Saving to Empty iCloud Drive Folders

February 28, 2020

iCloud Drive can be kind of funny sometimes. If you happen to see a “No such file or directory” error when trying to save a file from your iOS device, one thing to check is whether the destination folder is currently empty. If it is, adding a file (any file) to that folder through some other means might allow you to save your original file from iOS.

I have a “Inbox” style folder that I like to keep empty most of the time so it can be frustrating to get this error when I try to save something into it. My workaround is to put a 0-byte hidden file in that folder using this command from Terminal:

touch .placeholder-do-not-remove