Libraries are where you upload, organize, and manage your brand assets in Frontify. Library pages let you present those assets within guidelines so others can browse and download them.
Library types
Frontify offers different library types to support different assets and workflows. Choose the library type that best suits the content you want to manage.
Library type | What it’s for |
Media library | Store and manage a wide range of files, including images, videos, audio, and documents. |
Logo library | Manage logos in multiple formats, such as SVG, PNG, and EPS, grouped under a single asset so users can download the format they need. |
Icon library | Manage SVG icons with dynamic recoloring, format conversion, and scalable rendering. |
Document library | Store and share uploaded documents, including Word files, spreadsheets, presentations, and PDFs. |
Template library | Organize and share reusable design and publication templates across teams. |
Text libraries (legacy feature): Some accounts may still have access to text libraries. These store predefined text snippets, such as disclaimers, taglines, or approved boilerplate, for use as selectable text options in publication templates. Text libraries are not enabled by default.
Identifying a library’s type
To identify the type of an existing library, check its icon on the brand’s Libraries overview page.
Alternatively, open the library and check the URL in your browser’s address bar. For example, /media indicates a media library, while /documents indicates a document library.
Document library vs. media library asset display
Document libraries and media libraries differ in how assets are displayed and previewed in the consumer view.
Asset display
Document libraries group assets by document category, showing up to four document cards per category by default. Users can select See more or View all to access additional documents. This display limit can’t be customized.
Media libraries display assets in a continuous grid, without category-based grouping. You can customize the view mode, spacing, and width.
PDF previews
In document libraries, document cards on library pages use fixed dimensions, which can cause PDF thumbnails to appear cropped.
Media libraries preserve PDF aspect ratios on library pages and support multi-page navigation when previewing PDFs, without requiring a download.
For more information about managing library pages, see Make assets available through library pages.
Create a library
Create a library within your brand to store and organize assets for your team. Choose the library type that best suits your content, and give it a clear name so others can easily identify its purpose.
Go to your brand and select Libraries.
Select New library in the top-right corner.
Choose the type of library you want to create.
Enter a name for the library.
Configure any additional settings available for your chosen library type.
Confirm to create your library.
Example of the media library creation settings. Available options vary by library type and account configuration.
Library creation settings
Depending on the library type, you can configure additional settings when creating your library.
General options
Workflow template: Apply a saved workflow template with predefined review and approval stages. Workflow templates must be selected during library creation.
Based on guideline: Associate your library with an existing guideline to use its brand definitions and support guideline integration.
AI features
Depending on the library type and account configuration, you may also be able to enable:
AI auto-tagging: Automatically generates tags for uploaded assets.
Brand assistant in DAM: Lets you use natural language to manage your libraries.
Enhanced image search: Uses AI to analyze images in the background to improve search accuracy.
Note: Account admins and owners can create libraries, depending on the permissions configured under Account → Required permissions. Editors can’t create libraries by default, but can be granted creation rights by an account admin. If you don’t have permission to create a library, contact your account admin.
Add a library description
Once you’ve created your library, add a description to help others understand its purpose and identify it when browsing or searching Frontify.
Go to your brand and select Libraries.
On the Libraries overview page, find your library and select the three-dot menu (⋮) on its tile.
Enter a description and save your changes.
Add and manage library assets
Once you’ve created your library, you can upload assets, organize them into folders and collections, and add metadata and tags to make them easier to find and manage.
Upload assets
Once you’ve created a library, you can start adding assets. You can upload individual files, multiple files, or entire folders.
To upload assets:
Go to your brand and select Libraries.
Open the library where you want to add your assets.
Select New in the top-right corner.
Under Create, choose an upload option.
Upload file: Select one or more files from your device.
Upload folder: Select a folder to upload its contents.
Select the files or folder you want to upload and confirm.
You can also drag and drop files directly into your library.
Note: Only users with editor or owner permissions can upload assets.
Learn more about uploading assets and folders to Frontify.
Add metadata and tags
Metadata and tags help you organize your assets and make them easier to find. You can add information such as descriptions, usage rights, and accessibility details, as well as custom metadata fields configured for your library.
To add or edit asset metadata:
Open your library and select an asset.
In the asset details panel, expand Metadata.
Add or update the relevant information including the asset description, alt text, or available custom metadata fields.
Expand Tags to search, add, or remove tags for the asset.
The asset details panel lets you manage metadata, tags, collections, and related files.
To learn more about metadata and managing asset information, see Metadata and tags in libraries.
Organize assets with folders and collections
Folders help you organize and manage assets within a library. You can also share individual folders with users or groups without granting access to the entire library.
Collections let you curate related assets for presentation on library pages. Unlike folders, collections can be made visible to people browsing assets through a guideline.
Learn more about how to invite users to specific folders and manage their access permissions in Folder-level access in Frontify.
Create folders
To create a folder:
Open the library where you want to create a folder.
Select New in the top-right corner.
Under Create, select New folder.
Enter a folder name, configure any optional settings, and create the folder.
You can also update metadata and tags across multiple folders and their assets. Learn more in Metadata and tags in libraries.
Note: Folders are not displayed on the library pages.
Warning: Deleting a document category doesn’t delete its backend folder or assets. However, deleting a backend folder permanently deletes all assets stored within it. Make sure you no longer need these assets before deleting the folder.
Create collections
Collections let you group related assets and make them available to people browsing your library pages.
To create a collection:
Open the library where you want to create a collection.
Select New in the top-right corner.
Under Create, select New collection.
Enter a name for your collection.
To make the collection visible on a guideline library page, enable the toggle beside that page’s name. The associated guideline appears underneath the page name.
Select Create collection.
The toggle displays the name of the connected library page, which may vary depending on your organization’s setup. Empty collections won’t appear on guideline library pages until you add at least one asset.
Add assets to collections
You can add individual assets or multiple assets to a collection.
To add an asset to a collection:
Open your library and select the asset you want to add.
In the asset details panel, expand Collections.
Find the collection you want to use and select the + icon to add the asset. If the collection doesn’t exist yet, you can create a new one directly from this section.
To add multiple assets at once, select them using the checkboxes on their tiles, then choose Edit from the action toolbar. Expand Collections in the editing panel to add the selected assets to a collection.
You can also add assets from an entire folder to a collection:
Select the folder using the checkbox on its tile.
Select Edit from the action toolbar.
In the editing panel, switch from Folder only to Folder assets.
Expand Collections and add the assets to your chosen collection.
You can also enable Include subfolder assets to include assets from nested folders.
Add attachments to assets
You can add attachments to assets in media and document libraries, including alternative file formats, source files, or supporting documents. This lets users download related files alongside the original asset.
To add an attachment:
Open the asset in your library, or select it from the asset overview and select Edit from the action toolbar.
In the asset details panel, expand Relations.
Under Attachments, upload the file you want to attach.
Move assets between libraries
You can move assets between compatible libraries, including media, logo, and icon libraries. Assets can generally only be moved between libraries of the same type, with some exceptions.
Media libraries: Move assets between media libraries only.
Icon libraries: Move assets between icon libraries.
Logo libraries: Move assets between logo libraries or into media libraries. When moving assets to a media library, additional logo formats become attachments. Moving assets in the opposite direction isn’t supported.
Note: Document libraries do not support moving assets directly into media libraries.
To move assets:
Open the library containing the assets you want to move.
Select one or more assets using the checkboxes on their tiles.
In the action toolbar, select Move.
Choose the destination library or project within your brand. You can leave the assets at the root level, select an existing folder, or create a new folder by typing its name in the search field and pressing Enter.
Select Move to confirm.
Changing a library’s type
You can’t change the type of an existing library in Frontify. For example, you can’t convert a document library into a media library, or vice versa. Library types are fixed when they’re created.
To move content from a document library to a media library:
Create a new media library.
Download the files you want to transfer from the existing document library. Upload the downloaded files to the new media library.
Check that the files have been uploaded successfully before removing any content from the original library.
Note: This process transfers the files, but doesn’t convert the original library. Any associated metadata, settings, or links may need to be recreated or updated.
Permissions
Moving assets between libraries requires editor or owner permissions in both the source and destination libraries. Users with viewer permission in the destination library, or folder-level access only, can’t move assets between libraries.
Preserving metadata
Before moving assets, make sure custom metadata fields and their available options match between the source and destination libraries. You also need permission to manage those metadata properties in both libraries.
If the configurations or permissions differ, some metadata may be reset during the move. Review any warnings before proceeding.
Invite collaborators
Invite users to your library to give them access to its assets. You can share the entire library or grant access to specific folders without exposing the rest of its content.
Open your library and select Invite in the top-right corner.
If you’re working within a folder, choose whether to grant access to This folder or the Entire library. At the library level, invitations apply to the entire library.
Add your collaborators and assign their permissions.
Only users with editor or owner permissions can upload or manage assets and folders.
Learn more about inviting team members or adding metadata and tags in libraries.
Make assets available through library pages
Library pages let people browse, search, and download assets directly from your guidelines. They provide access to shared assets without requiring users to navigate the library management interface.
Assets, folders, and metadata are managed in the library itself, while library pages determine how those assets are presented to people viewing your guidelines.
Note: By default, library pages are read-only for consumers. Uploading assets, creating folders, and managing metadata are done directly in the library backend.
Add a library page to a guideline
Open your guideline in edit mode.
Open the Navigation manager from the powerbar.
Under Global navigation, select the + button and select Library.
Select the library you want to connect and confirm.
The library page is added to your guideline’s navigation.
Customize your library page
In guideline edit mode, select Filter on your library page to customize how users find assets. You can configure filters and add facets based on metadata, tags, and other available properties to help users narrow their search.
Customize search filters and facets on a library page in guideline edit mode.
For detailed instructions on configuring these options, see Customizing your media library.
Access to libraries and library pages
Libraries and guideline library pages have separate access permissions. Being invited to a library doesn’t automatically grant access to its connected guideline pages, and access to a guideline doesn’t automatically grant permission to manage the underlying library.
Users with folder-level access can only access the folders shared with them, rather than the entire library.