Files, SFTP and downloads
Many systems still talk in files: a supplier's price list, a warehouse's stock file, an accountant's export. Three steps and one page handle them.
| Step | What it does |
|---|---|
| File transfer (SFTP / FTP) | Reaches a server over SFTP, FTP or FTPS: list a folder, download, upload, delete or move a file |
| Download file | Downloads a file from an https link into Files |
| Files | Your store's files in this app: read a text file, write one, delete or list |
Files is also a page in the app menu. It lists what your workflows stored, lets you upload and download files by hand, and shows your usage against the plan.
File keys
A file in Files is named by a file key, a path of your choice such as imports/stock.csv. Letters, digits, spaces and . _ - / are allowed, without .. and without a leading /. A file with the same key is replaced.
Steps hand files to each other by key: a download stores imports/prices.csv, the next step reads it, an email attaches it.
File transfer (SFTP / FTP)
- Choose the Protocol: SFTP, FTP (not encrypted) or FTPS (FTP over TLS).
- Enter Host, Port (empty means 22 for SFTP and 21 for FTP and FTPS; port 990 uses implicit TLS) and Username.
- Password: never type it here. Save it under Secrets and write
{{ secrets.SFTP_PASSWORD }}. For SFTP you can use a Private key (a secret that holds the PEM key) with an optional Passphrase of the key, instead of or as well as a password. - Optional for SFTP: Host key fingerprint, the server's SHA-256 fingerprint as
ssh-keygen -lfprints it. When set, a server with another key is refused. - Choose What to do:
| Choice | Fields |
|---|---|
| List a folder | Folder, optional File name pattern such as *.csv. Up to 1,000 entries |
| Download a file | File on the server, and Where the file goes: Into Files under a File key, or As text into this step's result (up to 256 KB) |
| Upload a file | Path on the server, and What to upload: A file from Files or Text written here. A file that is already there is replaced. The folder must exist |
| Delete a file | File on the server |
| Move or rename a file | File on the server and New path |
A workflow whose login is written into the step as plain text cannot be turned on. It must read a secret. See Secrets.
To handle every file of a folder, list it, then use the list in a Repeat for each and read each file as loop.item.path. The template Collect new files from your SFTP server and archive them there does that.
Download file
- Link: https only, and a public address. Up to 3 redirects are followed.
- File key: where the file goes in Files.
- Optional Headers, for example an
Authorizationheader from a secret. Headers are sent to the host of the link only, never to a host it redirects to.
A file larger than your plan allows fails the step. It is never cut.
Files step
| Choice | Notes |
|---|---|
| Read a text file | Text files up to 256 KB. The text is in the step's result |
| Write a file | Content is text. One variable that holds an object or a list is stored as JSON. Content type is optional: empty means by the key's ending (.csv, .json, .xml, .txt), else text/plain |
| Delete a file | |
| List files | File keys that start with narrows the list. Up to 1,000 files: keys, sizes and types |
Working with a file's content
Text up to 256 KB can be read into a step's result and worked on: a Liquid script step splits a CSV into lines, a Run function step parses it in JavaScript (it receives the text through input.steps). Larger files move between a server, a link and Files without passing through a step's result.
Limits by plan
| Plan | Files in total | Largest file |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 100 MB | 5 MB |
| Starter | 1 GB | 10 MB |
| Grow | 5 GB | 25 MB |
| Unlimited | 50 GB | 50 MB |
In tests
In a preview, listing and downloading from a server run for real. An upload, a delete, a move and a write to Files are only previewed. Download file downloads and checks the file, but does not store it.
When it fails
A server that cannot be reached, a timeout or a broken connection is tried again automatically. Listing, downloading and uploading can safely run twice; a delete or a move is only repeated when the server was never reached. A wrong login or a missing file fails the step at once. See Automatic retries.
Send a file by email
The Send email step attaches a file from Files by its key, up to 10 MB per email. See Send email and email senders and Recipe: email a daily file from SFTP.
Templates
The category Files and SFTP has complete workflows: drop every paid order as a CSV file on your SFTP server, set stock from a daily CSV file, update prices from a supplier's price list behind a link, copy a file from a link to your SFTP server.