Uploading & Tagging Assets

Upload files, sync files already in storage, and tag and set status on each asset in m18t's Assets Manager — plus the guardrails on uploads and deletes.

What you'll learn

  • How to upload files and sync files that already exist in storage.
  • How tags and status work on each asset, and why they matter downstream.
  • The guardrails m18t puts on uploads and deletes.

Why assets carry status and tags

Most media libraries treat a file as a dumb blob: a name and some bytes. m18t treats an asset as a first-class record. Every file you upload gets indexed in your own database with a brand, a status, optional tags, alt text, and a usage count. That extra structure is what lets you filter a thousand images down to "approved logos for this brand" in two clicks, and what stops you from deleting a file that three blog posts still reference.

Assets draw from the same shared status set as content, emails, and everything else in m18t — planning, testing, production, deprecate, and the rest. The status is a label, not an enforced gate (any transition is allowed today), but two places do read it: a generated image arrives at deprecate and you promote it; and an asset must be at deprecate before m18t will let you delete it. Tags are brand-scoped labels shared with content and news sources — the same tag vocabulary, reused — so "summer-campaign" means one thing across your whole brand. See Linking Assets to Content for how the usage count gets populated.

How to upload files

  1. Open Assets Manager (/studio/assets-manager).
  2. Click Upload in the top bar, or drag files onto the drop zone in the main panel.
  3. In the upload dialog, pick a Target Brand. This is required — m18t will not file your upload under a brand you didn't choose. If your sidebar switcher is set to All Brands, the brand field starts empty and you must choose.
  4. Select one or more files. The per-file cap is 30 MB; files over the cap are dropped client-side with a notice naming each skipped file, so one oversize file can't fail the whole batch.
  5. Click Upload. The files land in your workspace media hub under the chosen brand and the assets namespace, and the storage meter in the top bar refreshes to reflect the new usage.

How to sync files already in storage

If files exist in your bucket but aren't indexed yet — for example after a migration — use Sync Disk (next to Upload). It scans your storage and creates database records for any files it finds that aren't already tracked, then reports how many new assets it added. This indexes existing files; it does not upload new ones.

How to tag and set status on an asset

  1. Click any asset to open its detail panel.
  2. Edit Filename, Alternative Text (used for SEO and accessibility), Brand, Status, and Tags there. Tags are a multi-select drawn from your brand's tag vocabulary.
  3. The panel shows an Unsaved marker when fields diverge from what you opened. Nothing is written until you click Save Changes — closing or cancelling discards edits, by design.

You can also change status inline from the table's status dropdown without opening the panel.

Variations

  • Filtering. The filter bar narrows by status, type (Images / Videos / Documents), and kind (the namespace). Advanced Filters adds a tag filter and a linkage filter (linked vs. unlinked), so you can find orphaned files fast.
  • Downloading. The detail panel's Download button fetches the file through the authenticated, brand-scoped serve route — same auth path as every other call, so it works whether you're on cookie or token auth.
  • Deleting. Deletion is two-gated: the asset must be at deprecate status, and it must not be linked anywhere. If it's still referenced, the server blocks the delete and tells you how many places use it. Set status to Deprecate first, remove the links, then delete.

FAQ

Why is my upload asking me to pick a brand? Because m18t never guesses. When the sidebar is on All Brands, the upload dialog can't infer a target, so you choose one. This prevents files landing under the wrong brand.

A file was skipped during upload — why? It was over the 30 MB per-file cap. m18t drops oversize files before sending so one bad file doesn't fail the batch, and names each skipped file in the notice.

Why can't I delete this asset? Two reasons block deletion: the asset isn't at deprecate status, or it's still linked to content/artifacts. Deprecate it first, then remove any links. The delete dialog tells you which condition is in the way.

What does Sync Disk do? It indexes files that already exist in your storage bucket but have no database record — useful after a migration. It does not upload new files; use Upload for that.

Do tags carry across brands? No. Tags are brand-scoped. The same tag name belongs to one brand's vocabulary; switching brands shows that brand's tags. This keeps a label like "campaign-2026" unambiguous.

What's next

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