How to Make Existing Microsoft Lens Scans Appear on a New Phone
Question details
Existing Microsoft Lens scans manually copied to a new phone do not display within the Microsoft Lens app, despite new scans appearing normally.
- Product
- Microsoft Lens
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Transferring existing Microsoft Lens scans to a new mobile device.
- Observed behavior
- Manually copied old scans fail to show up in the Microsoft Lens interface, whereas newly created scans appear without issues.
Ensure you have the login credentials for your Microsoft account handy, as you will need to sign out and sign back into your Microsoft applications to refresh the synchronization state.
Re-authenticate Microsoft Apps Starting with Lens
Resetting the authentication state across your Microsoft apps can force Lens to re-index and display the existing scans in your folder.
Often, cross-app authentication issues prevent Microsoft Lens from recognizing local files on a new device. Signing out of related Microsoft apps and prioritizing the Lens sign-in can resolve this.
Open OneDrive, OneNote, and Microsoft Word on your new phone and sign out of your Microsoft account in each application.
Open Microsoft Lens (or Office Lens) and sign in using your Microsoft account credentials before signing into any other app.
Once you are successfully signed into Microsoft Lens, open OneDrive, OneNote, and Word to sign back into those applications.
Return to Microsoft Lens and check your library to see if the manually copied scans now appear.
Resave Existing Scans into the Lens Folder
If re-authenticating doesn't work, manually opening and saving the files using a different app can trigger Microsoft Lens to recognize them.
Scan and Manage Documents Easily with WPS Office
Tired of dealing with syncing issues across multiple apps? WPS Office provides a powerful built-in document scanner, along with Word, Excel, and PDF tools in one seamless, lightweight application. Enjoy high compatibility with Microsoft formats and effortless document management without the hassle.
- 1. Download WPS Office: Install WPS Office on your mobile device from your respective app store.
- 2. Use the built-in scanner: Tap the '+' icon on the home screen and select 'Scanner' to capture your documents.
- 3. Save and sync: Save your scanned files directly to WPS Cloud for automatic, hassle-free syncing across all your devices.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why aren't my old Microsoft Lens scans showing up on my new phone?
When you manually copy scan files to a new phone, the Microsoft Lens app's local database may not automatically index or recognize them. Re-signing into your Microsoft account or resaving the files can force the app to refresh its directory.
Where does Microsoft Lens save scanned files on my device?
By default, Microsoft Lens saves images to your device's local Pictures/Office Lens folder, while PDF, Word, and PowerPoint exports are uploaded to your OneDrive account in the Documents/Office Lens folder.
Can I recover Microsoft Lens scans if I lost my old phone?
Yes, if you previously configured Microsoft Lens to save your scans to OneDrive or OneNote, you can recover them by logging into the same Microsoft account on your new device and accessing those cloud-synced applications.
