How do I attach and access files on Simpplr?

Table of Contents

Add files to content

View files

Add files to feed posts

Files in your feed

Remove and delete files

Link and create folders

Upload files

File options

File details screen

Search for files

App management: File upload permissions

 

Add files to content

The easiest way to add files to your intranet is to attach them when creating a piece of content. You have several options to choose from depending on the file storage integration you're using with Simpplr. For example, Google Drive files can be added to content if the site is connected to Google Drive and the user has their account connected.

Files are stored in sites across Simpplr, not pages (pieces of content). So when you upload a file to a page, it is uploading at a site level; the site where that page is posted. If you move that page to a new site, the file will not move to the new site with it. You can still view the file on the page, but if you go to the Files tab of the new site it will not be there. It will remain in the old site until you upload another version of it to the new site.

Note:

If your org doesn't wish to upload files natively on Simpplr or connect one of our integrations, you can always hyperlink the source of your file(s) to pieces of content or feed posts. We see customers do this often due to security concerns. For more information, check out this article.

You can also upload files from your computer (if the App manager has set up the appropriate permissions). Uploading a file from your computer to a piece of content automatically adds it to that site's file library. The file is also now searchable for anyone who has site access.

When searching for files or attachments to add from your intranet, your search results will include content you have access to.

Screen_Shot_2021-09-17_at_8.58.00_AM.png

 

View files

To view the files linked to your Simpplr site, go to Files from the site dashboard.

mceclip0.png

 

In Files, you’ll see your site’s folders. Click a folder to view its files. If you’ve integrated file storage software, the folders you linked will also be listed here. If you've uploaded a file directly to a piece of content, it will be stored in the applicable site's Content files folder.

Note:

Image files uploaded to Simpplr do not appear in search results.

 

Add files to feed posts

Via File manager, any integrated files accessible to the End user can be added to feed posts (excluding the file's shortcuts) from within the linked folder in a given site. With the applicable upload permissions, End users can attach files to feed posts either from the existing set of files they have access to, or via their computer. 

Files in your feed

You can open and download files directly from pages in your feed, if the page has a file attached. If the file is linked to a storage account, like Google MyDrive, you’ll need to make sure that file storage software is connected to your account before you can access the file. 

You’ll get results from all sites you have access to and can upload those files. 

You can attach files from any file storage account integrated with your org. 

Remove and delete files

You can remove files by going to the content the file was originally linked to and clicking the X next to the file. You can also remove it from the list of files in the site where it's housed by clicking the dropdown menu, then Remove.

Or you can click Delete file from the Files tab in the site. Only the individual who first uploaded the file or a System admin can delete it completely from the Simpplr database (more on this below). Removing a file does not permanently remove the file from the Simpplr database. It only removes it from the location you initially updated it to. For example, if you upload a file to the Human Resources site and attach it to a piece of content within the HR site, then also upload the file to the IT site, the file exists within the Simpplr database (Salesforce), and is housed in both those sites. Removing the file from the content published in the HR site does not remove it from the site; only the content. It also does not remove the file from the IT site. The file will still be searchable within Simpplr. The only way to completely remove the file from the database is to delete it. 

Deleting a file completely removes it from all locations where it's housed in Simpplr because you're removing it from the database entirely. 


Screen_Shot_2021-09-17_at_9.12.57_AM.png

Who can delete files and who can remove them?

The original uploader of the file can always delete a file they uploaded from the upload location, regardless of their permission level in Simpplr. The System admin can also delete files uploaded by anyone via Salesforce.

A site member can delete a file they uploaded to a site or content. The Site owner/manager can remove a file that someone else uploaded to their site, but not delete it. End users cannot remove or delete files that someone else uploaded.

App managers only have the ability to remove files uploaded by someone else. They cannot delete them.

 

Link and create folders

If your site has integrated file storage, like OneDrive, you may see these options in the Files tab:

  • Link OneDrive folder
  • New folder

mceclip4.png

mceclip3.png

In the example shown above, clicking Link OneDrive folder will link a new folder from OneDrive to the site. You’ll be prompted to select the document library.

Clicking New folder will create a new OneDrive folder. This folder will be created directly in your OneDrive, not in Simpplr. You’ll be prompted to enter a folder name.

Note:

Only Site owners and managers can create new folders in the site root folder. Deleting files and folders must be done in directly in the integrated file storage, not in Simpplr. 

 

 

Upload files

Under the site search bar, you’ll see the option to drop in files or Select from your computer. Here, you can drop files you’d like to upload to the site.

If you click Select from your computer, you’ll be prompted to search your computer for the file you want, and click Open to upload.

We recommend uploading files to your site before uploading them directly to content. That way you can have more control over the folder structure. By default, any file that gets uploaded to content must live in the system-generated Content files folder. This cannot be changed. If you create a folder structure, you can add your files to those folders, then link them to the content you're creating. 

Only the original uploader, System admin or App manager have access to upload a new version of any given file, regardless of the site location the file is housed in.

 

File options

Under Options, each file has a dropdown. Here you can interact with the file in several different ways, like downloading the file, sharing it, or (if applicable) viewing the file in its linked storage account.

mceclip5.png

 

Note:

If you click New version, it’s strongly recommended that you keep the same file type for the new version of the file. Changing the file type in a new version may alter the look and formatting of the file.

You can also move files between linked folders. You’ll be prompted to give read/write access to the folder you’re moving. 

 

File details screen

Clicking on a file in a post or in the Files tab of your site will bring you to the File details screen.

mceclip6.png

 

This screen gives you many of the same options as the Options dropdown in the Files tab. You can:

  • Like the file
  • Favorite it
  • Share it
    • You can share files with public and private sites. If you share a file to a private site, it will only be shared to the feed of that private site. If you share it with a public site, you’ll have three sharing options:
      • Followers
      • A user
      • Another site
  • (If applicable) view the file in its linked storage account
  • Version history
  • Add new version
  • Download it

Note:

The share option in the file options menu and file details page will be hidden if feed mode is not set to Timeline, comments on content and feed posts.

 

Search for files

You can search for files using the search bar in the top left. Search results will include files contained in pages, files uploaded to a Simpplr site, and files linked to a Simpplr site from file storage. 

When searching for internally stored files (i.e., files uploaded and stored directly in Simpplr), Simpplr Search looks at the file name and text within the file to determine keyword matching. All text within the file is searched, regardless of length of file text/content. If there is a match in the file name, that will weigh higher than a match in the body of file content. This is applicable to all file types.

File search results appear in a separate tab from the main list of content-related search results. 

For third party-connected file storage integration apps, Simpplr will send the vendor the keyword/phrase you're searching, and the vendor provide the results in whatever order they determine. We don't know the logic they're using (i.e., relevancy/weight, etc.). The only exception to this is for the Confluence integration. With Confluence, wherever there's a match in the title of the Confluence doc, it sorts first in the top results.

App management: File upload permissions

Note, this section contains information applicable only to Application managers, who can control file upload permissions. The file upload permissions setting does not affect App managers. They are always able to upload files. The following choices are available for End users:

  • Allow all file types (across entire application) (this is the default option)
        • All users can upload all file types across the application
  • Allow image files 
      • This setting allows users to to upload image files matching .jpg .png .gif to home and site feeds, or as content attachments, but disables the ability to upload other file types
  • Allow image and video files
      • This setting allows users to upload image and video files to home or site feeds, or as content attachments
  • Disable all file types
        • This disables users' ability to upload files across the application

App managers can configure file upload permissions for Site owners/managers in addition to End users. These options include: 

  • Same as above
        • This option will give Site owners/managers the same permissions as the ones you selected for End users
  • Allow all file types in all sites
        • This gives Site owners/managers permission to upload any accepted file type to the sites they own/manage
  • Allow all file types in selected sites
        • This setting lets you (App manager) decide which sites Site owners/managers can upload files to

If you start out allowing all users to upload files, you can still change this setting at any time. Just note that nothing will happen to existing files because you changed the permission settings. The user who originally uploaded the file will still have access to manage or delete the file. They just won't be able to upload a new version, or any other files going forward.

Was this article helpful?
2 out of 2 found this helpful
Have more questions? Submit a request

Comments

39 comments
  • If I enabled one drive integration for a site and if files are linked up with this one drive, would all site/content managers for that site be able to delete files from the one drive if they have access?

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Aileen. The short answer here is no. File permissions do not change from the source, i.e., One Drive once integrated with Simpplr. Check out our Sharepoint/OneDrive article for more info on this.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Is it possible to replace an existing file with a new version, if you're not the original uploader? The original uploader is no longer with our organization. I am a new App Manager.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Smiranda. A System admin can delete the file from Salesforce, even if they're not the original uploader. No one else can permanently delete files.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hello,
    What is the difference between site files > site videos and site files > content files > videos?
    Where does each pull the videos from?

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Aileen. The primary difference between all of these is really just a matter of where they're stored. All files uploaded to Simpplr natively (not through a 3rd party file storage integration) are hosted on your Salesforce instance. So if you upload a file to a piece of content, that gets uploaded to Salesforce. If you attach a file to a Feed post, again, uploaded to Salesforce. Feed, Content and Site files are all reflected at the site level in the Files tab of that particular site. Each time you upload a file to one of these locations for the first time, a new folder is created in the site Files tab, e.g., Content files, Feed files, etc.

    1
    Comment actions Permalink
  • So the only way that site files > site videos can be filled is if I manually upload a video to that folder, right?

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • You can upload a video file the same ways you upload any other accepted file type. The video can't be played in a feed post or piece of content, but you can upload and store the file via Files tab, feed post, or content, just like any other files.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Is there a size limit of file uploads?

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Molly. This Salesforce Help article goes into more information on file upload limits. https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.overview_storage.htm&type=5

    But for quick reference, file storage depends on the number of users in your org. You will receive double the GB in storage of the amount of users, so:
    -If there are 500 users, you can have 500x2=1000GB
    -There is a 1GB max size per file if you are uploading a file

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi team -- wondering how I can pull over folders of content into one of my sites "Files" section? Dropbox has posed some access issues, so trying to do this with minimal legwork. Some folders have 100 documents in them, and pulling them all over individually would be a pain! Any way to upload folders rather than individual files?

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Regan. If I'm understanding the question correctly, you want to move files from Dropbox to Simpplr natively. If so, you could export all the files together from Dropbox as a .zip file, then reupload that .zip to a new folder in whichever site you want to host the files. 

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Matthew -- yes for Dropbox folders and really ANY folders containing files/folders. I also tried doing it from my desktop and dragging a folder into the Files of a Simpplr site, but it didn't work. We have one team who used the Dropbox integration, but we are getting ready to move away from Dropbox, so I want to be able to give them a solution that won't be too time-consuming since they have a pretty hefty folder structure. 😬

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • I'm not sure there's an ideal solution without a little manual lifting. I found this article from Dropbox on copying file structures that may help. But there is no direct way to just lift and shift from a 3rd party storage integration over to Simpplr. 

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Is it possible to change the owner of a file? I'm our App Manager and I uploaded some things for our Marketing team before they started managing their own content. I'd like to make one of them the file owner (I've already transferred page ownership for the associated page) so that they can manage the file updates/versions.

    Thanks

    -1
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hey Shannon. It is not possible to change file ownership natively on Simpplr. Best practice here would be to have the new moderators upload new versions of the files and have the current owner remove their versions. 

    -2
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi! My team is asking if it's possible to upload more than 1 file in a Feed reply. Not sure if we can change this as App managers or if Simpplr plans to change this for Feed replies. Thanks!

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Xili. As of now you can only upload one file to a feed reply. There isn't an app manager option to change this. There is a product enhancement request ticket open for this, but it's not currently on the roadmap for release. 

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • 3 Questions about versions within a file:

    • Is it possible to delete a previous version contained within a file if it becomes obsolete?
    • Is it possible to prevent users (non-app/site/content managers) from seeing/downloading anything but the latest version of a file? (I know that the latest version is what always displays but when a user gets a link to a file they have the option of clicking on Version History and then downloading an older version)
    • Is it possible to change the version order of a file without adding a new version? (For example, a file has 3 versions. Version 3 is what is seen by everyone accessing the file, but things have changed and we want to go back to version 2. Is it possible to bring version 2 back to the top without uploading a 'new version' and having a file with 4 versions where version 2 and 4 are the same? Could I just reorder current versions 2 and 3 so that version 2 shows to everyone accessing the file?

    Thanks in advance for your help.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Question about removing a file:

    • When a file is removed from a site or piece of content that file still exists within the Salesforce database and is still searchable: Where would I go to find that file and delete it so that users wouldn't be able to find it anymore? Would that have to happen on the Salesforce side? If so, where within Salesforce would such a 'removed' file be located?

    Really appreciate all of your excellent help.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Question about file names.

    • Any suggestions for best practices for file naming to ensure optimal search functionality? (e.g.: Avoid underscores and periods.)

    Thanks for your great product and excellent support.

    1
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Brian. To delete a file from Salesforce, you need to either be the file owner or have permissions in Salesforce to modify all data. I made this video to show you where to go to delete files. There's also this Salesforce help article on deleting files

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Brian, 

    • Is it possible to delete a previous version contained within a file if it becomes obsolete? No, this is not possible. You'll need to delete the current version (which deletes all previous versions as well) and re-upload it as a new "Version 1" if you don't want access to an old version. 
    • Is it possible to prevent users (non-app/site/content managers) from seeing/downloading anything but the latest version of a file? (I know that the latest version is what always displays but when a user gets a link to a file they have the option of clicking on Version History and then downloading an older version). This is not possible. Users will be able to click on the version history and see any older versions. Again, to prevent this, you could delete the file altogether and re-upload it as a new "Version 1".
    • Is it possible to change the version order of a file without adding a new version? (For example, a file has 3 versions. Version 3 is what is seen by everyone accessing the file, but things have changed and we want to go back to version 2. Is it possible to bring version 2 back to the top without uploading a 'new version' and having a file with 4 versions where version 2 and 4 are the same? Could I just reorder current versions 2 and 3 so that version 2 shows to everyone accessing the file? Also not possible. The only action you can take with any previous version is downloading and viewing it. 
    2
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Question about files and document views:

    • The initial document view is not ideal because we would like for users to see files and documents in presentation mode when they first click on the link to a document. Is there a way to change the default view so that the presentation mode appears first?

    Really appreciate your help.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Brian, there is no way to change the default view of files when navigating to them. Clicking into the file or downloading it will allow you to view it in presentation mode, but that can't be the first view type you see.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hello, 

    Can a site owner or site manager upload a new version of a file attachment (i.e. PDF) that is NOT theirs?

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Aileen. Only the System admin or original file uploader can add a new version. Site owners and managers don't have that option. The best move here would be to have the Site owner/manager remove the existing file, then upload a "new" version as the most current.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Question about file permissions when the person who uploads the file leaves the company or no longer has access to the Insider:

    • What happens to the file permission if the file owner leaves the company for some reason or is deemed no longer qualified to access Simpplr? Do the permissions to those files transfer to someone else (like an app manager or system admin) or is it possible to transfer those file permissions to someone else if that person's profile no longer exists? In the case of a policy file that is being versioned and statically linked to different sites and segments within Simpplr, what would be our option to maintain those links and continue versioning that file if the file owner is no longer available?

    Thanks again for all of your excellent support.

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Brian. Very similar to content on Simpplr, if the file owner leaves the company or no longer has access to the intranet, nothing will happen to the file ownership. They will still technically appear (in name only) as the file owner. The system admin can delete the file(s) that person owned and upload new versions if needed, or an App manager can remove the files from Simpplr (they will only remain in the Salesforce database and not be searchable/findable in Simpplr). There is no native way in Simpplr to transfer file ownership to a different person. This can only be done via the Salesforce data loader, which I've linked documentation on here

    0
    Comment actions Permalink
  • Hi Matthew,


    As you know, only the original person can delete or add a new version of a file. That means if that person is on leave and an update is needed, no one else in the team can change that file. It has to go to a System Admin.

    You have mentioned below that one solution is to delete the file and reload it. 

    If we are deleting the file, how do they work out the pages that this file was originally attached to? We may have attached one policy to several pages within different sites. How do I find them all to go back in and re-attach the file? 

    0
    Comment actions Permalink

Please sign in to leave a comment.

Articles in this section

See more