Managing your data useage in Workspace

Why is the amount of data that Workspace says I've used in my account more than the total file data that I've uploaded?

In this article we'll explain why this is, and make some suggestions for managing your data usage  effectively.

The files you upload are not the only component that contribute to your data usage. Your price lists, favicon, logo and watermark images etc all contribute, but the most important by far are proxies.

Workspace proxies

Workspace creates multiple proxy images (or display images) for each image file you upload. For example the following proxies are created every time you upload a file:

• Small thumbnail images
• Big thumbnail images
• Low-res proxies
• Large proxies
• Watermarked versions of the images (if you're using the watermark function).

Why proxies?

Proxy images are a very important part of online image hosting and every platform uses them:

• They  improve page loading time, and
• They  help protect your image files from misuse or theft.

How they work

Proxy images work by creating smaller versions of the high-res files that you upload. Viewers see the proxies on their screens, never the high-res file.  If the high-res file was displayed, not only would your site be maddeningly slow —  loading a site with thousands of 10GB files would take forever! — but you'd run the risk that some viewers would download or screen-shot your images to retain or print without paying you for the right to do so.

Which proxy the viewer sees depends on where the image is to be displayed — for example a single image that takes up much of the screen, or a display of multiple thumbnails.

If  you’re uploading  a few very large image files, the proxies will seem almost negligible by comparison. However if you're uploading thousands of  small images, the proxies can add up quickly.

Here are a few ways to manage your data use effectively

1. Turn off high-res proxies

High res proxies look best on your website, but can have a big impact on your data allowance — and if the files you're uploading aren't much bigger than the high-res proxies anyway, you won’t save much. To turn high-res proxies off, go to your image gallery defaults in Workspace and select the smallest maximum proxy size.

2. Delete any unused images in your media library

Open the image widget in Workspace websites, click the ‘media gallery’, hover over any unused images and click the ‘x’ icon to delete them.

3. Remove your watermark

Protecting your work is important, and we get that, but if you're worried about space on your account, be aware that images you watermark will generate an additional proxy for everywhere that you watermark your image. Removing the watermark, even from just the thumbnail image can make a big difference.

4. Upload smaller files for your website pages and logos

Uploading high-resolution images where they're not required not only slows down page loading but uses up data unnecessarily. We recommend the following sizes for your websites to keep a crisp look without uploading  unnecessarily large files:

• Logo: 940px maximum
• Banner images: 1600px
• Image widget: 600px
• Feature images: 500px"

5. Don't upload unnecessarily large files to your image galleries

If the largest print you're offering is an A2, or 24x16, don't upload a file that's big enough to print a magnificent 60x40 canvas — that's more than six times the data! You can manage the size of customer image downloads too.

Click here for more about our file specifications and recommendations.