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Data and Automations Across Child Sites

The Parent Site reaches Child Site content through the underscore folder, which is the only bridge between sites. File transfers, automations, syncs, and API access all behave according to which side of that bridge they were created on.

Transferring Files Between Parent and Child Sites

Parent Site Administrators can move or copy files between the Parent Site and any Child Site by choosing a Child Site folder as the source or destination. They can also move or copy files between two Child Sites by working through both sites' folders under the Parent Site's underscore folder.

Users logged in directly to a Child Site cannot move or copy files to the Parent Site or to any other Child Site. Cross-site file movement runs through the Parent Site only.

Automations with Child Sites

A Parent Site Administrator can create automations on the Parent Site that interact with Child Sites through the underscore folder. A Move, Copy, Create Folder, or Delete automation on the Parent Site can target any Child Site folder for its source, destination, or both.

Every automation belongs to one site and is managed only through that site. A Parent Site automation that targets a Child Site folder still lives in the Parent Site, and its run logs are written to the Parent Site, because the automation operates through the Parent Site's underscore folder.

File Action Triggers and Child Sites

File action triggers fire automations in response to file events inside Files.com folders. Only file actions recorded within the automation's own site can trigger the automation:

  • A Parent Site automation with a file action trigger fires when the file activity is performed by a user or process connected to the Parent Site, even if the activity changes Child Site content through the underscore folder.
  • A Parent Site automation with a file action trigger does not fire when the same change is performed by a user or process connected directly to the Child Site.
  • A Child Site automation with a file action trigger fires only on file activity inside the Child Site, by users or processes connected to the Child Site.
  • A Child Site automation has no way to reach the Parent Site or any sibling Child Site.

When you need a webhook or automation to fire in response to a specific file action, create it in the same site where the action will be performed.

Syncs with Child Sites

Parent Site Administrators can create Syncs on the Parent Site that target Child Site folders as the source, destination, or both. The Parent Site can sync from itself to a Child Site, from a Child Site to itself, or between two Child Sites.

Syncs in a Child Site can only move files between folders inside the same Child Site. A Child Site Sync has no way to reach the Parent Site or any sibling Child Site.

Actions performed by a Sync are logged in the site where the Sync exists. A Parent Site Sync that targets a Child Site folder writes its actions to the Parent Site's logs, not the Child Site's.

Using API Keys with Child Sites

API keys are linked to one site. A key issued on the Parent Site authenticates only against the Parent Site. A key issued on a Child Site authenticates only against that Child Site. Site-wide and per-user API keys both follow this rule.

When a script or integration needs to operate across the Parent Site and one or more Child Sites, issue a separate API key on each site and have the integration switch between them.