Help:Uploading files

Before files, such as images and videos, can be used on, they must be uploaded first. Uploading a file to the wiki is a very simple process and only needs to be done once per file; once a file has been uploaded, it does not need to be uploaded again and can be used on an unlimited number of pages.

For security reasons, it is not possible to "hotlink" images from other sites. This means that pasting the URL for an image will only produce a link to that image, and will not display the image on the page.

Uploading a file from your computer
If the file you want to upload is currently on your computer, you can upload it directly to the wiki. Make sure that the file you are uploading is the correct one and is the way you want it.


 * 1) Visit the upload form
 * 2) Click on '' to select it. Click on the button next to it (depending on your browser, it may be called 'Browse' or 'Choose File').
 * 3) A system dialog box will open that will allow you to find the file on your computer. Double-click on the file you want to upload.
 * 4) Change the  field to something more descriptive, if necessary. For example, Sunflowers growing off Highway 50 in Leslieville.jpg is a better name than simply Sunflower.jpg or Highway 50.jpg''.
 * 5) Briefly describe your file in the '' field. If the file you are uploading is copyrighted and was taken off the Internet, be sure to provide a link to the page you got it from, the author of the file, and why you are uploading it to the wiki. Anything you type in here will be shown on the file description page.
 * 6) In the '' dropdown menu, select the appropriate image license for your file. If the file is copyrighted, make sure you select one of the options under 'Copyrighted'. If you created the file yourself, you can choose the appropriately license yourself. We highly recommend you license your file under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike V4.0 license so other people can reuse it. You can also choose to license it under the Creative Commons CC0 license to release it under the public domain, which means you will give up all rights to the file so anyone can use it freely.
 * 7) When you are ready to upload, click on the '' to complete the upload.

Uploading a file from another website
If the file you want to upload is currently hosted on another website, you can upload it directly to the wiki without first having to download that file to your computer.


 * 1) Copy the direct link to the file you would like to upload. In most browsers, you can get this direct link by right-clicking on the file and then selecting "Copy image address" or "Copy video address".
 * 2) Visit the upload form
 * 3) Click on '' to select it.
 * 4) Paste the URL into the text box next to ''
 * 5) Change the  field to something more descriptive, if necessary. For example, Sunflowers growing off Highway 50 in Leslieville.jpg is a better name than simply Sunflower.jpg or Highway 50.jpg''.
 * 6) Briefly describe your file in the '' field. Be sure to provide a link to the page you got it from, the author of the file, and why you are uploading it to the wiki. Anything you type in here will be shown on the file description page.
 * 7) In the '' drop-down menu, select the appropriate image license for your file. If the file is copyrighted, make sure you select one of the options under 'Copyrighted'. If you created the file yourself, you can choose the appropriately license yourself. We highly recommend you license your file under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike V4.0 license so other people can reuse it. You can also choose to license it under the Creative Commons CC0 license to release it under the public domain, which means you will give up all rights to the file so anyone can use it freely.
 * 8) When you are ready to upload, click on the '' to complete the upload.

Uploading a file through the editor
You can upload files directly to the wiki while editing a page. The file must be on your computer, and you must have created the file yourself in order to do this.


 * 1) Edit the page you want to upload the file to
 * 2) Click on the [[File:OOjs UI icon image-ltr.svg]] icon in the edit toolbar. If you are using the VisualEditor, this button is located under the "Insert" drop-down menu.
 * 3) Click on "Upload".
 * 4) Upload the file from your computer.
 * 5) Check the checkbox to confirm that the file is your own work.
 * 6) Upload the file to the wiki.

Drag-and-drop upload
You can upload multiple files to the wiki by simply dragging and dropping them from your computer.


 * 1) Edit the page you want to upload the file to.
 * 2) Select the files on your computer that you want to upload.
 * 3) Click and drag them over to the box that says ''.
 * 4) You will have the opportunity to rename your files to something more descriptive and to double-check that the files you are uploading are the correct ones.
 * 5) Click on "Upload" to finish uploading.

Uploading to Commons
can use files directly from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of over 50 million free to use files. If the file you want to upload is under a free license, you should upload it to the Wikimedia Commons so that other wikis can use it too.

Files can only be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons if:


 * 1) They are entirely your own work, or if someone has given permission for anybody to use them
 * 2) They are not of something that is currently copyrighted (this means most game screenshots and most images from the Internet are not OK)

To upload files to the Wikimedia Commons, you need to create a Wikimedia account first. If you have a Wikipedia account, you can use the same login there. You can then upload files using their guided upload wizard.

Uploading a new version of an existing file
If you have a better quality version of an existing file on the wiki, you can simply upload a new version of the file. This is done by simply uploading the file with the same name as the existing one. Any page that uses the file will automatically update to show the newer version of the file. It is generally better to upload a new version of an existing file rather than uploading it under a different name, in order to reduce redundancy and clutter on the wiki.


 * 1) Go to the file page of the file you wish to upload a new version of.
 * 2) Scroll down and click on the '' link.
 * 3) You will be taken to the upload form. You can upload the new version of the file from your computer, or from another website on the Internet.
 * 4) Do not change the '' field. If you change this field, the file will be uploaded as an entirely new and different file, with a different file name.
 * 5) You can describe the changes made in the newer version of the file in the '' field. Anything you type here will not be shown in the file description page, but will be shown in the file's upload history.
 * 6) When you are ready to upload, click on the '' to complete the upload.

Keep in mind that you should only use this method if you are uploading a better quality version of the same file. If you want to upload an entirely different file with different contents, you should upload it under a completely different name to avoid overwriting existing files.

Note that it is possible to revert file uploads made in this manner. This is described in Help:Reverting § Reverting images.

After uploading
Once uploaded, files can be used on any page on the wiki right away. Refer to Help:File § Embedding images for how this is done.

Once uploaded, files will have their own revision history, as well a separate page history for the file description page. The file description page is only shown on the file page and is used to describe the file and display copyright information.