File Attachments

Attach files to a task, project or area to keep the material you need alongside your work — a PDF to review, a receipt to file, or a brief for a project. Sonto stores a copy of each file, so attaching it doesn’t move the original.

​

Where it lives

Use the task, project or area’s … menu to add your first attachment. Once you’ve attached a file, a paperclip with a file count appears while editing the task, or in the project or area’s header. Open it to see the files and their controls.

​

Files and controls

Each file can be up to 10 MB. The limit also applies to photos and videos. If you select several files and some are too large, Sonto attaches the ones that fit and tells you which ones it couldn’t add.

​

Open a file

Open the paperclip menu and choose a filename.

• Mac — the file opens in the default app for that file type.
• iPhone & iPad — the file opens in a preview. Use its share button to send it to another app or save a copy.

On Mac, Save a Copy in the attachment menu also lets you save a file outside Sonto.

​

Edit a file on Mac

If you edit an attached file in another app, Sonto picks up the changes when you switch back and syncs the updated file to your other devices.

​

Find tasks with files

In Search, turn on Only Tasks with Attachments in the filter options. Leave the search empty to list all tasks with files.

​

Sync and offline access

Attachments sync through your own iCloud account and count towards your iCloud storage. A file’s name can appear on another device before its contents have arrived:

• Waiting for upload — the file still needs to upload from the device where you added it.
• Not downloaded — the file is in iCloud but isn’t on this device yet. Open it to download it.

Mac downloads files automatically. On iPhone and iPad, files download automatically on Wi-Fi; on mobile data or in Low Data Mode, only files up to 2 MB download automatically. Larger files download when you open them. Files already downloaded are available offline. Before going offline, open any files you’ll need on that device to make sure they’re available.

​

Remove a file

In the attachment menu, choose Remove, then the filename. This removes the attachment from Sonto across your devices; it doesn’t delete the original file you attached from Finder or Files. You can undo an accidental removal during the current session. Removed files are kept for seven days before automatic cleanup; this retention period doesn’t extend Sonto’s undo history.

​

Manage storage

Open Settings → Attachments on Mac, iPhone or iPad to see the file count, storage use, sync status and largest attachments, including which task, project or area they belong to.

• Empty Removed Files — permanently clears files you’ve already removed, without waiting for the seven-day retention period.
• Delete All Attachments… — removes every attachment from Sonto, all your devices and iCloud. Your tasks remain.

​

Backups

Backups include your files. A backup you make yourself first downloads any files that aren’t on your Mac yet, so it’s complete. Restoring a backup brings the files back and uploads them to iCloud again.

​

AI and the command line

On Mac, AI tools connected through AI Access can list, read, add, update, rename and remove attachments, and can search for tasks with files. The Sonto CLI has the same attachment controls through sonto attachment.

​

Availability

Attachments work on Mac, iPhone and iPad. Drag and drop from other apps works on Mac and iPad; on iPhone, use the Attach… menu. Opening a file in its default app, editing it there and Save a Copy are Mac features; on iPhone and iPad, files open in a preview.

​

Related