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What is the File Library?

The Nodinite File Library is a centralized store for reusable non-image files. It complements the Image Library by giving you one place to manage PDFs, Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, JSON examples, XML schemas, ZIP packages, and other governed shared assets that should be linked from multiple places.

The Problem It Solves

Before the File Library, teams typically had to:

  • Upload the same runbook or specification as a new Attachment on every entity that needed it
  • Paste environment-specific URLs into Articles and update them again after each move to Test or Production
  • Keep schemas and sample data in file shares or third-party tools that were disconnected from the Repository
  • Lose control over which file formats were acceptable for shared documentation

The File Library solves these issues by storing a reusable Shared Asset once and resolving it wherever the file is referenced.

Key Capabilities

Capability Description
Upload Upload shared files that match the MIME types allowed by SharedFilePolicy.
Search Search by name slug, title, description, and tags.
Tags Organize shared files with free-form tags for teams, systems, or use cases.
Copy Reference Copy a portable {ndf} reference for token-based insertion in Markdown or HTML content.
Edit metadata Update file title, description, and tags without replacing every consuming reference.
Archive Soft-delete a shared file and restore it later if needed.
Reuse Link the same Shared File from Articles and Custom Metadata without storing duplicate binaries.

Every shared file is identified by a unique name slug such as deployment-guide or sap-order-schema. Newly inserted references use the slug form so the same content works across environments.

HTML Reference

When a WYSIWYG editor inserts a shared file link, the rendered HTML can look like this:

<a href="/api/SharedAssets/name/deployment-guide/File"
   data-ndf-name="deployment-guide"
   target="_blank"
   rel="noopener">Deployment Guide</a>

Markdown Reference

In Markdown, the same shared file is referenced with the {ndf} token:

[Deployment Guide]({ndf}/deployment-guide)

The renderer resolves {ndf}/deployment-guide to the shared asset URL at runtime. That is why token-based insertion is preferable to hard-coded environment URLs.

Shared File vs Attachment

Attachment Shared File
Storage Binary copy per metadata value Single reusable file in the File Library
Reuse Upload again for each entity Reference once, use everywhere
Searchable library No Yes — search by slug, title, description, and tags
Best for Private, entity-specific content Shared documentation and reusable technical assets
Updates Replace file on each entity Update shared file once and keep existing references
Governance Local upload rules per value Central policy through SharedFilePolicy

Use Attachment when the file belongs only to one entity. Use Shared File when the same document or technical artifact should appear across Articles, Integrations, Systems, Services, or architecture views.

The File Library is governed by SharedFilePolicy. The initial documented configuration allows business and technical document formats such as:

  • PDF
  • Plain text and CSV
  • JSON, XML, and text XML
  • Word, Excel, and PowerPoint Open XML formats
  • ZIP packages

The policy also defines the default link behavior. The documented example opens shared files in a new tab and lets browser-displayable content stay in the browser when possible. This avoids forcing downloads for every PDF or text-based document.

Permissions

Operation Required Permission
View shared files and open links Authenticated
Upload shared files Administrator or Repository Articles write access
Edit shared file metadata Administrator or Repository Articles write access
Archive and restore shared files Administrator or Repository Articles write access

The File Library reuses the same broad viewing model as the Image Library. If a user can read the article or entity that references a shared file, the link itself must also be usable.

File Lifecycle

When a shared file is archived or missing, Nodinite returns a user-friendly response instead of leaving users with an unexplained raw 404. This makes broken references visible and easier to fix.

If you need to replace a file while keeping existing references intact, upload a new version under the same name slug. Existing Articles and Shared File references continue to resolve to the same shared asset identity.

Where Shared Files Appear

Shared Files can be used in the following places:

  • Articles as reusable documentation links
  • Shared File custom metadata on repository entities
  • C4 and Mapify read-only metadata panels that render Custom Metadata
  • Any surface that already displays shared asset-backed metadata values

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