# Files and images in chat Attach with the clip, or paste an image straight into the box. Up to 8 files go with one message. Files uploaded to a chat may be checked for known malware. This check looks at the file, not your chat messages. A clean result cannot guarantee that a file is safe. - **Text files**: are read into the message - **Images**: go to vision-capable models - **Other files**: go to the container ## It stays with the chat Attachments are stored with the chat, so the model can refer back to them later. ## Large files stay in the container A text file over about 100,000 characters is not put into the message. It is kept [in the container](https://zerolog.ch/docs/containers), and the model gets its path, line count and an outline, then reads the parts it needs. That is cheaper, because it does not read the whole file every turn. Files that are not text, such as PDFs or Office documents, go to the container too, and the model gets only their path. You can also put any file there yourself. *What the model reads each turn* ### Attached to the chat Turn 1 Turn 2 Turn 3 The whole file, every turn. ### Read from the container Turn 1 Turn 2 Turn 3 Only the part it needs. The bars sketch the idea. They are not measured sizes. ## Where an attachment goes Mermaid source of the diagram on this page: ```mermaid %% Files and images in chat: where an attachment goes. Facts from web/apps/web/components/chat/attachments.ts, server/attachments.js (INLINE_MAX, MAX_ATTACH_COUNT, grossdateiBlock). flowchart TB file["You attach a file
or paste an image"] img2["Scaled to 1536 px,
sent with the
message"] small["Text goes in
the message"] big["Kept in the
container"]:::hot path["Stored in the
container, only the
path is sent"] parts["Model gets path,
lines and outline,
reads parts"]:::hot file -->|Image| img2 file -->|Text, up to
100,000 chars| small file -->|Text, over
100,000 chars| big file -->|Other file| path big --> parts linkStyle 2 stroke:#8f7ac9 linkStyle 4 stroke:#8f7ac9 ```