Using Aeterna
Uploading files
Files go straight from your browser to Arweave and IPFS. There is no size limit — only your storage balance.
How an upload works
- Prepare. Your browser fingerprints the file (and encrypts it first, if you chose to). Large files are read in small pieces, so even very large videos don't need to fit in memory.
- Reserve space. The file's size is taken from your storage balance. If it doesn't fit, you're asked to buy more first — nothing is charged for an upload that can't go ahead.
- Upload. The file is sent from your browser directly to Arweave (large files in 25 MB pieces), then to IPFS as a backup. It never passes through our servers.
- Confirm. Arweave settles the upload over the next few minutes. The page and your vault update as it does.
File sizes
| File | What you get |
|---|---|
| Any size | Stored permanently on Arweave. |
| Up to 1 GB | Also backed up to IPFS. Larger files are stored on Arweave only, and the upload page says so. |
| Up to 1 GB, encrypted | Encryption is available up to 1 GB, because the file is encrypted in memory. Upload larger files without it. |
What the statuses mean
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pending | Recorded, but not uploaded yet. |
| Confirming | Uploaded to Arweave; the network is settling it. It already has a transaction ID you can share. |
| Confirmed | Permanently stored. Counts toward your stored total on the dashboard. |
| Failed | The upload did not complete. Try again — see below. |
If an upload fails
Just upload the same file again. Aeterna recognises it as the same upload, so you are not charged twice for a retry of the same file from the same account. Large uploads also retry each piece automatically before giving up.
“devnet · ~60 days”
If you see this label next to an upload, the service you are using is running on Arweave's test network, where data is kept for about 60 days rather than permanently. It is used for testing; production uploads never carry it.
Keep the transaction ID
Each upload shows its Arweave transaction ID (ar:) and, if backed up, its IPFS CID. The transaction ID is the file's permanent address: it works on any Arweave gateway, with or without Aeterna.Next: how uploads are paid for, in Storage & billing.