Where the files are stored

Where the files are stored

The files can be physically stored in the file system, in the database or in both:

•	File system - the files are stored in the configured folder on your disk. This option provides the best performance, however, your web application must be granted with Modify permissions on the disk which is not always possible.

•	Database - the files are stored in the database. This option provides a worse performance, but it allows you to use full-text search in uploaded files, it doesn't require Modify permissions on the disk and it allows you to easily backup the uploaded files as a part of your database backup.

•	Database and file system - this option combines the advantages of both options. It provides the same performance as the file system-only option since the files are stored on the file system as well. At the same time, you can use workflow, versioning and full-text search.

You can configure the file storage in Site Manager -> Settings -> Files. Here you can configure the following options:

Files folder	The folder on the disk where the files are stored. You can use either the physical disk path or virtual path like ~/UploadedFiles. If you do not specify any value, the files are stored in folder ~/<site code name>/files.
Generate thumbnails	Indicates if the CMS should generate image thumbnails on the disk when a resized version of the image is displayed. This option only applies if files are stored in the file system. It improves the performance.
Redirect files to disk	Indicates if the user should be redirected to the file on the disk. This option provides the best performance. It requires that the Store files in file system box is checked.
Store files in database	Indicates if files should be stored in the database.
Store files in file system	Indicates if files should be stored in the file system.
Upload extensions	Allowed file extensions for the uploaded files. You can restrict the types of uploaded documents to e.g.: gif;jpg;doc;pdf It allows you to block users from uploading potentially dangerous files, such as ASPX scripts.