# Best workaround to view/download uploaded files **URL:** \ **Category:** Ask for Help\ **Created:** [October 27, 2025, 8:00am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098 "2025-10-27T08:00:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Paolo\_Cesareo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/paolo_cesareo/32/91697_2.png) [@Paolo\_Cesareo](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Paolo_Cesareo)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 8:00am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/1 "2025-10-27T08:00:04Z")
Hi everyone! I’m new to Glide and I’m exploring its various components, including file management for documents and other types of content. I’m finding it a bit difficult to quickly view or download files after uploading them. From what I’ve researched, it seems there are some server-side limitations, but once a file is uploaded, I still need to be able to view or download it easily. I also tried using the “Link” component, but its design isn’t customizable and doesn’t look very nice as a solution. Has anyone else run into this issue? How did you handle it? Thanks in advance to anyone who can share their experience! ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Murphy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/darren_murphy/32/47326_2.png) [@Darren\_Murphy](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Darren_Murphy)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 8:29am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/2 "2025-10-27T08:29:20Z")
Try the Web Embed component. ---
**Author:** ![Paolo\_Cesareo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/paolo_cesareo/32/91697_2.png) [@Paolo\_Cesareo](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Paolo_Cesareo)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 9:12am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/3 "2025-10-27T09:12:32Z")
Web Embed component? I don’t understand…how this might work you don’t see the file column…maybe I need to understand better how to set it… ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Murphy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/darren_murphy/32/47326_2.png) [@Darren\_Murphy](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Darren_Murphy)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 9:55am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/4 "2025-10-27T09:55:29Z")
When you upload a file, you will get a URL. Use that as the source of a Web Embed component. ---
**Author:** ![Paolo\_Cesareo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/paolo_cesareo/32/91697_2.png) [@Paolo\_Cesareo](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Paolo_Cesareo)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 10:34am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/5 "2025-10-27T10:34:42Z")
Look I don’t know if it just happens to me…, but the Web Embed component doesn’t see the upload file column where the url is as a source… ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Murphy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/darren_murphy/32/47326_2.png) [@Darren\_Murphy](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Darren_Murphy)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 10:46am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/6 "2025-10-27T10:46:53Z")
What type of column are you uploading the file to, and what type of file is it? ---
**Author:** ![Paolo\_Cesareo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/paolo_cesareo/32/91697_2.png) [@Paolo\_Cesareo](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Paolo_Cesareo)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 11:17am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/7 "2025-10-27T11:17:45Z")
I used the multiple files column and uploaded a png and a pdf for testing. In the column I see the URLs [https://storage.googleapis.com/glide-prod.appspot.com/uploads-](https://storage.googleapis.com/glide-prod.appspot.com/uploads-)… In the collection I see files but I can’t open or download them… ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Murphy](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/darren_murphy/32/47326_2.png) [@Darren\_Murphy](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Darren_Murphy)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 11:46am UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/8 "2025-10-27T11:46:36Z")
ah, that’s your problem. A multiple files column is an array type, and you can’t use that in a web embed. Do you actually need to be able to upload multiple files to the same column? If not, just change it to a URL type. If you do need the multiple files column, then you’ll need to do something like exploding the array into a list with a helper table. ---
**Author:** ![Paolo\_Cesareo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/paolo_cesareo/32/91697_2.png) [@Paolo\_Cesareo](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Paolo_Cesareo)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 12:12pm UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/9 "2025-10-27T12:12:15Z")
Wooow now I like it! Thanks Darren! By changing the type of column I saw that I could already open the file in a new window but I also appreciated the possibility of detail with the Embed. Congratulations for the tip. To be explored to decide which best user experience is most useful. Thank youuuuuuuu ---
**Author:** ![Robert\_Petitto](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/robert_petitto/32/25193_2.png) [@Robert\_Petitto](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Robert_Petitto)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 12:23pm UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/10 "2025-10-27T12:23:26Z")
Sounds like we need a tutorial for this. Until then, here’s how: https://www.loom.com/embed/37b8f5c66dc845bc8fc81a5ff8904427 ---
**Author:** ![Gideon\_Lahav\_Busines](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/community.glideapps.com/gideon_lahav_busines/32/41121_2.png) [@Gideon\_Lahav\_Busines](https://community.glideapps.com/u/Gideon_Lahav_Busines)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2025, 5:43pm UTC](https://community.glideapps.com/t/best-workaround-to-view-download-uploaded-files/85098/11 "2025-10-27T17:43:12Z")
Hi Paolo, welcome to Glide! You’re right — Glide has some limitations when it comes to direct file handling. Here’s how you can make it smoother: - **To open or download files:** Use a **Button** or **Link** component with the **“Open link”** action pointing to the file URL. - **To preview files:** If it’s an image or PDF, you can display it directly using the **Image** or **WebView** components. - **Note:** Not all file types are supported in WebView (e.g., DOCX, ZIP, etc.), so those will only be accessible through download. If you want a cleaner design than the default Link component, the Button option usually looks more polished and lets you control the style better. – Gideon Glide Certified Expert