Uploading and organizing media

Use Site → Media to upload files, find images and videos, edit their descriptions, and copy addresses for reuse. Your media library belongs to the current site, so check the site before adding or searching for files.

Uploading makes a file available to the library; it does not place it on a page. Public files can also be accessible to anyone with their link before a page is published. Choose files you intend to share and check their access before distributing a URL.

For placement, layout, playback, and download buttons, use Adding images, videos, and downloads to a page. To make a new image from a description, follow Creating images with Cedros AI. For an existing file that needs changing or removal, use Replacing or deleting a media asset.

Prepare your files

Give each file a useful name before uploading. Include the subject and, when helpful, a campaign, date, or version: spring-collection-blue-vase.webp is easier to recognize than IMG_4821.jpg. Keep your source files separately so you can export another size or recover an earlier version.

The standard uploader accepts:

• Images: JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP, and SVG.
• Video: MP4, WebM, and MOV.
• Audio: MP3, M4A, WAV, AAC, OGG, and WebM audio.
• Documents and data: PDF, TXT, Markdown, JSON, CSV, TSV, XLS, XLSX, DOC, and DOCX.
• Fonts: WOFF, WOFF2, TTF, and OTF.

The standard per-file limits are 10 MB for images, documents, and fonts, and 100 MB for video and audio. Your available storage and hosting limits also apply. If an upload fails, use the error message to identify which limit was reached.

Export files in their intended format. Renaming an extension does not convert a file. If a supported extension is rejected, export a fresh copy from the original application; the file's detected type also matters.

For images, choose dimensions suited to their largest intended display and compress unnecessary file size. Keep text readable and avoid enlarging a small source. For video and audio, test playback on the devices your customers use: an accepted container format does not guarantee that every browser can play its encoding.

Uploading a font stores the file but does not assign it to your site's headings or body text. Follow Changing your logo, colors, and typography for font setup.

Upload files and confirm completion

You need permission to upload and edit media. If Media is missing or Upload media is disabled, see Why can’t I see or edit a feature?.

1. Open Site → Media.
2. Select Upload media.
3. Drop files onto Drop files here, or select Choose File and choose one or more files from your device.
4. Keep the uploader open while each file moves through its queue. Selecting or dropping files starts the upload immediately.
5. Wait for each successful file to show Ready. If a row fails, read its own error; other files in the batch may have completed.
6. Select Edit details beside a completed upload. Check its name, type, size, and preview or delivery link.
7. Add the appropriate description and retain the file's URL or detail-page bookmark when needed.

Upload complete summarizes a successful batch. Use Upload more to choose another batch. Do not close or navigate away during transfer: leaving the uploader can cancel an in-progress upload.

The queue distinguishes these states:

• Queued: the file is waiting to transfer.
• Uploading: the file is being sent.
• Processing: the upload reached Cedros and its outputs are being prepared.
• Ready: upload processing completed.
• Failed: transfer or processing needs attention; read the message before retrying.

A progress bar reaching the end of transfer is not the same as the file being ready for use. Open the finished asset and check the result.

Keep document, audio, and font links

The current Gallery, Grid, and List browser displays images and videos. All media in that browser does not include every supported upload type.

For a PDF, audio file, spreadsheet, or font, open Edit details from its completed upload before leaving the upload results. Bookmark that admin detail page for later management, and copy the delivery URL for reuse. These are different addresses: the admin bookmark opens management controls; the delivery URL opens the file.

If you have already left and cannot find a non-image file, use a saved detail-page bookmark or ask your site administrator to locate the existing asset. An absent thumbnail is not proof that the upload failed. Avoid uploading repeated copies solely to make one appear in the browser.

Find and organize images and videos

The library is organized through names, descriptions, search, filters, and views. It does not currently provide folders or a tag editor for media organization.

1. Enter part of a filename, alt text, or caption in Search Media.
2. Open Filter and choose All media, Images, Videos, or Needs alt. Counts reflect the current search.
3. Choose Gallery for visual browsing, Grid for regular tiles, or List for a compact comparison.
4. In List, select a column heading to sort by Name, Status, Type, Dimensions, Duration, Size, or Updated. Select it again to reverse the order.
5. Move through additional result pages when available, then open the matching asset to inspect it.

A count with + is a partial count while more results are loading or the catalog has reached its browse limit. Narrow the search if a large library is incomplete.

Use one naming convention across a project. For example, use spring-collection- at the beginning of related filenames, and a date or version for time-sensitive documents. Search before uploading another copy of a file already in use.

Needs alt finds images whose library alt text is empty. It is a useful review list, not an accessibility score: filled-in text can still be inaccurate, and decorative use needs its own decision on the page.

When Media is opened from an editor, you may also see Current Entry Workspace, page-specific filters, recent uploads, or comparison controls. These help you work with that page. Confirm the named page before assigning an asset, and use Return to Content to resume editing. Opening an asset for inspection alone does not place it into the page.

Add useful alt text and captions

Open an asset and use its Description card.

• Alt text is available for images. Describe the meaningful content concisely, such as “Blue ceramic vase with a narrow neck on a white shelf.” Avoid keyword lists and filenames.
• Caption provides readable context, such as “Spring collection — photographed in our studio.” Some content layouts use it below an image or as an attachment label; it is not automatically displayed everywhere.

To update the descriptions:

1. Open the asset from the library or a completed upload.
2. Enter or correct Alt text for an informative image.
3. Add a Caption when it helps identify or explain the file.
4. Wait for the autosave status to confirm the change. There is no separate metadata Save button.
5. Reopen the asset to confirm the saved text, then check any page that uses it.

The filename itself is not renamed by changing the caption. Avoid using public captions for private staff notes or internal approval instructions.

Library descriptions are shared defaults. A page can have its own image description or caption, so review the text in the context where visitors encounter it. A decorative image may need an empty alternative in that placement; do not add meaningless text just to remove a library warning. See the page media guide for placement-specific descriptions.

If autosave reports an error, keep a copy of your wording and resolve the displayed issue before leaving. Reopening the asset is a stronger confirmation than seeing the text remain in an unsaved field.

Copy a reusable file URL

Use the file's delivery address whenever another field asks for an image or download URL.

1. Open the asset's details.
2. Check that the file is available and its preview or output is ready.
3. Select Copy URL to copy the original file address.
4. For a particular generated size or format, expand Generated outputs under Delivery URL and use that output's Copy control instead.
5. Paste the address into the intended image, button, or text-link field, then preview and publish the content as appropriate.
6. Open the final link as a visitor and confirm that it loads the intended file.

The Original row also provides controls to copy, open, or download the file. Generated outputs appear only when they exist. Choose an output with suitable dimensions; a small thumbnail will look blurry when stretched across a page.

Copy URL can be disabled when the stored file is unavailable. Wait for processing or investigate the asset's error rather than copying an unfinished address from elsewhere.

Reuse an existing library asset when a content picker is available. If you paste a URL manually, keep a record of where you used it, especially outside Cedros. Email messages, external websites, and manually pasted links may not appear in Used on.

A new upload is a separate asset. Giving it the same filename does not update existing pages, buttons, or previously shared links. Verify each intended destination when introducing a newer version.

Check access before sharing

Open Access in the asset details and read the current summary. Public — anyone with the link can view means the file is not restricted to people who can open the admin.

Do not use an unpublished page or an obscure URL as protection for a confidential file. A file's access and a page's publication status are separate.

For a public download, open the copied URL in a signed-out or private browser window. For restricted media, ask the administrator to confirm the intended access rules and test the customer journey with an appropriately authorized account. Do not change access to Public just to make a failing restricted link work.

Also check the public page's link label and destination. An admin preview that loads successfully does not establish that a customer can retrieve the file.

Resolve common upload and library problems

Upload media is unavailable. Check your media permissions and any storage notice. If starter storage is full, ask the administrator about capacity or storage configuration. Review usage before removing files.

The file is too large or unsupported. Export a smaller file or a supported format from the original application. Keep the original source. Read the specific limit in the error rather than repeatedly submitting the same file.

An upload failed partway through. Check the connection and the row's error. Use Try Again after resolving the cause, or Choose Different File for a corrected export. Completed files in the same batch do not need to be uploaded again.

Processing timed out or failed after upload. Inspect the existing asset before re-uploading. A timeout can occur while the server continues working. If the asset reports failed processing and offers Retry processing, use that control after checking the error. If it fails again, contact support with the filename and message.

An image or video is missing from the library. Check the site, clear the search, select All media, allow results to load, and check additional pages. For documents, audio, and fonts, use the saved detail link described above.

A caption changed but the page did not. Confirm that metadata autosave succeeded, then inspect the page's own caption and selected asset. A separately authored page caption does not necessarily follow the library default.

The file opens for you but not for a visitor. Check that you copied the delivery URL rather than the admin address, review Access, and test the appropriate signed-out or customer account journey.

For step-by-step checks of image quality, upload failures, processing, and missing files, use Fixing blurry images, failed uploads, or missing media.

If the issue continues, follow Getting help and reporting a problem. Include the filename, type, approximate size, exact error, and whether the problem occurs during upload, processing, or visitor access. Share private files and their links only through the agreed support channel.