Reconsider placing uploaded fonts within the uploads directory

[johnbillion]

In #53965 the decision was made to use the wp-content/fonts directory for uploaded fonts rather than wp-content/uploads/fonts.

Following this discussion in Slack about the Font Library, this decision should be reassessed. There are pros and cons for using wp-content/fonts versus using a fonts directory within the uploads directory, some of which are technical.

Notes

• wp-content/uploads/fonts is referred to in this issue but technically this means the fonts subdirectory within the configured uploads directory.
• This is separate to the discussion about treating uploaded fonts as attachments. Files can be uploaded to the uploads directory without having to be associated with an attachment.
• The fonts directory could be named wp-fonts or something else to minimise the chance of a conflict with a directory used by an existing font management plugin, that's not a concern for this issue.
• The "pros" of using wp-content/fonts seem to be more philosophical, whereas the "cons" seem to be more technical.

Arguments in favour of wp-content/fonts

• We should keep uploads for things you insert into posts.
• If we end up adding folders to media library and someone adds a "fonts" folder for some reason.
• The upload folder being wp-content/fonts was an explicit design decision to treat the font library as a distinct resource, not coupled with media as a representation.

Arguments in favour of wp-content/uploads/fonts

• Directories outside of wp-content/uploads may not be writable, either as a security measure or due to offloading uploaded media to a CDN
  • This is potentially a blocker
  • A discussion on this topic has been started in the #hosting channel in Slack
  • This has been raised previously
  • The decision to store fonts outside the uploads folder is problematic for immutable file systems and set ups in which user uploads are offloaded. It's not simply a case of making the directory writable, plugins will need to be updated, servers reconfigured.
  • This could affect high impact hosts such as WordPress VIP, any site using security hardening plugins, or any site using DISALLOW_FILE_MODS
• Font files are uploaded by users, therefore it makes sense to place the uploaded files within the uploads directory
• Personal data export files are placed within the uploads directory. Even though there is no specific discussion on that decision in the core Trac ticket for that feature, it's likely this was done for the technical reasons above.

Please comment with any further arguments in favour or against either location.

[priethor]

I believe the fonts location should be outside uploads for the above reasons, which outweigh the cons. Furthermore, I would argue that users don't upload the fonts; they are downloaded from external directories just like themes and plugins.

Since the primary reasons for using the uploads folder seem to be practical reasons to ensure compatibility, why not use it only as a fallback or allow a setting to configure it?

[hellofromtonya]

For historical context, during 6.4's merge consideration, this concern was raised. But the discussion didn't continue forward and IMO was unresolved.

Why? The primary focus was on the REST API's architecture as it was the biggest blocker and highest priority at that time. I suspect it consumed the focus and times, leaving less for deeper reviews and follow-ups.

[costdev]

I believe the fonts location should be outside uploads for the above reasons, which outweigh the cons. Furthermore, I would argue that users don't upload the fonts; they are downloaded from external directories just like themes and plugins (maybe wp-content should be considered instead?).

I agree. I think from an organisational perspective, wp-contents/fonts is the correct choice. IMO, we should be looking at what's needed to make that work, and the lead time needed on all fronts to make sure it's usable at release.

uploads, plugins, mu-plugins, themes, upgrade and upgrade-temp-backup are directories located in wp-content. Deployment setups will largely only have uploads as a writable directory there. I understand why this would lead us to putting a fonts subdirectory in uploads instead to avoid technical implications, though I think that would be us leaning into what's easier and immediately workable, though it's also a permanent decision for BC. To me, it feels more like we need to work on a solid communication strategy and affording appropriate timeframes to facilitate this change, than on the implementation.

If we were introducing the wp-content/uploads directory, and all of the same technical implications existed, how would we go about introducing this new writable directory, communicating this to hosts, developers and users, with enough time for identifying issues and for everyone to do what needs done to make it work?

[hellofromtonya]

I would argue that users don't upload the fonts; they are downloaded from external directories just like themes and plugins (maybe wp-content should be considered instead?).

I'm not sure I understand @priethor. Can you share more?

Media (images, videos, audio, PDFs, etc.) can also be first downloaded from somewhere (a camera, recording device, external media providers, etc.). It's the same for fonts as a user can upload a font file that they have stored on their computer.

[swissspidy]

Initial response from asking in the #hosting channel:

Both Pantheon and WordPress.com VIP change the default location to wp-content/uploads/fonts because the current location doesn't work for them. See https://github.com/pantheon-systems/pantheon-mu-plugin/blob/main/inc/fonts.php and Automattic/vip-go-mu-plugins#5265.

If they have to add workarounds to make the feature work for them, that's an indicator that the default location is maybe not the best.

[costdev]

If they have to add workarounds to make the feature work for them, that's an indicator that the default location is maybe not the best.

I agree that it's perhaps an indicator, though I'd like to know about the roadblocks to them and others making the new wp-content/fonts directory writable instead of filtering to wp-content/uploads/fonts. I think it's important that we document the reason(s) why one possible path is chosen over another.

[johnbillion]

This is because the uploads directory is mounted on a completely separate filesystem to facilitate horizontal scaling, replication, CDN etc. It's not just about making other directories writable.

Most WordPress hosts that provide scalable architecture work in the same way, and it's nothing new. Some docs here for Altis Cloud as an example: https://docs.altis-dxp.com/cloud/s3-storage/.

[andreilupu]

I think that any uploadable should go to wp-content/uploads/ because this is the premise that we all followed by either plugin/themes developers, hosts, etc.

Introducing uploaded files outside of wp-content/uploads/ will introduce a new level of complexity. I can only imagine how many troubles this will bring to

• multi-sites with front-end editors & upload capabilities.
• external storages
• CDNs (while any production site will want to cdn the fonts)
• Docker instances that assume wp-content/uploads/ as a separate volume.
• Hosts that use git as file versioning/backup systems; they usually treat wp-content/uploads/ differently.