Consider a more powerful version of your WordPress site. Consider using your website as a file management server in addition to a blogging platform. Consider how useful it would be to browse files on your WordPress site and share them with your visitors. No longer, because WP File Download can turn your WordPress site into a file manager, allowing you to do so much more with your webspace.

WordPress file manager that’s simple to use

Explained, WP File Download is a WordPress plugin that functions as a file manager within your WordPress blog. It works and performs similarly to your Windows file browser, allowing you to add new files, move them around, and delete them when they are no longer required.

WP File Download is also straightforward because it is similar to your desktop file browser. Drag and drop files into the WP File Manager interface to get started right away. You can also follow the more traditional method and use the pick files option to explore files on your desktop PC if you like.

The WordPress plugin just introduced support for numerous categories, so you don’t have to worry about choosing where to save a file. If adding a file to two or more types makes sense, click on the file and use the sidebar to select which category it belongs to it.

Uploading and downloading files aren’t the only functions of a file manager. Like your own desktop file browser, WP File Download lets you arrange your files by creating categories that are similar to folders or directories. You can rename directories, nest them to build a hierarchy of classes, and drag-and-drop files into them to organize your repository.

Keeping your WordPress files safe

The most significant distinction between your desktop file browser and your WordPress file management is that on your desktop, files are only accessible by one person: you. Any collaborator on WordPress has access to and can alter your files. Fortunately, WP File Download offers various features that address this.

You can, for example, limit the visibility of a file or category to a single WordPress user. WP File Download lets you pick which user groups can create, edit, delete or even access the plugin, and you can configure access privileges by WordPress user role in general.

Are you still concerned about the security of your data? WP File Download’s email notifications, which are simple to set up, notify you as soon as someone adds, modifies, deletes, or downloads a file. All emails are customizable and optional, so you may turn them off if you don’t mind your files changing.

File versioning, which the file manager provides out of the box, is another more practical and helpful protection. When you or one of your collaborators changes a file, the plugin keeps a copy in the version history for you. If you make a mistake, you can undo it with a single click in the file browser.

I’m going to do even more with files.

WP File Download isn’t only about downloading files—far from it. The plugin’s strength is the sheer number of ways it allows you to do more with files. Exploring files and pinpointing what you need as your WordPress file repository expands may get more difficult. The search engine generator in the plugin mitigates this issue.

You read it correctly: it’s a search engine generator, which means you get to choose the search engine’s features. You can create as many search engines as you want, each with its own set of features. Filtering files by tags or categories, searching just in specific categories, and other features are available in file search engines. A regular WordPress shortcode can be used to incorporate the created search engines.

WP File Download now offers a completely new, powerful icon builder introduced a few releases ago. Right from your WordPress blog, you can create an icon for each supported file format.

All icons are SVG files, which means they’re of the highest quality. You can completely personalize the icon by selecting symbols, frames, colors, and other elements.

Using WordPress to share files

Don’t be fooled by the plugin’s simplicity. WP File Download is the most professional file manager available. It combines the best features of your desktop browser with the full power of the internet, allowing you to share files and make them available for download.

WP File Download excels at allowing you to share entire categories or individual files. You can copy and paste the shortcodes for all types and files anywhere on your WordPress blog, and that means you can include files or categories in articles, pages, or as part of the theme of your website.

These shortcodes can be found in the sidebar of the file manager. While exploring, you’ll see how many customization options are available for both categories and files. To display shared types, WP File Download includes four adjustable themes: a basic theme, a Google Drive-like theme, a tabular layout, and a tree structure.

You don’t want to lose control of your material when sharing it, just like you don’t want to lose control of your files. You can keep full visibility of your downloadable files using WP File Download. A statistics page in the plugin displays downloads stats over time. To learn more about how your WordPress readers utilize your files, you can filter the chart by file, category, and even date range.

WP File Download may be integrated into your WordPress workflow.

WP File Download has the advantage of not disrupting your workflow but rather enhancing it. For example, it works with so many other WordPress plugins, not just the Gutenberg editor but also other popular WordPress plugins and themes.

WP File Download, for example, adds the file and category blocks to the Gutenberg editor. You can embed files and categories for download in any WordPress post or page using these two blocks. However, if you’ve abandoned the conventional Gutenberg, WP File Download will certainly cover your needs.

Elementor, DIVI Builder, and WPBakery are three of the most popular WordPress editors with official integration with the file manager. WP File Download includes three blocks to share files, file categories, and the search engines we discussed earlier in each of these scenarios.

Is your favorite theme builder missing from WP File Download? If all else fails, keep in mind that WP File Download offers shortcodes for embedding files, file categories, and even search engines anywhere you want, in any WordPress editor.

WP File Download has recently added additional compatibility with WooCommerce, the de facto standard WordPress marketplace, to its list of integrations. The role of WP File Download in WooCommerce isn’t just to distribute files but also to sell them as digital downloads.

Using WordPress to import existing files

WP File Download’s standard version is a great value. If you’re thinking about using WP File Download but are hesitant since you already have a curated file collection and don’t want to recreate it manually, know that the WordPress plugin makes getting started much easier.

WP File Download has a function that allows you to import existing files from your FTP server. After enabling server file imports, you can import files directly into a category. You can also import distant files into your WordPress site if the files aren’t on your host.

Integrating WordPress with Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive

By now, it should be obvious that WP File Download can be as robust a file manager as you require. WP File Download comes with an optional add-on that connects your WordPress blog to cloud services if you want a more scalable approach.

Cloud services are becoming more popular since they are cost-effective, scalable, and allow you to collaborate with your colleagues. WP File Download supports four of the most common cloud services, so if you’re interested in this integration, you’re probably covered: Google Drive, Dropbox, Microsoft OneDrive, and OneDrive Business are some of the most popular cloud storage services.

As is typical of the plugin, connecting WP File Download to these providers is quite straightforward. To link your WordPress blog to any cloud service, you may either utilize an app or use a ready-made app: the process takes only one minute.

WP File Download takes care of everything else once you’ve connected your WordPress file to Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, or OneDrive Business. The plugin mirrors your cloud directory structure on WordPress, just like it does with local files and file categories.

The cloud connection is smart, as you’d expect from a professional file manager. All changes are synchronized in both directions, so if you modify WordPress, it will be reflected in the cloud service and vice versa.

WP File Download includes a social locker plugin in addition to interaction with Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, and OneDrive Business. This tool allows you to encrypt files and make them only visible or downloaded when users follow you on social media or share your pages.