Onenote file sharing from Ipad to Ipad

Question

Onenote file sharing from Ipad to Ipad

Kira wr 0

Hello everyone,

As a long-time user of OneNote, I would like to draw your attention to a minor issue that needs to be addressed. It's absurd that so little effort has been put into ensuring compatibility with file sharing. I use OneNote on my iPad and would like to share notes with their associated metadata, allowing others to edit them on their tablets too. The framework is in place, but there is simply no connection that allows this. When you share a notebook, you can do so only via a link. However, this link takes you to the OneNote website, and there is no option to open the file on a tablet.

The easiest solution would be to add a button to the webpage that opens the file in the app. This would also detect which device is being used and open the correct metafile (i.e. the difference between the desktop and mobile apps).

Moved from Microsoft 365 and Office | OneNote | Other | iOS

Kira wr 0 Reputation points

2026-06-09T18:29:55.48+00:00

This is not about a joint edit of a file/notebook. It's about sending the copy of a file together with the metadata, so it can be edited.

1 answer

Your answer

Kira wr 0 Reputation points

2026-06-09T18:29:55.48+00:00

This is not about a joint edit of a file/notebook. It's about sending the copy of a file together with the metadata, so it can be edited.

Answer 1

Dear @Kira wr,

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience and detailed feedback. I completely understand your expectation here, especially for a tablet-first workflow like iPad to iPad.

To clarify, the behavior you’re seeing is currently by design in OneNote. Notebooks are stored and managed as cloud-based content via OneDrive or SharePoint, rather than as portable files. Because of this, sharing a notebook is primarily done through a link-based model, which allows others to access and edit the content in real time.

I recognize, however, that this approach does not fully meet scenarios where you want to:

Send a standalone copy of a notebook
Preserve its structure and metadata
Open it directly in the OneNote app on another tablet without relying on the web experience

At this time, creating a full portable copy of a notebook with metadata is only supported through the OneNote desktop app (for example, exporting as a package file). On iPad devices specifically, sharing options are limited to link-based access or sharing individual content, rather than transferring a complete editable copy.

As a practical workaround, you may consider:

Sharing the notebook via link and opening it in the OneNote app after access is granted
Using a desktop version of OneNote to export a copy if a standalone file is required

I recognize that this limitation can be inconvenient, and I truly appreciate your feedback. In this case, I sincerely recommend you go to Feedback community to vote this similar feedback: (find out similar feedback, if not provide the feedback forum link Ideas · Community). Your feedback has been duly noted and is highly valued, as it provides with essential insights to continue improving and refining the products and services in the future.

Please notice and accept my apologies that as moderators in the community, we are not supported for the product design and have limited resources for the advanced info for Microsoft products. To help you send your feedback and requirement to the related development team, we have redirected you to the correct path.

Again, I truly appreciate your patience and understanding. If you have any further questions or need clarification, please feel free to reach out. I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

Hope you have a nice day!

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Jade Ng 15,480 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-06-11T03:05:36.5333333+00:00

Dear @Kira wr,

I hope everything is going well on your end.

I’m following up on the support thread we've been working through together. I wanted to check in and see if the information I shared in my previous answer helped clarify the issue you were experiencing.