Working with images in the media library

What's my plan?

The media library is available on all plan levels. However, to use content blocks you must have an Enterprise plan.

When you insert an image into an article or content block, you can choose the images you want from the media library, a place to store and manage your images.

You can access the media library within the article and content block editors. You can use the media library to upload and insert images into your articles or content blocks, share images with your team, or if you are a Guide admin, view all images uploaded to your account.

This article covers the following topics:

• Opening and viewing the media library
• Uploading images to the media library
• Managing images in the media library
• Viewing details about images in the media library

For information about inserting images from the media library, see inserting images in articles and content blocks.

Opening and viewing the media library

You can open and view the media library from any article or content block that you or someone else has created. Within the media library, you can search for images by file name or filter them by the date they were added or updated.

To open and view the media library

1. In the help center or Guide admin, create or edit an article or content block.
2. In the article or content block, click the Insert image icon () on the toolbar. The media library opens. You can select the tabs to display the images you want to work with:
   • This content block (appears if you are editing a content block): Displays all images that are used in this content block.
   • This article (appears if you are editing an article): Displays all images that are used in this article.
   • Your media: Displays the images that you've uploaded to articles and content blocks.
   • Shared with all: Displays images that have been shared by agents and admins in your account and are available for use.
   • All media (Guide admins only): Displays all images that have been uploaded to your account.

   The following image shows the This content block tab that appears if you are creating or editing a content block.

   

Uploading images to the media library

If the media library doesn’t contain the image you need, you can either:

• Manually upload the image to the media library
• Copy the image from Google Docs or Microsoft Word (365) to the article in which you want to use it. The image will be automatically uploaded to the media library and inserted into the article.

To manually upload an image to the media library

1. Open the media library, then click Upload media.
   Note: You can also drag and drop an image into the media library to upload it.
2. Select one or more images you want to add to the media library, then click Open. Your images are uploaded to the media library and available for use.

   To share an image that you've uploaded with other agents on your team, see Managing images in the media library below.

   

To upload images from Google Docs or Microsoft Word (365) to the media library

1. Open a Google doc or Microsoft Word (365) document that contains images and the article that you want to copy it to.
2. Copy the content of the source document and paste it into the article editor.

   The images from the source document will be automatically uploaded to the media library. If there are multiple images, the upload status will be displayed in a progress window. Once the upload is complete, the images will be automatically inserted into the article.

   

Managing images in the media library

Once you’ve uploaded your images to the media library, you can insert images into articles or content blocks, rename them, replace them, or delete them. You can also select multiple images and use the Actions menu to delete them in bulk.

To manage individual images in the media library

1. Open the media library, then click the options menu () on the media file you want to manage.

   

2. Select one of the following options:
   • Insert media: Inserts the selected image into the open article or content block at the current cursor position.
   • Share to all (appears when media is unshared): Shares the selected media file with all agents who have access to the media library. A shared media file is noted with a Shared tag on the media file, and can be used in any article that agents create in your help center. Shared media files can only be unshared or deleted by the agent who shared the media file.
   • Unshare (appears when the media file is shared): Unshares the selected media file, making it available only to the user who uploaded it. If you unshare a media file that was used and published in articles that are not your own, that media file is removed across all content in which it appears.
   • Replace media: Replaces the current image with a new one you specify. You can use this option to upload a new image, preview the old and new images, and view all articles or content blocks in which the image appears.

     If you are replacing an image in a content block or article, the new image will replace the old image in any article where this content block or article is used, including published articles that use this block. However, the URL will remain the same, which prevents links from breaking when you replace an image.

     If you are replacing an image that is shared, the new image will replace the old image in any article or content block in which the shared image is used.

     

   • Delete media: Permanently removes the selected image from the media library and any published article that uses it. You can only delete the images that you have uploaded. Guide admins can delete any image in the account.
     When you select this option, a new window displays a preview of the image and a list of all articles or content blocks in which it appears. Verify the image you want to delete is not shared or used in any other article or content blocks prior to deleting it. If a deleted image is used within a published article, the article will display a broken image icon where the image was placed.

     Note: When you delete a media file from the media library, articles that previously contained that media file will display information in the usage view indicating the attachment has been removed and the file name is unavailable. If you don’t want to delete the media file from the media library and all affected articles, you can instead remove it from within the article in which it appears, leaving it in the media library for use in other articles.

     

Open the media library, click the options menu () on an image, then

To bulk delete media from the media library

1. Open the media library, then select the media that you want to delete.

   You can select a maximum of 30 media files at a time.

   

2. Click Actions, then select Delete selection.

   

3. Review the list of articles and content blocks that contain the media you want to delete. If you want to proceed, click Delete media to permanently delete the media without any further confirmation.
   Note: Since deleting media will remove it instantly across all content in which it appears, you may want to return to the article or content block and make minor edits to remove any mention or reference to the media file before you delete it.

   

Viewing details about media in the media library

You can view details about media files in your media library such as file name, size, and where it is used.

To view details about media in the media library

1. Open the media library.
2. Click the file name of the media file that you want to view.

   

3. Review the information displayed in the View details window.

   You can also use this view to unshare, replace, or delete the selected media file. See Managing images in the media library above.