked when needed

Android shows a pop-up for these. You can say no and use the rest of the app.

• Photos and videos (Android: READ_MEDIA_IMAGES and READ_MEDIA_VIDEO; on Android 12 and older, READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE).
  Why: to read the folders you choose so they can be backed up to your PC, and to show your phone's photos in the gallery.
  If you say no: nothing from the phone is backed up and the phone's own photos do not appear. You can still browse what is already on your PC.
• Camera (CAMERA).
  Why: only to scan the QR code that pairs the phone with a PC, or signs a new PC in. It is not used for anything else, and no picture is taken or kept.
  If you say no: you cannot scan a code. You can still sign in on the PC with your email and password.
• Notifications (POST_NOTIFICATIONS, Android 13 and newer).
  Why: to tell you that a backup finished or needs attention, and to show chat messages.
  If you say no: everything still works, you just do not see alerts.

2. Android app: given on install

Android grants these automatically. They do not give the app access to your personal data.

• Internet (INTERNET).
  Why: to reach the DRL-FileSync website (sign-in, pairing, introducing your phone to your PC) and your PC. Your photos and files go straight to your PC and not through the website.
• Foreground service and keep awake (FOREGROUND_SERVICE, FOREGROUND_SERVICE_REMOTE_MESSAGING, WAKE_LOCK).
  Why: a backup or the chat connection must not be cut off when the screen turns off. While this runs, Android shows a quiet notification. The always-on connection for notifications while the app is closed is a switch in the app's Settings.
• Start after the phone restarts (RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED).
  Why: so that, if you switched on notifications while the app is closed, the connection comes back after a restart without you opening the app.
• Set wallpaper (SET_WALLPAPER).
  Why: for the "Set as wallpaper" action when you view a photo. It is used only when you press it.

3. Android app: special access you choose

• Media management (MANAGE_MEDIA), allowed in Android Settings, Apps, Special app access, Media management apps. It is off until you turn it on.
  Why: so that moving a photo to the Bin, deleting it, or freeing space on the phone does not ask for confirmation on every single photo.
  If you do not allow it: Android asks you to confirm each time. Nothing else changes.

4. Android app: roles you can give it

These are not permissions. They make DRL-FileSync appear as a choice in Android, and they work only if you choose it:

• as your Gallery app, and as the app that opens photos and videos ("Open with");
• in the share sheet, to save a file from another app into your Drive on the PC;
• as a photo and file picker, so other apps can choose from the photos and files on your PC;
• as a cloud photo source for Android's Photo Picker (Android 13 and newer, only where the phone allows it).

When another app picks a file this way, Android gives that app access to that one file only.

5. Windows program

The Windows program installs and runs without administrator rights. It uses the following. In the Microsoft Store version the first four are declared in the app's package, so Windows lists them on the Store page.

• Runs as a normal desktop program (runFullTrust, Store version).
  Why: a desktop program that reads and writes folders of your choice, runs a small server for your phones, and has a tray icon cannot run inside Windows' restricted app sandbox. It touches only the working folder and the backup folders you set up, and the Drive folder inside them.
• Internet (internetClient).
  Why: to sign in and to reach the DRL-FileSync website, which introduces your phone to your PC when you are away from home.
• Incoming connections from your phone (internetClientServer, privateNetworkClientServer).
  Why: on your Wi-Fi your phone connects straight to your PC (port 47800), which is the fastest route. These connections must be verified with the keys created at pairing.
• Windows Firewall rule.
  Why: Windows blocks incoming connections unless allowed. If phones cannot reach your PC, the home screen offers a Fix button. Windows asks you to confirm (administrator approval) and then adds one rule that allows DRL-FileSync and its helper on that port only.
  If you decline: phones fall back to the slower internet route.
• Folders you choose.
  Why: the working folder is where photos and files from your phone are saved; backup folders on another drive are optional. DRL-FileSync does not scan the rest of your PC. When you click a file it opens in your normal Windows program for that file type.
• Start with Windows (off until you switch it on).
  Why: so your phone can back up without you opening the program. Switch it in the program's Settings, General. The Store version registers a start-up task that Windows lists under Settings, Apps, Startup.
• Wake-up helper (on by default, switch in Settings, Connection).
  Why: a tiny helper with no window. If you closed DRL-FileSync and your phone looks for your PC, it starts DRL-FileSync again in the background. It asks the website one short question about every 20 seconds. When nobody is signed in to DRL-FileSync on the PC, the helper is removed and does not run.
• Tray icon and background running.
  Why: closing the window keeps DRL-FileSync running in the system tray, so backups continue. "Quit" in the tray menu or Settings stops it completely. When nobody is signed in, closing the window quits.
• People who open a share link.
  Why: if you share photos as a link, the person who opens it connects straight to your PC (like your phone does when you are away from home) and can see only the photos you chose, until the link ends or you remove it. They cannot reach anything else on your PC. You can switch off downloads, add a passcode, and have location and phone details removed from downloaded photos.
  If you do not want this: do not make links. Nothing is shared unless you create a link, and you can remove a link in the app (Settings, Shared links).
• Notifications.
  Why: small messages from the tray icon, for example when a backup from your phone has finished.
• Wi-Fi network details, and Windows' location question.
  Why: the small badge on the home screen (for example "5 GHz") is read from Windows' Wi-Fi service, so DRL-FileSync can tell you when a slow Wi-Fi band will make uploads slow. Depending on your version of Windows, Windows treats the name and details of a Wi-Fi network as location information and asks for location permission before it shares them. DRL-FileSync does not read your location, GPS or any location service.
  If you say no: everything works, only the Wi-Fi band and speed hint is missing.

6. What we never ask for

• Your location on Android, and no location is stored anywhere.
• Contacts, calendar, phone calls, SMS or other messages.
• The microphone, or the camera for anything except scanning the pairing and sign-in QR codes.
• Accessibility services, device administrator rights, or the ability to draw over other apps.
• Access to the rest of your PC beyond the folders you chose.

7. Taking a permission back

• Android: Settings, Apps, DRL-FileSync, Permissions. For media management: Settings, Apps, Special app access, Media management apps.
• Windows: turn off Start with Windows and the wake-up helper in the program's Settings, remove the firewall rule in Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security (rule name starts with "DRL-FileSync"), and turn off location for DRL-FileSync in Windows Settings, Privacy and security, Location. The Store version's start-up tasks can also be switched off in Windows Settings, Apps, Startup.
• Unpair a phone or PC at any time from the app or your dashboard, which ends its access.

Questions about a permission? Write to thedrlintiative@gmail.com.

See also our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.