How big can a file be?

500 MB. That goes for any file you add to a note: a PDF, a video, a voice memo, a zip of old tax returns.

There’s one exception. A file in an encrypted note can be up to 100 MB. Your device seals an encrypted file in one piece, in memory, and 100 MB keeps that safe on a phone.

Both limits are the same on the free plan and on Harbor Unlimited. The free plan limits how many files you keep, not how big they are.

When a file is too big

Harbor checks before it uploads anything. A file over 500 MB gets this:

File is too large

"Lecture 12.mp4" is 612.4 MB; the limit is 500 MB.

A file over 100 MB going into an encrypted note gets this:

File is too large

"Closing documents.pdf" is 142.6 MB; the limit for encrypted notes is 100 MB.

Add several files at once and the ones that fit go in. You get one message about the others:

3 files weren't added

They're over the 500 MB limit. The rest were added.

A file of exactly 100 MB doesn’t fit in an encrypted note. Encrypting adds a few bytes, and that tips it over. The message shows it as 100.1 MB.

Why your computer may show a bigger number

The limit counts a megabyte as 1,024 × 1,024 bytes. Finder on a Mac counts a million bytes, and so do a few screens in Harbor, like Files. So a file right at the 500 MB limit can show as 524.3 MB there. It still fits. Windows File Explorer counts the way the limit does.

Encrypting a note with a big file

Encrypting a note seals every file in it, so each one has to fit in 100 MB. If one doesn’t, the app stops before it changes anything:

Note can't be encrypted

"Site walkthrough.mov" is 180.3 MB. Files in encrypted notes can be up to 100 MB.

It’s the same when you move the note into a notebook that encrypts new notes. The note stays where it was. Move several notes at once and only the ones with a big file stay behind:

2 notes weren't moved

They have files over 100 MB, and files in encrypted notes can be up to 100 MB. The rest were moved.

To encrypt the note, take the big file out of it first. That doesn’t delete the file. It stays in Files.

No preview over 100 MB

Pictures and PDFs over 100 MB don’t get a preview picture. The notes list and Files show the file’s icon instead. Harbor doesn’t read the words in them either, so search won’t find what’s inside. It still finds them by file name.

A big PDF still opens in the note. A picture over 100 MB shows up as a file, not a picture. Download it to see it.

The 100 MB line doesn’t apply to Word, Excel, PowerPoint and text files. Harbor still reads their words.

Uploading from a phone

On iPhone and iPad, an upload that’s already started keeps going when you leave Harbor. Any others wait until you’re back. On Android, they all keep going, and a notice shows how many are left.

If the connection drops, the upload starts again from the beginning. It can’t pick up halfway.

Update Harbor to get 500 MB

Older versions of the apps still stop at 100 MB. They may not open a file over 100 MB added from another device, either. You need:

Mac: 1.0.84 or later
iPhone and iPad: 1.0.83 or later
Android: 1.0.44 or later
Windows: 0.2.37 or later
The harbor command-line tool: 0.1.53 or later

The web app is always up to date. Here’s how to check your version.