Support folders

Some documents which are used to create websites need to reference external files which cannot be embedded in the .xar design file. For example you may have a movie (.mp4) file which is used on your website and so you'll want to keep that file with the design file because you can't export a fully working website from the design file without also having the mp4 file.

So Xara Designer Pro and Web Designer use an optional "support folder" right alongside the design file to hold these important external files.

Support folder naming

The design file and its corresponding support folder are tied together by their names. The support folder for "mySite.xar" is always "mySite_xar_files". This naming convention makes it obvious which support folder belongs to which design file. So if you rename, copy or move a design file, always remember to do the same to the corresponding support folder, if it exists! And if you send a design file to someone else, send any support files folder along with it.

If you load a design that has a support folder, and then subsequently do a Save As to save another copy of that design, Xara will copy the whole support folder too, if there is one.

Support folder contents

When you use the Placeholder Tab of the Web Properties dialog to insert a reference to an external file into your website design (using the Browse buttons), Xara will automatically copy that file into the design's support folder for you. If the support folder doesn't already exist, it will be created.

Note that if you subsequently change a placeholder object to reference a different file, the original file will not be automatically deleted from the support folder. So if a file is no longer needed, you need to remove it manually.

Exporting websites with support folders

When you export a website document, any files in the corresponding support folder are copied to the folder which contains all the generated images for your website. So if you export "mySite.xar" to "index.htm", then any files in folder "mySite_xar_files" are copied into the "index_htm_files folder".

 

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