Form File Input

Customized, cross-browser consistent, file input control that supports single file, multiple files, and directory upload (for browsers that support directory mode)

<template>
  <div>
    <!-- Styled -->
    <b-form-file
      v-model="file"
      :state="Boolean(file)"
      placeholder="Choose a file..."
      drop-placeholder="Drop file here..."
    ></b-form-file>
    <div class="mt-3">Selected file: {{ file ? file.name : '' }}</div>

    <!-- Plain mode -->
    <b-form-file v-model="file2" class="mt-3" plain></b-form-file>
    <div class="mt-3">Selected file: {{ file2 ? file2.name : '' }}</div>
  </div>
</template>

<script>
  export default {
    data() {
      return {
        file: null,
        file2: null
      }
    }
  }
</script>

<!-- b-form-file.vue -->

For cross browser consistency, Form file defaults to the Bootstrap custom file input to replace the browser defaults. They're built on top of semantic and accessible markup, so it is a solid replacement for the default file input.

Single file (default)

On single file mode, when no file is selected or user cancels Browse dialog, v-model is null indicating no file selected. When a file is selected the return value will be a JavaScript File object instance.

Multiple files

Multiple file uploading is supported by adding multiple prop to component. In this case v-model is always an Array. When no files are selected, an empty array will be returned. When a file or files are selected the return value will be an array of JavaScript File object instances.

Directory mode

By adding directory prop, the user can select directories instead of files. When a directory is selected, the directory and its entire hierarchy of contents are included in the set of selected items. The selected file system entries can be obtained using the webkitEntries property.

CAUTION This is a non standard feature while being supported by latest Firefox and Chrome versions, and should not be relied for production. Read more on MDN

Directory mode is not supported when the file input is in plain mode.

Drag and Drop support

Drop mode is enabled by default. It can disabled by setting the no-drop prop. no-drophas no effect in plain mode.

You can optionally set a different placeholder while dragging via the drop-placeholder prop. The default is no drop placeholder text. Only plain text is supported. HTML and components are not supported. The drop-placeholder prop has no effect if no-dropis set or in plain mode,

Limiting to certain file types

You can limit the file types by setting the accept prop to a string containing the allowed file type(s). To specify more than one type, separate the values with a comma.

<div>
  <!-- Accept all image formats by IANA media type wildcard-->
  <b-form-file accept="image/*"></b-form-file>

  <!-- Accept specific image formats by IANA type -->
  <b-form-file accept="image/jpeg, image/png, image/gif"></b-form-file>

  <!-- Accept specific image formats by extension -->
  <b-form-file accept=".jpg, .png, .gif"></b-form-file>
</div>

To accept any file type, leave accept as null (default). You can mix and match IANA media types and extensions.

Refer to IANA Media Types for a complete list of standard media types.

Note: Not all browsers support or respect the accept attribute on file inputs.

Customize the placeholder text

Use the prop placeholder to change the prompt text that is shown when no files are selected. Only plain text is supported. HTML and components are not supported.

Customize browse button label

If you want to globally change Browse label, you can add something like this to your global stylesheets. Also it is advised to use :lang() for multi-language sites.

.custom-file-input:lang(en) ~ .custom-file-label::after {
  content: 'Browse';
}

Alternatively you can set the content of the custom file browse button text via the browse-text prop. Note, only plain text is supported. HTML and components are not supported.

Customize the formatting of the selected file names

By default, the custom styled file input lists the file names separated by commas. You can customize how the file names are shown either via a custom formatter function or the file-name scoped slot.

File name formatter function

Set the prop file-name-formatter to a function that accepts a single argument which is an array of File objects. The function should return a single formatted string (HTML is not supported). The formatter will not be called if no files are selected.

Regardless of if the prop multiple is set or not, the argument to the formatter will always be an array.

<template>
  <b-form-file multiple :file-name-formatter="formatNames"></b-form-file>
</template>

<script>
  export default {
    methods: {
      formatNames(files) {
        if (files.length === 1) {
          return files[0].name
        } else {
          return `${files.length} files selected`
        }
      }
    }
  }
</script>

<!-- file-formatter-function.vue -->

File name formatting via scoped slot

Alternatively, you can use the scoped slot file-name to render the file names. The scoped slot will receive the following properties:

Both properties are always arrays, regardless of the setting of the multiple prop.

<template>
  <b-form-file multiple>
   <template slot="file-name" slot-scope="{ names }">
     <b-badge variant="dark">{{ names[0] }}</b-badge>
     <b-badge v-if="names.length > 1" variant="dark" class="ml-1">
       + {{ names.length - 1 }} More files
     </b-badge>
   </template>
  </b-form-file>
</template>

<!-- file-formatter-slot.vue -->

When using the file-name slot, the file-name-formatter prop is ignored. Also, the slot will not be rendered when there are no file(s) selected.

Non custom file input

You can have <b-form-file> render a browser native file input by setting the plain prop. Note that many of the custom form-file features do not apply when plain is set.

Contextual state feedback

Bootstrap includes validation styles for valid and invalid states on most form controls.

Generally speaking, you'll want to use a particular state for specific types of feedback:

• 'invalid' is great for when there's a blocking or required field. A user must fill in this field properly to submit the form.
• 'valid' is ideal for situations when you have per-field validation throughout a form and want to encourage a user through the rest of the fields.
• null Displays no validation state

To apply one of the contextual state icons on <b-form-file, set the state prop to 'invalid' (or false), 'valid' ( or true), or null.

Autofocus

NEW in 2.0.0-rc.21

When the autofocus prop is set on <b-form-file>, the input will be auto-focused when it is inserted into the document or re-activated when inside a Vue <keep-alive> component. Note that this prop does not set the autofocus attribute on the input.

Accessibility

When using the custom version of <b-form-file> input which hides the original input, it is highly recommended that you supply a document unique ID string via the id prop. This will automatically render the extra ARIA attributes required to improve usability for persons using assistive technologies.

Clearing the file selection

With inputs of type file, normally the v-model is uni-directional (meaning you cannot pre-set the selected files). However, you can clear the file input's selected files by setting the v-model to either null, an empty string, or an empty array).

Alternatively, <b-form-file> provides a reset() method that can be called to clear the file input. To take advantage of the reset() method, you will need to obtain a reference to the <b-form-file> component.

<template>
  <div>
    <b-form-file v-model="file" ref="file-input" class="mb-2"></b-form-file>

    <b-button @click="clearFiles" class="mr-2">Reset via method</b-button>
    <b-button @click="file = null">Reset via v-model</b-button>

    <p class="mt-2">Selected file: <b>{{ file ? file.name : '' }}</b></p>
  </div>
</template>

<script>
  export default {
    data() {
      return {
        file: null
      }
    },
    methods: {
      clearFiles() {
        this.$refs['file-input'].reset()
      }
    }
  }
</script>

<!-- b-form-file-reset.vue -->

Implementation note: As not all browsers allow setting a value of a file input (even to null or an empty string), b-form-input employs a technique that works cross-browser that involves changing the input type to null and then back to type file.