Attachment fields let you build an Event Type whose form captures photos, videos, documents, or audio directly, instead of relying only on the default "add a photo" action every Event already has. Once you add an attachment field to a v2 Event Type in the Event Form Editor (EFE), it appears as a dedicated capture control on that form in both EarthRanger Web and Mobile.

This article covers adding and configuring an attachment field. For the general EFE workflow — creating Event Types, categories, and other field types — see Build Custom Event Types with the Event Form Editor. 

Prerequisites

• Admin access to your organization's EarthRanger Admin site.
• The Event Type must be a v2 Event Type — one created or already editable in the Event Form Editor.
• Field staff need EarthRanger Mobile 3.2.0 or later to capture image, video, and document attachments from the field, or 3.2.2 or later for audio attachments.

Step 1: Enter the Event Form Editor 

1. Log in to your EarthRanger Admin site.
2. Under Activity, open Event Types and Categories to launch the Event Form Editor.
3. Locate the Event Type you want to update (or create a new one) and click its name to open it in edit mode. 

Step 2: Add Attachment field

1. On the form canvas, drag an Attachment field into the layout, in a Section alongside your other fields.
2. Configure the field:
   • Label – the name field staff see on the form (e.g., "Photo of carcass," "Signed intake form"), up to 1,000 characters.
   • Value – the internal identifier, auto-filled from the Label (editable), up to 100 characters. Used for data management — not displayed on the form.
   • Allow only specific file types – off by default, meaning the field accepts any file type. Turn it on to reveal an Allowable File Types dropdown with four categories to choose from:
     1. Image – JPEG, TIFF, PNG, SVG, GIF, RAW
     2. Audio – AIF, AAC, FLAC, MP3, OGG, OGV, PCM, WAV
     3. Video – AVI, MKV, MOV, MP4, WEBM, WMV
     4. Document – CSV, DOC, DOCX, PDF, XLSX, XML
   • Description – optional helper text shown to the person filling out the form.
   • Number of items (Min items / Max items) – optionally set how many files the field requires or allows (e.g., Min items: 1 to require at least one attachment; leave both blank for no limit).
   • Visible – field is active – toggle with the Hide/Show control to show or hide this specific field on the form, independent of the Event Type's own Active/Inactive status (see step 7).
   • Delete field – removes the field from the form. This is immediate and irreversible, like deleting any other EFE field.

Note: unlike text, numeric, and choice list fields, this panel has no Required/validation toggle for Attachment fields — there's currently no way to force field staff to attach a file before submitting.

3. Click Save and Continue.
4. To confirm the field behaves as expected, temporarily set the Event Type to Active and open it in EarthRanger Web or Mobile to test capturing and submitting an attachment. Switch it back to Inactive if you still need to make changes.

What field staff see

In EarthRanger Mobile: the field shows which type(s) of media it accepts, with a matching Add Photo, Add Video, Add Document, or Add Audio button. The user captures or selects the file, then submits the Event; the attachment uploads automatically in the background (in chunks, so it resumes on its own after a dropped connection or app restart) and is linked to the Event once processed.

In EarthRanger Web: the attachment field on the Event shows a clear upload status — a progress indicator while it's still uploading from the field, a preview once it's complete, or a status badge if the state is unknown — plus a download button once the upload finishes. This keeps a large file still uploading from Mobile from looking like a missing attachment.