7.1.2. Uploading Files Using the File Transfer Client

Engineering Knowledge Manager

User's Guide | Chapter 7: Transferring Files | 7.1. Uploading Files to EKM |

7.1.1. Uploading Files/Archives Using the Web Client Browser |  | 7.1.3. Uploading Files from the Server
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### 7.1.2. Uploading Files Using the File Transfer Client

The EKM File Transfer Client is a unique file transfer application that you can launch directly from within the EKM web client. You can use the File Transfer Client to transfer files or archives from your local computer to the EKM repository. The File Transfer Client is ideal for larger transfers (2 GB or more). Unlike the browser, it also permits the transfer of folders, and maintains the structure of folders upon upload.

The File Transfer Client is a full-featured Java application that is launched by a Java Web Start application. When you choose to use the File Transfer Client for uploading files, a Java Network Launch Protocol (JNLP) file is first downloaded to your system. The JNLP file instructs the Java Web Start application to download and run the File Transfer Client application.

If you are using a proxy server and authentication is required to access the proxy server, you will be prompted to specify a User name and Password for the proxy server, as shown below:

Enabling the Save user name and password check box will store your user name and password in memory, and will prevent the Proxy Authentication dialog box from appearing in the future. Note that your password will be encrypted before being saved. If you do not choose to save your user name and password, you will be prompted to specify your credentials every time the File Transfer Client is launched.

When you launch the File Transfer Client, a wizard prompts you to select files for upload. When a transfer is started, the File Transfer Client displays the current stage of the transfer and provides visual feedback of its progress.

You can upload any number of files and folders to an EKM repository from your local file system when the following conditions are met:

- You have `Create` permission on the folder to which you want to upload.

- The folder is checked out to you if it is under version control.

- No other user has exclusive control of the folder.

The File Transfer Client enables you to use a cache service for file transfers. See Using a Cache System for WAN Transfers.

To upload files or folders using the File Transfer Client:

1. Select the folder that you want to upload files to.

2. Select (Upload) > Files/Folders Using EKM File Transfer Client. This launches the Upload to EKM wizard:

   Note: If your browser asks you if you want to open or save the LaunchFtc.jnlp application, specify that you want to open the JNLP file with the Java(TM) Web Start Launcher, and then check the Do this automatically for files like this from now on box.

3. Select the files and folders that you want to upload. There are two ways to do this:

   - Click the Add button, and then select the files and folders in the Open dialog box. You can select multiple files simultaneously in the Open dialog box. To select consecutive files, hold down the Shift key while selecting files. To select non-consecutive files, hold down the Ctrl key while selecting files. Once you have selected the desired files, click Open to add them to the wizard.

   - If the files are currently displayed in a window such as Windows Explorer, or are on your desktop, you can simply drag them into the wizard.

   As you add items to the wizard, the total number of files and folders and the total size of those items is displayed below the file list pane:

   Note that files will be transferred in one transaction and not separately (one by one). To ensure successful transfers, the EKM server has a set maximum for the number of files that can be uploaded at one time. If the number of files that you have added to the Upload wizard exceeds the number allowed by the server, a warning will appear, and you will need to remove some of the files from the wizard and upload them in a separate transaction.

   Note: Certain types of files (for example, Workbench projects or project archives) will create additional objects in the repository during upload. This is an important consideration when determining the number of files to upload at one time, as these additional objects may cause the limit to be exceeded, resulting in an upload error.

   If a file cannot be uploaded for any reason, it will appear grayed out in the file tree and the reason will be given in the Reason not uploaded column. For example, in the figure below you can see that the Document[].txt file did not get uploaded because it has an invalid file name. (File names cannot include [ ] characters.) Others reasons may include not having the proper permissions for the file, or issues with network connectivity.

   Note:

   - Workbench projects should be added to an EKM repository as complete projects (that is, a .wbpj file and its associated _files folder). Whenever you upload a Workbench project, EKM will create an archive file (.wbpz file) for the project and upload only the archive to the repository in lieu of the project. You can specify whether or not you want to compress archive files prior to transfer. See Specifying General Preferences.

     Unlike the web browser method, when you upload an archive file using File Transfer Client, you are not given the option of expanding the archive during the transfer process. Instead, an archive is saved in a repository location as an `Archive` type. You need to manually extract the contents of an archive file after it is uploaded using the Extract action that is available only in the web client. Refer to the section on Extracting Archives in the EKM User's Guide for details.

   - If you are uploading an archive file (such as a .wbpz file) the file size displayed in the File Transfer Client is for the zipped file only, and is not indicative of the actual size of files being transferred (for example, the size of the .wbpj file and the _files folder). After the upload, the file size displayed in EKM reflects the expanded size.

4. If you selected a folder to upload, and would like to exclude particular files or folders within it, select the folder in the list and then click the Exclude Folder Content button. The Exclude Folder Content dialog box appears:

   In the Exclude Folder Content dialog box:

   - You can exclude a file/folder explicitly by enabling the Select files and folders option. Select the file or folder directly in the tree, and then click Exclude >. The object is copied to the excluded list in the right pane and grayed out in the tree.

   - You can exclude a file by specifying one or more patterns for it by enabling the Specify pattern(s) for files option. Enter the pattern (or patterns separated by a comma) in the text box and click Exclude > to add it to the excluded list. The pattern can include wildcards: '`*`' for any occurrence of any character, and '`?`' for a single occurrence of any character.

     For example:

     file?.txt will match file1.txt and file2.txt but not file12.txt.

     file*.txt will match file1.txt and file12.txt but not file12.doc.

   - To return an item back to its folder, select the item in the exclusion list and click < Restore.

   - When you click OK in the dialog box, you will return to wizard. The files that you selected for exclusion will be grayed out in the file list pane, and the reason given in the Reason not uploaded column will be Excluded from upload, as shown in the figure below.

   Important: You cannot exclude the contents of a Workbench project’s `_files` folder.

5. To remove a top-level folder from the upload, select it in the list, and then click Remove.

6. If any of the files being uploaded already exist in the target location, the Next > button is enabled. Click Next > to view a list of existing files, and then select the ones that you want to overwrite (or check Select all to select all of them). If a file remains unselected, it will not be uploaded, and the file in the target location will not be overwritten.

   Items that are under version control can be checked in during this step.

   - If a file/folder is not selected, it remains checked out to you and the file contents are overwritten.

   - If a file/folder is selected for check in, it is updated and then checked back in. Its version will increment by one after upload.

7. Click Finish to start uploading the files. During the first stage, the File Transfer Client creates folders in the repository to receive the uploaded files. Next, files will begin uploading to the server. The uploaded files will then be imported into the repository. The File Transfer Client reports the current stage of the transfer (for example Creating folders, Uploading files or Complete) in the Stage column, and displays the progress of the current stage in the Progress column. If you hover over the Transfer cell you can view the transfer type, destination, date, and transfer start time.

   If any files fail to transfer, the progress bar will turn red, and the number of errors will be reported in the Progress column.

   Note: As mentioned earlier, the EKM server has a set maximum for the number of files that can be uploaded at one time. The File Transfer Client will prevent the upload if the maximum number of objects is exceeded. In some instances, uploading large numbers of certain types of files (for example, Workbench projects or project archives) may result in an error, even if the number of files that you are uploading does not appear to exceed the maximum. When these particular types of files are uploaded, additional objects that the File Transfer Client is unaware of are created in the repository during upload. These additional objects may cause the limit to be exceeded, resulting in a failed upload. In these cases, reduce the number of files being transferred and retry the upload.

   The Actions column displays buttons for various actions that you can perform, such as stopping or retrying an upload. These actions are described in the steps below.

8. To stop the upload, click in the Actions column. The status changes to Cancelled in the Stage column.

9. If the transfer was stopped, or if any files failed to upload, you can retry the upload by clicking in the Actions column. A new entry will be added to the File Transfer Client window, and the transfer will start again from the beginning.

   Note: If you are uploading a Workbench project and it fails to upload for any reason, you cannot retry the upload using the retry action. You must start a new upload of the project.

10. To display a log of the transfer status at any time during or after the upload, click in the Actions column. This can be particularly useful if there were any failures. In addition to the date and start/end times, the log reports the number of files transferred, the number of failed transfers, the source path of files that failed to transfer, and the reason that files failed to transfer.

    Alternatively you can send a copy of the log to the Clipboard by clicking in the Actions column, and then pasting it into a text editing application.

11. Transfers remain in the File Transfer Client until you delete them. To delete a transfer, select it and then click in the Actions column.

12. When you are finished uploading files, close the File Transfer Client.

Once files have been successfully uploaded you can define any required properties, or apply descriptions and images to them. For more information, see Edit Properties.

Note: If the file transfer has failed, and the EKM session has timed out, follow these steps to retry the transfer:

1. Close the File Transfer Client.

2. Sign in to EKM to start a new session.

3. Start an upload or download of any file using the File Transfer Client, then cancel the wizard. The File Transfer Client window is displayed.

4. Retry the failed transfer by clicking in the File Transfer Client.

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