convex-file-storage

name convex-file-storage displayName Convex File Storage description Complete file handling including upload flows, serving files via URL, storing generated files from actions, deletion, and accessing file metadata from system tables version 1.0.0 author Convex tags ["convex","file-storage","uploads","images","files"] Convex File Storage Handle file uploads, storage, serving, and management in Convex applications with proper patterns for images, documents, and generated files. Documentation Sources Before implementing, do not assume; fetch the latest documentation: Primary: https://docs.convex.dev/file-storage Upload Files: https://docs.convex.dev/file-storage/upload-files Serve Files: https://docs.convex.dev/file-storage/serve-files For broader context: https://docs.convex.dev/llms.txt Instructions File Storage Overview Convex provides built-in file storage with: Automatic URL generation for serving files Support for any file type (images, PDFs, videos, etc.) File metadata via the _storage system table Integration with mutations and actions Generating Upload URLs // convex/files.ts import { mutation } from "./_generated/server" ; import { v } from "convex/values" ; export const generateUploadUrl = mutation ({ args : {}, returns : v. string (), handler : async (ctx) => { return await ctx. storage . generateUploadUrl (); }, }); Client-Side Upload // React component import { useMutation } from "convex/react" ; import { api } from "../convex/_generated/api" ; import { useState } from "react" ; function FileUploader ( ) { const generateUploadUrl = useMutation (api. files . generateUploadUrl ); const saveFile = useMutation (api. files . saveFile ); const [uploading, setUploading] = useState ( false ); const handleUpload = async ( e : React . ChangeEvent < HTMLInputElement > ) => { const file = e. target . files ?.[ 0 ]; if (!file) return ; setUploading ( true ); try { // Step 1: Get upload URL const uploadUrl = await generateUploadUrl (); // Step 2: Upload file to storage const result = await fetch (uploadUrl, { method : "POST" , headers : { "Content-Type" : file. type }, body : file, }); const { storageId } = await result. json (); // Step 3: Save file reference to database await saveFile ({ storageId, fileName : file. name , fileType : file. type , fileSize : file. size , }); } finally { setUploading ( false ); } }; return ( < div > < input type = "file" onChange = {handleUpload} disabled = {uploading} /> {uploading && < p > Uploading... </ p > } </ div > ); } Saving File References // convex/files.ts import { mutation, query } from "./_generated/server" ; import { v } from "convex/values" ; export const saveFile = mutation ({ args : { storageId : v. id ( "_storage" ), fileName : v. string (), fileType : v. string (), fileSize : v. number (), }, returns : v. id ( "files" ), handler : async (ctx, args) => { return await ctx. db . insert ( "files" , { storageId : args. storageId , fileName : args. fileName , fileType : args. fileType , fileSize : args. fileSize , uploadedAt : Date . now (), }); }, }); Serving Files via URL // convex/files.ts export const getFileUrl = query ({ args : { storageId : v. id ( "_storage" ) }, returns : v. union (v. string (), v. null ()), handler : async (ctx, args) => { return await ctx. storage . getUrl (args. storageId ); }, }); // Get file with URL export const getFile = query ({ args : { fileId : v. id ( "files" ) }, returns : v. union ( v. object ({ _id : v. id ( "files" ), fileName : v. string (), fileType : v. string (), fileSize : v. number (), url : v. union (v. string (), v. null ()), }), v. null () ), handler : async (ctx, args) => { const file = await ctx. db . get (args. fileId ); if (!file) return null ; const url = await ctx. storage . getUrl (file. storageId ); return { _id : file. _id , fileName : file. fileName , fileType : file. fileType , fileSize : file. fileSize , url, }; }, }); Displaying Files in React import { useQuery } from "convex/react" ; import { api } from "../convex/_generated/api" ; function FileDisplay ( { fileId }: { fileId: Id< "files" > } ) { const file = useQuery (api. files . getFile , { fileId }); if (!file) return < div > Loading... </ div > ; if (!file. url ) return < div > File not found </ div > ; // Handle different file types if (file. fileType . startsWith ( "image/" )) { return < img src = {file.url} alt = {file.fileName} /> ; } if (file. fileType === "application/pdf" ) { return ( < iframe src = {file.url} title = {file.fileName} width = "100%" height = "600px" /> ); } return ( < a href = {file.url} download = {file.fileName} > Download {file.fileName} </ a > ); } Storing Generated Files from Actions // convex/generate.ts "use node" ; import { action } from "./_generated/server" ; import { v } from "convex/values" ; import { api } from "./_generated/api" ; export const generatePDF = action ({ args : { content : v. string () }, returns : v. id ( "_storage" ), handler : async (ctx, args) => { // Generate PDF (example using a library) const pdfBuffer = await generatePDFFromContent (args. content ); // Convert to Blob const blob = new Blob ([pdfBuffer], { type : "application/pdf" }); // Store in Convex const storageId = await ctx. storage . store (blob); return storageId; }, }); // Generate and save image export const generateImage = action ({ args : { prompt : v. string () }, returns : v. id ( "_storage" ), handler : async (ctx, args) => { // Call external API to generate image const response = await fetch ( "https://api.example.com/generate" , { method : "POST" , body : JSON . stringify ({ prompt : args. prompt }), }); const imageBuffer = await response. arrayBuffer (); const blob = new Blob ([imageBuffer], { type : "image/png" }); return await ctx. storage . store (blob); }, }); Accessing File Metadata // convex/files.ts import { query } from "./_generated/server" ; import { v } from "convex/values" ; import { Id } from "./_generated/dataModel" ; type FileMetadata = { _id : Id < "_storage" >; _creationTime : number ; contentType ?: string ; sha256 : string ; size : number ; }; export const getFileMetadata = query ({ args : { storageId : v. id ( "_storage" ) }, returns : v. union ( v. object ({ _id : v. id ( "_storage" ), _creationTime : v. number (), contentType : v. optional (v. string ()), sha256 : v. string (), size : v. number (), }), v. null () ), handler : async (ctx, args) => { const metadata = await ctx. db . system . get (args. storageId ); return metadata as FileMetadata | null ; }, }); Deleting Files // convex/files.ts import { mutation } from "./_generated/server" ; import { v } from "convex/values" ; export const deleteFile = mutation ({ args : { fileId : v. id ( "files" ) }, returns : v. null (), handler : async (ctx, args) => { const file = await ctx. db . get (args. fileId ); if (!file) return null ; // Delete from storage await ctx. storage . delete (file. storageId ); // Delete database record await ctx. db . delete (args. fileId ); return null ; }, }); Image Upload with Preview import { useMutation } from "convex/react" ; import { api } from "../convex/_generated/api" ; import { useState, useRef } from "react" ; function ImageUploader ( { onUpload }: { onUpload: (id: Id< "files" >) => void } ) { const generateUploadUrl = useMutation (api. files . generateUploadUrl ); const saveFile = useMutation (api. files . saveFile ); const [preview, setPreview] = useState< string | null >( null ); const [uploading, setUploading] = useState ( false ); const inputRef = useRef< HTMLInputElement >( null ); const handleFileSelect = async ( e : React . ChangeEvent < HTMLInputElement > ) => { const file = e. target . files ?.[ 0 ]; if (!file) return ; // Validate file type if (!file. type . startsWith ( "image/" )) { alert ( "Please select an image file" ); return ; } // Validate file size (max 10MB) if (file. size > 10 * 1024 * 1024 ) { alert ( "File size must be less than 10MB" ); return ; } // Show preview const reader = new FileReader (); reader. onload = ( e ) => setPreview (e. target ?. result as string ); reader. readAsDataURL (file); // Upload setUploading ( true ); try { const uploadUrl = await generateUploadUrl (); const result = await fetch (uploadUrl, { method : "POST" , headers : { "Content-Type" : file. type }, body : file, }); const { storageId } = await result. json (); const fileId = await saveFile ({ storageId, fileName : file. name , fileType : file. type , fileSize : file. size , }); onUpload (fileId); } finally { setUploading ( false ); } }; return ( < div > < input ref = {inputRef} type = "file" accept = "image/*" onChange = {handleFileSelect} style = {{ display: " none " }} /> < button onClick = {() => inputRef.current?.click()} disabled={uploading} > {uploading ? "Uploading..." : "Select Image"} </ button > {preview && ( < img src = {preview} alt = "Preview" style = {{ maxWidth: 200 , marginTop: 10 }} /> )} </ div > ); } Examples Schema for File Storage // convex/schema.ts import { defineSchema, defineTable } from "convex/server" ; import { v } from "convex/values" ; export default defineSchema ({ files : defineTable ({ storageId : v. id ( "_storage" ), fileName : v. string (), fileType : v. string (), fileSize : v. number (), uploadedBy : v. id ( "users" ), uploadedAt : v. number (), }) . index ( "by_user" , [ "uploadedBy" ]) . index ( "by_type" , [ "fileType" ]), // User avatars users : defineTable ({ name : v. string (), email : v. string (),