Editors
Administrators
Developers difficulty: beginner version: current status: active owner: docs-platform last_reviewed: 2026-04-30

File & Media Management¶

SkyCMS provides a browser-based file manager built on elFinder 2.1 (via the SkyCMS.Drivers.ElFinder CQRS driver) for uploading, organizing, editing, and serving media assets and code files. Files are stored in cloud blob storage with a unified abstraction layer that supports multiple cloud providers.

Audiences: Editors, Authors, Administrators, Developers

Jump to:

File Manager
Multi-Cloud Storage Abstraction
Image Processing
Content Delivery

1. File Manager¶

Documentation: File Management (Concrete Guide) · File Manager · File Manager Quickstart · File Manager Toolbar Reference · SkyCMS VS Code Extension · elFinder CQRS Rollout and Operations

A full-featured browser-based file management interface for all site assets.

Path Model (Editor UX vs Storage)¶

Article assets are stored at canonical paths under /pub/articles/{articleNumber}/....
The File Manager may display article titles in folder labels and breadcrumbs for readability.
Connector operations and hashes continue to use canonical paths to keep links and storage paths stable.

This dual-path behavior is intentional and allows title changes without breaking existing asset paths.

elFinder 2.1 file browser with dual-pane layout (folder tree + file area)
Back / Forward / Home / Up navigation via toolbar
Breadcrumb trail for direct navigation to any ancestor folder
Grid (thumbnail) and list view toggle via toolbar
Thumbnail gallery with auto-generated 120 × 120 px thumbnails
Sort by name, type, modified date, or file size via toolbar
Search by filename within the current folder
Filter by directories only or images only (in image picker and folder picker modes)
Copy file URL via right-click → Get URL or the Info properties panel

File Operations¶

Operation	Description
Upload	Drag-and-drop or file picker upload
Create File	Create new text-based files from the browser
Create Folder	Create new folders for organization
Rename	Rename files and folders
Copy	Copy files or folders to a new location
Move	Move files or folders
Delete	Remove files and folders
Download	Download files to local machine

Upload Capabilities¶

FilePond upload widget: drop files anywhere on the page or click Upload Files
Chunked upload (5 MB chunks) for reliable large-file transfers
Simultaneous multi-file upload with per-file progress
Uploads always target the folder currently open in the elFinder browser
Automatic folder refresh after all uploads complete
Simple upload mode for quick image insertion from editors

Integrated Editors¶

Files can be edited directly in the browser depending on type:

Code files → Monaco Code Editor (opened via elFinder toolbar or right-click → Open)
Supported: .html, .htm, .css, .js, .json, .xml, .txt
Image files → Filerobot Image Editor (opened via elFinder toolbar or right-click → Open)
Editable: .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .gif, .webp
Preview-only: .apng, .avif, .svg

Image Assets API¶

GetImageAssets(path, exclude) — JSON endpoint returning image file list with metadata
GetImageThumbnail(target, width, height) — On-demand thumbnail generation at specified dimensions

Role-Based Access¶

Role	Access Level
Administrator	Full access (all operations)
Editor	Full access (all operations)
Author	Full access (all operations)
Team Member	Full access (all operations)
Reviewer	Read-only (browse and view only)

2. Multi-Cloud Storage Abstraction¶

Documentation: Storage Overview · Azure Blob Storage · Amazon S3 · Cloudflare R2 · Google Cloud Storage · Storage Configuration Reference · Storage Provider Auto-Detection

SkyCMS abstracts file storage through a unified StorageContext layer, allowing the same file management interface to work across multiple cloud providers.

Supported Storage Providers¶

Provider	Connection Type	Use Cases
Azure Blob Storage	Azure connection string	Primary cloud storage for Azure deployments
Amazon S3	AWS credentials	AWS deployments, S3-compatible services
Cloudflare R2	S3-compatible API	Edge-optimized storage, Cloudflare deployments
Azure Files	Azure file share connection	SMB-compatible file share scenarios

Runtime Provider Selection¶

Provider is auto-detected from the connection string at runtime
Detection is implemented in the Cosmos.BlobService storage runtime
No code changes needed to switch providers
Multi-tenant deployments can use different providers per tenant

Storage Operations¶

Upload / download / delete files
Copy and move operations
Stream-based operations for large files
Chunked uploads with progress tracking (AWS multi-part, Azure append blobs)
Directory operations (create, list, delete)
Custom metadata per file
Image dimension extraction
Static website hosting management (Azure)

Caching¶

In-memory caching for frequently accessed file metadata
Configurable cache lifetimes

3. Image Processing¶

Documentation: Image Processing API · Image Editing

Thumbnail Generation¶

On-demand thumbnail generation via ThumbnailCreator
Custom width/height dimensions
Served via File Manager API endpoint

Image Resizing¶

Server-side image resizing via ImageResizer
Used for optimizing images during upload or on request

In-Browser Image Editing¶

Full Filerobot Image Editor integration (see Content Editing & Authoring for complete details):

Crop, rotate, flip, resize
Brightness, contrast, saturation adjustments
Filters and fine-tuning
Annotation (text, shapes, arrows, freehand)
Watermarking
Save back to cloud storage

4. Content Delivery¶

Documentation: Content Delivery Architecture · CDN Overview · CDN Configuration Reference

Secure File Access¶

PubController provides authenticated file proxy endpoints
Role-based file access enforcement
Files served through the application with proper MIME types

CDN Integration¶

Files can be served through CDN for public sites
CDN cache purge on publish
Supports Azure CDN, Cloudflare, AWS CloudFront, Sucuri
CDN configuration managed per tenant

Static Asset Serving¶

Static file middleware for public assets
SPA fallback routing for single-page applications
Efficient file streaming for large assets