The ftrack Connect Standalone Publisher is a downloadable connect plugin within ftrack Connect that simplifies the process of publishing and managing versions of files. It allows for direct publishing from a computer to the ftrack system. The tool is designed to streamline workflows without the need to upload files to a server, providing flexibility in how and where files are stored, whether locally or on network storage​.

Publishing files

The Publish tab enables you to create new assets or version up an existing asset on a project without launching an application.

Adding components

An asset version can hold several components. Each component usually represents a file on a disk. You can drag and drop files from your computer into the dashed line area to create a component for each file or browse the file(s) by clicking the Browse button.

Each component’s name will be based on the filename of the file. You can manually edit the name if desired by clicking the name of the component and typing a new name.

A component can be removed by clicking the trash can icon next to each entry.

Selecting a linked entity

Each asset version needs to be linked to an entity on a project. We recommend linking asset versions to tasks, but you can also choose other entity types.

You can select an entity in two ways:

1. By clicking the Browse button next to the Linked to the field in the ftrack Connect app and selecting an entity from the project tree dialog.

2. By clicking the Publish files with Connect button in the top of the sidebar in the web interface.

If you choose the first way: you can navigate through the project by double-clicking items in the list.

The navigation bar at the top will show you where you are, and you can also click an item in the navigation bar to jump back up the hierarchy.

Alternatively, use the neighboring Navigate up button to move up a level at a time.

Creating a new asset or versioning up an existing asset

You can choose to publish a new version of a previously published asset or publish the first version of a new asset.

To create a new asset, enable Create new > Select asset type, and give it a Name.

To publish a new version of an existing asset, select Version up existing and then the name of an existing asset in the list.

Other optional properties

1. Web playable

   1. Selecting the Web playable option encodes the file to be playable directly in the web browser. This will also update the thumbnail.

2. THUMBNAIL

   1. If not selecting the Web playable option, you can upload a thumbnail for this asset version by dragging and dropping an image file here.

3. Description

   1. You can enter a brief description of the published asset or the changes made since the last published version. Adding context to the asset can be especially helpful for your teammates.