File-Upload-Cache

This is a rails engine that provides a simple method for restoring file uploads from the server after a validation error. Typically users are required to reupload the same file to the server between posts if there is a validation error on a different field.

Stack

This tool is designed to provide components that work with the full stack, to provide this functionality in the simplest way for a user.

Requirements:

• Rails 3+

Additional Hooks (these will optionally add functionality out of the box, but these components are not required to use the other functionality)

• Formtastic (new input added for cached file uploads)
• CarrierWave (works with CarrierWave uploads to cache them)

File-Upload-Cache works like CarrierWave's Cache

• Make uploads work across redisplays
• Leverages hidden fields on the forms, to prevent reuploading the same binary data multiple times
• Allow a user to remove an asset

Implementation Differences From CarrierWave Cache

• Stores the cached file data in a cache instead of directly on the filesystem. By default it uses Rails.cache, but this can be configured to use any class that implements write(key, value) and read(key). This means that unlike the CarrierWave solution:
  • This will work on systems that are load balanced so long as they share the same cache
  • Can be easily configured to use different stores instead of just the file system (redis, memcache, etc)
  • Cached assets are served through the rails environment as dynamic content, instead of static content that can be served directly by Rack or a server like Apache or Nginx.
• Built in integration with the full stack. Formtastic integration & Javascript for dealing with the cached value
• Works with heroku without needing to change rack configuration file (config.ru)
• Don't need to deal with cleaning up the data (caches can be configured with ttl)

Instructions

Add to Gemfile

gem 'file_upload_cache'

Add integration to the model. For example, a field called avatar the following could be used to add caching on an existing image field.

  cached_file_for :avatar
  attr_accessible :avatar, :avatar_cache_id

Change formtastic input to use the uploader input, provided by this engine

f.input :avatar, :as => :uploader

Add the following javascript to the pages that have the input in it:

  window.file_upload_cache = window.file_upload_cache || {};
  window.file_upload_cache.initialize = function() {

    $.each($('.cached_file'), function(index, element) {
      var id = '#' + element.id,
      $id = $(id),
      $cache = $(id + "_cache"),
      $replace = $(id + '_replace'),
      $existing = $(id + "_existing");

      if($cache.val()){
        $(id).hide();
      }
      $($replace).click(function() {
        $($id).show();
        $($existing).hide();
        $($cache).val(null);
      });
    });
  }

  $(function() {
    window.file_upload_cache.initialize();
  });

Optionally add this to your stylesheet to have the fields displayed inline:

  .cache_existing { display:inline; margin-left:10px }

Demo Application

An example of using file_upload_cache with carrierwave can be found here: https://github.com/kenmazaika/pictures. The demo of the gem can be viewed here: http://cold-sunset-3667.heroku.com/.

Documentation

Without Carrierwave