Setting a Primary File Type for Multi-File Documents

Note: This content is no longer updated. For the latest content, please go to the user guide for M-Files Online. For information on the supported product versions, refer to our lifecycle policy.
You can set a file type of your choice to act as the primary file type for multi-file documents in the vault. This has these effects:
  • The icon of the specified file type is shown as the icon of the multi-file document.
  • The Preview Tab shows the preview of the primary file when the multi-file document is selected.
  • Double-clicking the object does the default action of the primary file type.
Note: This feature is supported in M-Files Desktop only. The common Windows dialogs, such as Open or Save As, are not affected by the primary file type settings.

To specify a primary file type to be used in a vault of your choice, do the following steps on the M-Files server computer:

  1. In M-Files Admin, go to the Advanced Vault Settings section.
    1. Open M-Files Admin.
    2. In the left-side tree view, expand an M-Files server connection.
    3. Expand Document Vaults.
    4. Expand a vault.
    5. Click Configurations.
    6. In the navigation area, click Advanced Vault Settings.
    7. Open the Configuration tab.
      Result:The advanced vault settings are shown.
  2. Expand Multi-File Documents and select Primary Files.
  3. Click Add Document Class.
  4. Expand the newly created node and select a class value for the Document Class setting.
    This value specifies the object class to which the setting applies.
  5. Expand File Name Filters and click Add Filter.
    These filtering settings specify the primary file type for the selected class.
  6. Expand the newly created node and specify a value for the Filter setting.
    The value can include wildcard characters, for example: order-?.txt or *.pdf.
    Enter only a single value for each setting node. You can, however, add as many setting nodes with the Add Filter command as you need.
    The filtering values are evaluated from top to bottom. You can move a setting up or down by right-clicking it (the node level under File Name Filters) and selecting Move Up or Move Down in the context menu.
  7. Click Save once you are done with your changes.
  8. Restart the vault for the settings to take effect.
    Note: Taking a vault offline should always be done in a controlled manner and the vault users should be notified beforehand.
Multi-file documents of the selected class stored in this vault and any connected external repositories now use the specified file type as their primary file and behave as described at the top of this section. If the document contains more than one file matching the filtering conditions, the file that has been added first is used as the primary file.