It is more efficient to send a file directly.
The base64 encoding of Content-Type: multipart/form-data
adds an extra 33% overhead. If the server supports it, it is more efficient to send the files directly:
$scope.upload = function(url, file) {
var config = { headers: { 'Content-Type': undefined },
transformResponse: angular.identity
};
return $http.post(url, file, config);
};
When sending a POST with a File object, it is important to set 'Content-Type': undefined
. The XHR send method will then detect the File object and automatically set the content type.
To send multiple files, see Doing Multiple $http.post
Requests Directly from a FileList
I figured I should start with input type="file", but then found out that AngularJS can't bind to that..
The <input type=file>
element does not by default work with the ng-model directive. It needs a custom directive:
Working Demo of "select-ng-files" Directive that Works with ng-model
1
angular.module("app",[]);
angular.module("app").directive("selectNgFiles", function() {
return {
require: "ngModel",
link: function postLink(scope,elem,attrs,ngModel) {
elem.on("change", function(e) {
var files = elem[0].files;
ngModel.$setViewValue(files);
})
}
}
});
<script src="//unpkg.com/angular/angular.js"></script>
<body ng-app="app">
<h1>AngularJS Input `type=file` Demo</h1>
<input type="file" select-ng-files ng-model="fileArray" multiple>
<h2>Files</h2>
<div ng-repeat="file in fileArray">
{{file.name}}
</div>
</body>
$http.post
with content type multipart/form-data
If one must send multipart/form-data
:
<form role="form" enctype="multipart/form-data" name="myForm">
<input type="text" ng-model="fdata.UserName">
<input type="text" ng-model="fdata.FirstName">
<input type="file" select-ng-files ng-model="filesArray" multiple>
<button type="submit" ng-click="upload()">save</button>
</form>
$scope.upload = function() {
var fd = new FormData();
fd.append("data", angular.toJson($scope.fdata));
for (i=0; i<$scope.filesArray.length; i++) {
fd.append("file"+i, $scope.filesArray[i]);
};
var config = { headers: {'Content-Type': undefined},
transformRequest: angular.identity
}
return $http.post(url, fd, config);
};
When sending a POST with the FormData API, it is important to set 'Content-Type': undefined
. The XHR send method will then detect the FormData
object and automatically set the content type header to multipart/form-data with the proper boundary.