Read File

In Langflow version 1.7.0, this component was renamed from File to Read File.

The Read File component loads and parses files, converts the content into a Data, DataFrame, or Message object. It supports multiple file types, provides parameters for parallel processing and error handling, and supports advanced parsing with the Docling library.

You can add files to the Read File component in the visual editor or at runtime, and you can upload multiple files at once. For more information about uploading files and working with files in flows, see File management and Create a chatbot that can ingest files.

File type and size limits

By default, the maximum file size is 1024 MB. To modify this value, change the LANGFLOW_MAX_FILE_SIZE_UPLOAD environment variable.

Supported file types

The following file types are supported by the Read File component. Use archive and compressed formats to bundle multiple files together, or use the Directory component to load all files in a directory.

• .bz2
• .csv
• .docx
• .gz
• .htm
• .html
• .json
• .js
• .md
• .mdx
• .pdf
• .py
• .sh
• .sql
• .tar
• .tgz
• .ts
• .tsx
• .txt
• .xml
• .yaml
• .yml
• .zip

If you need to load an unsupported file type, you must use a different component that supports that file type and, potentially, parses it outside Langflow, or you must convert it to a supported type before uploading it.

For images, see Upload images.

For videos, see the Twelve Labs and YouTube Bundles.

File parameters

Some parameters are hidden by default in the visual editor. You can modify all parameters through the Controls in the component's header menu.

Name	Display Name	Info
path	Files	Input parameter. The path to files to load. Can be local or in Langflow file management. Supports individual files and bundled archives.
file_path	Server File Path	Input parameter. A Data object with a file_path property pointing to a file in Langflow file management or a Message object with a path to the file. Supersedes Files (path) but supports the same file types.
separator	Separator	Input parameter. The separator to use between multiple outputs in Message format.
silent_errors	Silent Errors	Input parameter. If true, errors in the component don't raise an exception. Default: Disabled (false).
delete_server_file_after_processing	Delete Server File After Processing	Input parameter. If true (default), the Server File Path (file_path) is deleted after processing.
ignore_unsupported_extensions	Ignore Unsupported Extensions	Input parameter. If enabled (true), files with unsupported extensions are accepted but not processed. If disabled (false), the Read File component either can throw an error if an unsupported file type is provided. The default is true.
ignore_unspecified_files	Ignore Unspecified Files	Input parameter. If true, Data with no file_path property is ignored. If false (default), the component errors when a file isn't specified.
concurrency_multithreading	Processing Concurrency	Input parameter. The number of files to process concurrently if multiple files are uploaded. Default is 1. Values greater than 1 enable parallel processing for 2 or more files. Ignored for single-file uploads and advanced parsing.
advanced_parser	Advanced Parser	Input parameter. If true, enables advanced parsing. Only available for single-file uploads of compatible file types. Default: Disabled (false).

Advanced parsing

Starting in Langflow version 1.6, the Read File component supports advanced document parsing using the Docling library for supported file types.

To use advanced parsing, do the following:

1. Complete the following prerequisites, if applicable:

   • Install Langflow version 1.6 or later: Earlier versions don't support advanced parsing with the Read File component. For upgrade guidance, see the Release notes.

   • Install Docling dependency on macOS Intel (x86_64): The Docling dependency isn't installed by default for macOS Intel (x86_64). Use the Docling installation guide to install the Docling dependency.

     For all other operating systems, the Docling dependency is installed by default.

   • Docker/Linux system dependencies: If running Langflow in a Docker container on Linux, you might need to install additional system packages for document processing. For more information, see Document processing errors in Docker containers.
   • Enable Developer Mode for Windows:

   If you are running Langflow Desktop on Windows, you must enable Developer Mode to use the Docling components. The location of this setting depends on your Windows OS version. Find For developers in your Windows Settings, or search for "Developer" in the Windows search bar, and then enable Developer mode. You might need to restart your computer or Langflow to apply the change.

   Developer Mode isn't required for Langflow OSS on Windows.

2. Add one valid file to the Read File component.

   Advanced parsing limitations

   • Advanced parsing processes only one file. If you select multiple files, the Read File component processes the first file only, ignoring any additional files. To process multiple files with advanced parsing, pass each file to a separate Read File components, or use the dedicated Docling components.

   • Advanced parsing can process any of the Read File component's supported file types except .csv, .xlsx, and .parquet files because it is designed for document processing, such as extracting text from PDFs. For structured data analysis, use the Parser component.

3. Enable Advanced Parsing.

4. Click Controls in the component's header menu to configure advanced parsing parameters, which are hidden by default:

   Name	Display Name	Info
   pipeline	Pipeline	Input parameter, advanced parsing. The Docling pipeline to use, either standard (default, recommended) or vlm (may produce inconsistent results).
   ocr_engine	OCR Engine	Input parameter, advanced parsing. The OCR parser to use if pipeline is standard. Options are None (default) or EasyOCR. None means that no OCR engine is used, and this can produce inconsistent or broken results for some documents. This setting has no effect with the vlm pipeline.
   md_image_placeholder	Markdown Image Placeholder	Input parameter, advanced parsing. Defines the placeholder for image files if the output type is Markdown. Default: <!-- image -->.
   md_page_break_placeholder	Markdown Page Break Placeholder	Input parameter, advanced parsing. Defines the placeholder for page breaks if the output type is Markdown. Default: "" (empty string).
   doc_key	Document Key	Input parameter, advanced parsing. The key to use for the DoclingDocument column, which holds the structured information extracted from the source document. See Docling Document for details. Default: doc.

   tip

   For additional Docling features, including other components and OCR parsers, use the Docling bundle.

File output

The output of the Read File component depends on the number of files loaded and whether advanced parsing is enabled. If multiple options are available, you can set the output type near the component's output port.

No files

If you run the Read File component with no file selected, it throws an error, or, if Silent Errors is enabled, produces no output.

One file without advanced parsing

If advanced parsing is disabled and you upload one file, the following output types are available:

• Structured Content: Available only for .csv, .xlsx, .parquet, and .json files.

  • For .csv files, produces a DataFrame representing the table data.
  • For .json files, produces a Data object with the parsed JSON data.

• Raw Content: A Message containing the file's raw text content.

• File Path: A Message containing the path to the file in Langflow file management.

One file with advanced parsing

If advanced parsing is enabled and you upload one file, the following output types are available:

• Structured Output: A DataFrame containing the Docling-processed document data with text elements, page numbers, and metadata.

• Markdown: A Message containing the uploaded document contents in Markdown format with image placeholders.

• File Path: A Message containing the path to the file in Langflow file management.

Multiple files

If you upload multiple files, the component outputs Files, which is a DataFrame containing the content and metadata of all selected files.

Advanced parsing doesn't support multiple files; it processes only the first file.