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How to add documents (PDFs) to your website with Downloads (Legacy content editor)

  • Updated

To post meeting minutes, forms or any other document on your website, upload it on Content > Downloads. Visible files are listed by category on your public Downloads page, and you can link to any of them from a page with the Links drop-down in Page Edit. Upload PDFs where you can: they open in the visitor's browser and keep your formatting.

Applies to: Org admins and content editors · All plans · Legacy content editor

Where: Content > Downloads (Files and Categories tabs); Content > Page Edit (Links drop-down)

Before you start

  • Save Word, Excel or PowerPoint documents as PDF first (in Word, File > Save As, then choose PDF). Visitors can't change files on your website, but they can edit a downloaded Word copy; a PDF keeps your layout.
  • Each file can be up to 10 MB.
  • Give the file a simple name. Special characters such as & can stop the upload from working.

Add a file

  1. Go to Content > Downloads.
  2. Click Add File.
  3. Next to Select File, click Select and choose the file on your computer.
  4. Type the Document Name (up to 100 characters). This is the name visitors see.
  5. In Category, choose an existing category, or leave it at Select and type a new category name in the box beside it. Do one or the other, not both.
  6. Click Add.

What you'll see: "The file was successfully uploaded." The file is added at the end of its category under Visible Documents and is listed on your public Downloads page.

Manage your files

The Files tab has two tables, grouped by category: Visible Documents (listed on your public Downloads page) and Not Visible Documents (hidden). Each row shows the document name and file name, Size/Type, Downloaded and Last Updated.

  • Hide or show a file: click its eye icon. The green eye hides a visible file; the red eye shows a hidden one.
  • Change the order: drag a row to a new spot. The order here is the order on your public Downloads page. Dragging a file into another category's group moves it to that category, and dragging it to the other table changes whether it's visible.
  • See how often a file is used: Downloaded counts each time someone opens the file from your website. Clicking the file's name here downloads your own copy and isn't counted.
  • Delete a file: click the red X, then click OK on "Are you sure you want to delete document "(name)"?".

Replace or rename a file

  1. On Content > Downloads, click the Edit icon (pencil) on the file's row.
  2. On Edit Document, change the Document Name or Category Name if needed.
  3. To replace the file, click Select next to File Name and choose the new file. Leave it empty to keep the file shown under Current File.
  4. Click Save.

What you'll see: "The document has been updated." Links to the document keep working and open the new file, whatever the new file is called, because each link points to the document rather than to the file name.

Organize categories

Categories group your files on the public Downloads page. You can create one while adding a file, or on the Categories tab:

  1. Go to Content > Downloads and click the Categories tab.
  2. Click Add Category, type the Category Name (up to 50 characters) and click Add.
  3. Drag the categories into the order you want. The list is titled "Categories (In Order Displayed On Public Site)".
  4. To rename a category, click its Edit icon (pencil), change the Category Name and click Save.
  5. To delete a category, click its red X. You can delete only a category with no files in it, visible or not, so move or delete its files first.

To start the public Downloads page with every category closed, go to Content > Configurations > General, set Collapse Categories under Downloads to Yes and click Save. Visitors can open and close categories either way.

Link to a file from a page

  1. Go to Content > Page Edit and choose the page in Page to Edit.
  2. Type the text for the link, such as "March meeting minutes", and highlight it.
  3. Click the Links drop-down on the editor's toolbar. If Page Edit opens in the Content Builder (its default view), click the Links/Assets button instead; it opens the same list of links.
  4. Click the plus sign next to Downloads, then the plus sign next to the file's category.
  5. Click the file. The highlighted text becomes a link to it. You can change the link's text later and keep the link.
  6. Click Save.

The Downloads group lists visible files only. You can also put a file in the left sidebar: on Content > Configurations > Sidebar Links, add a link with the link type Download.

If it doesn't work

  • "The file type you have chosen is not allowed. To protect your security and the security of those who may download files from the web, the file types are restricted to PDF, DOC, XLS, PPT, TXT and RTF. Other types of files may pose a security risk." Save the document as a PDF and upload that.
  • "The file you have chosen to upload exceeds 10 MB, which is the maximum file size we can store on the site. This limitation helps to ensure that users wishing to download these files may do so in an acceptable amount of time." Make the file smaller, for example by saving the PDF with smaller images, or split it into two files.
  • "To upload a file, you must supply a file name from your local computer to upload." No file was chosen, or it hadn't finished uploading. Click Select, choose the file again and wait until it has uploaded before you click Add. If it still fails, rename the file without special characters such as &.
  • "Please enter a document name for the file." or "Document Name is over 100 characters." Enter a Document Name of 100 characters or fewer.
  • "A category needs to be selected or a new category needs to be added. Please click Select to add a file, then assign a Category Name for this file. You can create a new Category name, or, select an existing Category name." Choose a Category or type a new one. On Edit Document the message is "Please assign a Category for this file."
  • "Please assign a Category Name for this file. You can create a new Category name, or, select an existing Category name." You chose a category and also typed a new one. Clear one of them.
  • "The Category Name you input already exists. Please change the value in order to save." That category already exists. Choose it from the Category list instead.
  • A link to a file shows "Error downloading file." The file is under Not Visible Documents, or it was deleted. Make it visible again, or link to the current file.
  • A category's red X is grayed out. The category still has files in it, visible or not.

Good to know

  • Files on your website are public. Anyone who has a file's link can open it without signing in, even if you put the link on a page that asks visitors to sign in (a User Secured page), and every visible file is also listed on your public Downloads page. Don't post private information, such as medical forms or contact lists.
  • PDF files open in the visitor's browser. Other file types download to the visitor's device.
  • Visitors can't change or remove files on your website. They can only download a copy.
  • Websites built with Editor 2.0 upload files on the same Content > Downloads page but show them with the website editor, which this article doesn't cover.

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