Easy-to-Use Flash / PHP Upload Utility

As a PHP developer, I knew there must be a better way to handle file uploads and display the upload status using PHP (and now Python!) as the server side language. I found tons of "solutions", but they were PERL-based and/or just a huge pain to setup. Time is money. I needed something that I could just drop into a site, change very few lines of code, and be done with it.

Are you looking for this too? Well, In-a-Flash Flash Upload Utility is exactly what you are looking for - and it is free!

* In-a-Flash Flash Upload Utility should also be able to work with other server-side programming languages such as ASP and Ruby, but I have little to no experience with those languages. If you are interested in contributing code for these languages please contact me through Verner Web Studio.

Here's What You Get

The uploader you get is to the right. It is really simple to use. Just click the bar that says "Click here to upload files." I have it setup so you can only upload JPEG files less than 1MB (you can customize this yourself). The uploader is also setup to allow users to cancel their uploads and the uploader will automatically remove completed uploads from the list. Notice how easy it is to use and how accurate the progress bar is - plus all the colors are customizable as well as the width! You can set it up with as little as 4 lines of PHP code!

What You Can Do For Me?

The utility is all free. No strings attached, but I would be interested in what sites the application is being used on. Also, if you have any tips or suggestions just let me know, if you have a second. And if you feel the uncontrollable urge to send me some money (via PayPal)... who am I to stop you.

Installation Instructions

Requirements: PHP 4.0+, Flash Player 8.0+

1. Download In-a-Flash Flash Upload Utility (.zip file)

   Legal: The In-a-Flash Uploader can be downloaded and distributed freely in it's current form. In-a-Flash Uploader should be used at your own risk as it can provide a security risk to your server if proper precautions are not taken. By downloading the uploader, you assume these risks and agree you will not hold Verner Web Studio or any of its workers, owners, associates, or affiliates liable for any damages incurred through the use of the In-a-Flash Uploader.

2. Or if you prefer Python, you can download the Python version (.zip file) which was provided by Shane Mason of http://wrongdog.net. Thanks Shane!
3. Add the following code to your page where you want the uploader to be (assuming your page is in the root directory of your site - be sure to replace "YOUR_SITE_URL_GOES_HERE" with your URL e.g. 'http://www.inaflashuploader.com'): <? require_once 'uploader/class.FlashUploader.php'; IFU_display_js(); $uploader = new FlashUploader('uploader', 'uploader/uploader', 'YOUR_SITE_URL_GOES_HERE/uploader/upload.php'); $uploader->display(); ?>
4. In-a-Flash is setup by default to upload the files into a folder called 'dropbox' in the root directory of your site. You'll need to create a directory with write permissions called 'dropbox' in the root directory of your site (you can also change this directory by personalizing your 'uploader/upload.php' page).
5. Note: Some server setups might need you to use an absolute path to your "dropbox" folder (as opposed to the relative one I've used in the sample code). Check your server configuration (or maybe use the phpinfo() function) to get the absolute path to your web directory
6. You can customize your uploader by looking at the more detailed instructions in the in-a-flash-documentation.zip file that is included in the zip file.
7. Note: If you are having problems, try using the uploader/upload-debug.php file instead of the uploader/upload.php file to debug the utility. There are further instructions (as comments) in the upload-debug.php file
8. Having problems with small files (under 50k)? Try adding $uploader->set('small_file_fix', 1); to your code - this turns on a special small file fix that is needed for proper operation on some servers.

Custom Implementations

Contact Verner Web Studio for a custom In-a-Flash Flash Upload Utility implementation or if you have any questions or comments. Take a look at some samples below.