Upload content
Upload files to GuruSup Brain before and after your first build. See the limits, every refusal message with its fix, and how to check that your files arrived.
Files are the quickest way to give GuruSup Brain something to learn from. Use them for anything that does not live in a connected app: policies, decks, spreadsheets, exports, contracts.
Only admins can upload. Members do not see the upload screens: if a member opens Sources or Ingest, the app sends them back to Home.
Before you start
- You are an admin of the organization.
- Ingestion is running. If your organization is in Demo Mode, or ingestion is paused, uploading is turned off. See Check source status.
- Your files are supported. See What you can upload and Limits.
Where you upload depends on your first build
Brain has two upload places, and which one you get depends on whether you have built your memory yet.
| Your memory | Where you upload | What you can do with a file you added |
|---|---|---|
| Not built yet | Setup, step Connect your sources, or Home, through Drop files | Remove it. |
| Building or built | Upload files on the Sources page | Nothing in the app. See Removing files. |
Until you build your memory, Sources, Ingest and the other knowledge sections show a preview and the line Available once your memory is built. Before the build is confirmed, admins get a Get started button that goes to Home. After it is confirmed, they read "Brain is preparing your company memory." with View progress. Setup and Home are the only places to upload during this time.
Upload during setup
Upload from the setup step Connect your docs, chats and tools, or from Home while it reads No sources connected yet. Both show the same cards. Drop files, under Additional sources, is for uploading documents once.
Open the upload panel
On the Drop files card, click the + button. A side panel opens, titled Upload documents. It reads "Add handbooks, policies, product guides or meeting notes to give Brain context about your company."
Add your files
Drag files into the drop area or click to browse. The area says "Up to 256 MiB per file". You can add several files at once. A link under it, Which files can I upload?, opens What you can upload.
Watch the rows
Each file gets a row under Uploaded files. Files upload one after another, and each one is uploaded and accepted on its own. There is no usage estimate and no confirm step on this screen.
Close the panel and continue
Click Done. Your files stay listed in the panel, and you can remove them before building. The card turns into a green check labeled Manage Drop files. Click Continue in setup, or Build my memory on Home. The button turns on once Brain has finished checking and a source is connected, a document is ready or something is still being prepared. It does not wait for preparation to finish, but it stays off while a file is still uploading. Uploaded files are first in line for the first build. Building itself is covered in the Quickstart.
What the rows show
Each row shows the file name, a status line and its size in KB. A file you added shows Remove. A failed file also shows Retry.
| You see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| "Waiting to upload…" or "Uploading…", with a spinner | The file is queued, uploading or being accepted. | Wait. Continue and Build my memory stay off until every upload is done. |
| "Preparing file…" | Brain accepted the file and is getting it ready. | Wait. |
| "Ready for your first build" | The file is ready. | Nothing. Click Remove if you added it by mistake. |
| A status saying the file is waiting for available usage | Your usage is spent. | Review your plan in Billing. See Plan and usage. |
| "Could not prepare this file. Remove it and upload it again." | Brain could not get the file ready. | Click Remove, then upload the file again. |
| Upload failed, with Retry and Remove | The upload or the check of the file did not go through. | Hover over Upload failed to read the reason, look it up in Refusals and fixes, then click Retry or remove the file and add a fixed one. |
The drop area can also be turned off. The hint under it then reads one of these lines:
- "This organization is read-only right now" in Demo Mode.
- "Ingestion is paused for this organization" when ingestion is paused.
Upload from Sources
Use this once your memory is building or built.
Open the dialog
Go to Sources in the sidebar and click Upload files. The dialog is called Upload files. The dialog has no intro text. Under the drop area, a line lists the accepted formats and the size limit ("docx, pptx, xlsx, md, txt, csv, json, pdf, or a ZIP or TAR.GZ archive, up to 256 MiB per file") and ends with a link, Which files can I upload?.
Add your files
Drop files anywhere on the dialog, or click the drop area. The area says "Drag files here, or click to browse". Once you have a selection, it adds "Add more files here. Your current selection will stay."
Each file appears under Selected files while Brain uploads it and works out its usage. You cannot add more files or remove one while Brain is still preparing the current ones.
Read the estimate
Each file shows its estimated usage next to its name. Under the list, one line gives the estimate for the whole upload and how much of your usage is left: "Estimated usage: ... for this upload · N% left this period".
Entries Brain cannot use are listed as Unsupported with the path and a reason, and a line says how many entries are "not counted (unsupported)". They are skipped when you confirm.
Confirm
Click Confirm upload.
If the upload would use more than 10% of your usage for the period, a summary comes first. It gives the estimated usage, the share of this period's usage it takes, and how much will be left after the upload. Click Confirm upload again to go ahead, or Back to change the selection. Smaller uploads are confirmed with one click.
When Brain accepts the files, a message reads "Accepted N files", then "M supported", then "K skipped (unsupported)" if any were skipped, and ends "Processing continues in the background." The dialog closes and you can leave the page.
If the button stays off
Confirm upload stays off in these cases:
- Brain is still preparing a file. Wait for the estimates.
- A row says Preview failed. Remove the file (the X) and fix or replace it.
- Nothing in the selection can be used. Add a supported file.
- Two entries share the same path. The dialog lists them under "Resolve colliding Source Item Paths before uploading:" with the number of entries for each path. Remove or rename one.
If you close the dialog
Closing the dialog or clicking Cancel discards the whole selection. Brain also deletes the temporary copies it made while preparing them. Nothing is added to your memory until you confirm. You cannot close the dialog while it is confirming.
If you confirm several files and one fails
Brain confirms files one at a time, in the order of the list. If one fails:
- Files before it are already accepted and leave the list. A message counts them: "Accepted N files ...".
- The failed file and every file after it stay in the list. An error message names the failed file.
- Fix the problem and click Confirm upload again. Files already accepted are not uploaded twice.
If your usage runs out
If an upload is bigger than the usage you have left, the estimate turns red and says by how much. You can still confirm. The files are stored, and they wait as Paused in Ingest. Learning resumes on its own when your usage renews or goes up, so you do not need to upload again. When your usage is fully used, admins also see a banner with View plans. See Plan and usage.
What you can upload
| Type | Notes |
|---|---|
Word, PowerPoint, Excel (.docx, .pptx, .xlsx) | Brain reads the text. A workbook must have saved results for its formulas. |
| Brain reads the text. A PDF with no text (for example a scan) is skipped. A password-protected PDF is refused. | |
Markdown (.md, .markdown) and text (.txt) | Must be saved as UTF-8. |
CSV (.csv) | Must be saved as UTF-8. |
JSON (.json) | Must be valid JSON saved as UTF-8. |
Archives (.zip, .tar.gz, .tgz) | Brain opens them and reads every supported file inside. See Archives. |
Anything else, such as images, old .doc or .xls files, or audio, is listed as Unsupported with the reason "Unsupported file format." and skipped. A selection made only of unsupported files cannot be confirmed.
Folders. You cannot drop a folder. Put it in a ZIP or TAR.GZ archive and upload the archive. Brain keeps the folder structure in each file's path.
Links. The upload accepts files only. There is no field for a URL. To bring in a page, save it as a PDF or Markdown file and upload that, or connect the app it lives in. See Connectors overview.
Archives
- Brain opens archives inside archives, down to four levels counting the outer one.
- Each file inside is treated as its own document. Its path starts with the archive name, for example
handbook.zip/hr/leave.pdf. - macOS metadata is skipped silently:
__MACOSXfolders,.DS_Storefiles and files that start with._. - Two entries whose paths match, ignoring capital letters, count as a collision and stop the upload.
- An archive with a password-protected file, a symbolic link or another unsafe entry is refused whole.
Limits
| Limit | Value |
|---|---|
| Size of one file you upload | 256 MiB (268,435,456 bytes) for the file itself. Documents inside it are limited to 64 MiB each. |
| Size of one document, after expanding | 64 MiB. This also applies to a file you upload directly, so a single PDF, CSV or Markdown file over 64 MiB is refused with "A file exceeds the expanded size limit." Only an archive can be larger than 64 MiB. |
| Total expanded size of one upload | 1 GiB |
| Files and folders inside one upload | 100,000 entries |
| Compression ratio | 200 to 1. A file that expands more than that is refused. |
| Archives inside archives | 4 levels, counting the outer one |
| Depth of a path | 32 parts (folders plus the file name) |
| Length of a file path | 1,024 bytes. Inside an upload, a path of more than 500 characters is refused. |
| Files in one upload request | 1,000. The app sends your files one at a time, so you are unlikely to meet this. |
The size limit is checked in your browser first. A file over 256 MiB is not added, and you see "Upload exceeds the 256 MiB limit. Choose a smaller file."
Refusals and fixes
Messages that name a file show its path where this table shows <path>.
Over a limit
| Message | Fix |
|---|---|
| "Upload exceeds the 256 MiB limit. Choose a smaller file." | Split the file or compress it. |
| "This file is larger than the upload limit. Upload a smaller file." | Same. |
| "These files are larger than the upload limit. Upload fewer or smaller files." | Upload fewer files at a time. |
| "At most 1000 files may be uploaded." | Upload fewer files at a time, or put them in an archive. |
| "A file exceeds the expanded size limit." | A file, or a file inside an archive, is over 64 MiB when opened. Split it. |
| "The uploaded files exceed the total expanded size limit." | The upload is over 1 GiB when opened. Split it into several uploads. |
| "The uploaded archives exceed the entry count limit." or "The upload exceeds the file count limit." | Split the upload into several archives. |
| "An archive entry exceeds the compression ratio limit." or "An archive exceeds the compression ratio limit." | Re-create the archive without the highly compressible file. |
| "The upload exceeds the nested archive depth limit." | Unpack the inner archives and upload their contents. |
| "The upload exceeds the file path depth limit." | Flatten the folders. |
| "An uploaded file path exceeds the name length limit." | Shorten folder and file names. |
| "A file path inside this upload is too long. Shorten its folder or file names and upload it again." | Shorten folder and file names. |
| "Upload exceeds the 25 MiB (26,214,400 bytes) combined limit. Choose fewer or smaller files." | Can appear when Brain uses its fallback upload route. Upload fewer or smaller files. |
The file itself
| Message | Fix |
|---|---|
<path> is password-protected. Remove the password and upload it again. | Save an unprotected copy. |
| "This archive has password-protected files. Remove the password and upload it again." | Re-create the archive without passwords. |
<path> can't be read as a PDF. Check that it opens, then upload it again. | Open it yourself. If it opens, export it again as a new PDF. |
<path> can't be read as an Office document. Check that it opens, then upload it again. | Open and re-save it in Word, PowerPoint or Excel. |
<path> contains formulas without saved results. Recalculate and save the workbook before uploading. | Open the workbook, let it recalculate and save. |
<path> isn't saved as UTF-8 text. Save it as UTF-8 and upload it again. | Re-save the file with UTF-8 encoding. |
<path> can't be read as JSON. Check its syntax and upload it again. | Fix the JSON, for example with a validator. |
<path> can't be opened as a ZIP archive. Re-create it and upload it again. | Create the ZIP again. The same message exists for TAR.GZ. |
<path> could not be read from its ZIP archive. or <path> can't be read from its archive. Re-create the archive and upload it again. | Create the archive again. The same messages exist for TAR.GZ. |
| "The upload contains an unsafe file path." | The archive holds an absolute path, a .. segment, a backslash or a drive letter. Re-create it with relative paths. |
| "The upload contains an unsafe archive symlink." or "... an unsafe archive link." or "... an unsafe special archive entry." | Re-create the archive without links or special files. |
| "This file name can't be used. Rename the file and upload it again." | Rename the file. A name cannot contain slashes or backslashes, or be only . or ... |
| "None of the selected files can be read by Brain. Choose PDF, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Markdown, text, CSV or JSON files, or an archive of them." | Add at least one supported file. |
Skipped instead of refused
These do not stop the upload. They appear as Unsupported in the dialog and are skipped.
| Reason | Meaning |
|---|---|
| "Unsupported file format." | The type is not in the list above. |
| "PDF contains no extractable text." | The PDF holds no text, for example a scan. Make a version with searchable text (run OCR) and upload that. |
| "Document contains no extractable text." | A Word, PowerPoint or Excel file with no text in it. |
When it is on our side
| Message | What to do |
|---|---|
| "Uploads aren't available right now. This is on our side, and nothing was uploaded. Contact support and we'll sort it out." | Contact support. |
| "Brain can't read PDF files right now. This is on our side. Contact support and we'll sort it out." (same for Office files) | Contact support. |
| "Brain couldn't store this file. This is on our side. Try again in a few minutes, and contact support if it keeps failing." | Try again later. |
| "Brain couldn't save this preview. This is on our side, and nothing was uploaded. Try again in a few minutes, and contact support if it keeps failing." | Try again later. |
| "Your files are safely stored, but Brain couldn't start reading them." (with the app adding "Retry the same selection.") | Confirm the same selection again. Nothing is uploaded twice. |
| A message saying uploads are paused briefly while Brain updates your organization | Try again in a few minutes. |
| "This file didn't finish uploading. Choose it again to restart the upload." | Add the file again. |
| "This preview has expired. Preview the file again." or "These files changed since you previewed them. Preview them again." | Close the dialog and add the files again. |
How the app shows them
In the Sources dialog an error appears as a message that starts with the file name, then one of these.
| Status | The message starts with |
|---|---|
| 413 | "Upload exceeds a safety or size limit:" |
| 400 | "Upload selection was rejected:" |
| 503 | "Upload service is temporarily unavailable:" or, when the file is stored, the reason followed by "Retry the same selection." |
| Anything else, such as 403 when uploads are turned off | "Could not upload and preview the file:" while preparing, or "Could not confirm the file:" while confirming |
In the Upload documents panel during setup, the same messages sit inside the tooltip of Upload failed.
Same file twice
Brain treats a file's path as its identity. For a file you upload directly, the path is its name. For a file inside an archive, the path includes the archive name.
- Same path, same content. Brain recognises it as unchanged and does not learn it again.
- Same path, different content. Brain treats it as a replacement of that path.
- Two entries with the same path in one selection. The dialog blocks the upload and lists them as colliding.
The app does not show which of these applies before you confirm, and it does not show what a replacement does to knowledge Brain already learned from the earlier version.
Removing files
You can remove a file only until you build your memory for the first time.
- During setup or on Home, click Remove on its row in the Upload documents panel.
- In the Sources dialog, click the X on a row before you confirm. This only removes it from your selection.
After the first build the app has no way to remove an uploaded file or the knowledge Brain learned from it. There is no delete button on the Uploaded card, and Local Uploads has no Remove source action.
If a removal fails, the message starts "Could not remove" followed by the file name. After the first build, a removal attempt is refused with "Files can only be removed before building your memory."
Check that your files arrived
- Open Ingest in the sidebar. Set the time range to cover your upload and, in the source filter, pick Local Upload. The filter shows the count of updates next to the name.
- Look for rows that read "Ingesting" followed by the file name and "from Local Upload". Each file, or each file inside an archive, is an update.
- Watch the status move from Queued to Learning to Learned. See Follow ingestion for every status.
- Open Sources. The Local Uploads card shows an Uploaded badge, how many documents Brain indexed from your files, and its memories. These numbers grow as Brain reads.
Ingest does not refresh by itself. Click Refresh to see new rows.
The Local Uploads source
Your files feed one source called Local Uploads. It is created when the first upload is accepted. On Sources it has an Uploaded badge where other cards show a status, and no Manage button. You cannot remove it and there is nothing to reconnect or sync. Upload again to add more.