External Files

Keep PDFs, spreadsheets, and other documents organized alongside your notes in a dedicated workspace folder.

Overview

External Files lets you import and reference documents that Octarine doesn't natively support—like PDFs, Word documents, or Excel files. These files are stored in a special .files folder within your workspace, keeping them organized and ensuring they travel with your notes. When you click these references, they open in your system's default application, allowing seamless work between your notes and external documents.

Referencing External Files

You can reference external files directly in your notes using wikilink syntax:

[[Filename.pdf]]
[[project-budget.xlsx]]
[[meeting-recording.mp3]]

Simply type [[ and start typing the filename to see a list of available files. Click or press Enter to insert the reference.

Adding External Files

There are three ways to add external files to your workspace:

1. Drag and Drop: Drag a file directly into the editor
2. Slash Command: Type / and select "Attach Files" from the menu. This opens the finder dialog allowing you to import new files to the workspace folder.
3. Wikilink Syntax: Type [[ to search for and reference files already in your .files folder

If you want to reference existing files in the workspace, use the wikilink method or drag-drop from the Attachments sidebar.

Viewing Linked Files

The Linked Files section in the Meta Sidebar shows all external files referenced in the current note. Click any file to open it in your system's default application.

File Location

When you import an external file, it's copied to your workspace folder but remains separate from your notes. This ensures your references stay with your workspace while maintaining a clean separation between notes and external documents.

Supported File Types

Octarine comes with support for common file extensions out of the box:

• Documents: PDF, DOC, DOCX, ODT, RTF, TXT
• Spreadsheets: XLS, XLSX, CSV, ODS
• Presentations: PPT, PPTX, ODP
• Audio: MP3, WAV, M4A, OGG
• Archives: ZIP, RAR, 7Z, TAR

Adding Custom Extensions

Need to work with specialized file types? Add your own:

1. Go to Settings → Files → External Files
2. Add the extensions you need (without the dot)
3. Click Add

Excluded Extensions

These file types are already natively supported within notes and cannot be added as external files:

• Markdown: MD
• Images: PNG, JPG, JPEG, GIF, WEBP, SVG
• Videos: MP4, MOV