File manager – What is it?

To display an image on the internet, or make a file available for download, it has to appear on a server somewhere on the internet. With a Schudio website any files that are uploaded are stored in your area on our servers.

A file manager makes this process more intuitive for you as the user, it adds a similar appearance and experience to managing files on your computer to the files that are stored on the web server. A brand new file manager is coming to Schudio CMS. It will enable easy management of all the files uploaded to your website.

What can it do?

• Create folders, move, and delete files.
• Creates a consistent approach to uploading content to your website, all the areas of the system that require an uploaded document will use the file manager.
• Manage files directly in the file manager, a new menu option within the system.
• Upload a file once, it is available on the server to use anywhere on your website. Only one copy of an image needs to be uploaded to the website, no more duplicated files that appear in some modules of the system and not in others.

Why have we done it?

We aim to keep ahead of the curve, to build features within our CMS that keep it at the cutting edge. Obviously the option to add your own files to your website is key to that, but across various different modules and areas of the system the method in which this worked had become fragmented. So adding the file manager makes the system even easier to use, with a consistent approach to uploading files. With so many features in the system there were lots of different files and types of files that could be uploaded. Rudimentary management of these files was happening by the system behind the scenes, but there was no user control or input. With the new file manager update all this has changed.

The file manager gives more control over the files that sit on your server, and old documents can be removed as required. Any file uploaded to the website will be available to view through the file browser. Images that were uploaded for a photo gallery will also be available in the file browser to use for a banner or to be embedded within a news article.

Finally, it’s a feature we have been asked for, some clients mentioned it in passing, some were really enthusiastic about it, and some supported a suggestion idea through the support system. All of this feedback showed the importance our users placed on having a file manager. The file manager is a key part upcoming new release of the Schudio CMS this month.

The suggestion forum is the best place to submit new features or provide feedback on how your website experience administration could be improved. You can access it from the “What Should We Build Next” button in the admin area, or you can visit the webpage.