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This is an archived copy of the SandyWP docs. It is kept online as a fallback and may be out of date. The maintained documentation lives at docs.sandywp.com.

File Manager

The File Manager lets you browse and edit a sandbox's files right in your browser no SSH client or SFTP setup needed. A file tree on the left, a code editor on the right.

The File Manager file tree on the left and the code editor open on the right
The File Manager file tree on the left and the code editor on the right.

Open it

On any ready sandbox, open the actions menu (the … button) and choose File Manager. The sandbox's own page lists File Manager under Tools in its left sidebar too. It opens over the page you are on.

Browse and edit

  • Tree (left): click a folder to expand it; click a file to open it. There's a search box to jump to a path.
  • Editor (right): a full code editor with syntax highlighting. Make changes and click Save.
  • Theme: toggle the light/dark theme with the sun/moon button; it remembers your choice.

Manage files

The toolbar acts on the Target folder shown in the toolbar and set by your tree selection (a folder selects itself; a file selects its parent folder).

ActionWhat it does
New folder / New fileCreate an empty folder or file in the target folder.
UploadUpload a file into the target folder, with a live progress bar.
Copy / PasteCopy the selected file or folder, then paste it into the target folder.
RefreshRe-read the tree (keeps your expanded folders).

With a file open in the editor, its header has Download, Rename, and Delete as well.

Folders cannot be downloaded directly. Select a folder and use Compress (toolbar or right-click menu) to zip it in the sandbox and download the .zip. The limit is 256 MB uncompressed or 20,000 files, and the temporary archive is deleted after the download starts.

Select a .zip file and click Extract in the toolbar or right-click menu to unpack it into the same folder. Existing top-level files and folders are never overwritten; delete or rename a conflicting path before trying again.

Extraction allows up to 256 MB uncompressed, 20,000 files and folders, and 80 seconds; use SSH for larger archives. If an error reports paths already placed, inspect those paths before retrying; the tree refreshes to show them.

Read-only files

Some files open in read-only mode:

  • Protected files SandyWP's own File Manager and database-helper files can be viewed but not edited. Your wp-config.php remains editable.
  • Binary files images and other non-text files can't be edited in the editor; download them instead.
  • Very large files files too big for the editor are download-only.

Notes

  • The File Manager works on a ready sandbox; it isn't available while a sandbox is still provisioning.
  • It keeps working when a plugin or theme crashes WordPress. To bring the site back, delete or rename the broken plugin's folder under wp-content/plugins.
  • On sandboxes with a very large number of files, the tree may be truncated a note tells you when that happens.
  • Uploads count toward your storage.

Next steps