Frame.io Slow Uploads: Large File Transfer Fixes

Uploads to Frame.io that crawl, stall or fail partway are rarely a Frame.io problem. The bottleneck is usually the upload side of your internet connection, the computer's connection to the router, other traffic on the line, or how the upload is started. This guide goes through those in order, and then covers how to plan transfers of very large files.

Version note: the Frame.io details come from the Frame.io Help Center, including the current V4 articles for uploading and for Frame.io Drive, and an older article on slow uploads that Frame.io now labels legacy. The legacy article may describe behavior from before V4, so we say where a point comes from it. Product names and apps change, so check the Help Center for what your account shows.

The quickest first thing to try

Plug the computer into the router with a cable, close other apps that use the internet, and start one upload. Frame.io's help recommends a wired connection when possible, lists public Wi-Fi as a likely cause of slow uploads, and says other media apps such as music and video streaming can take bandwidth away. Reducing interruptions lets the uploader use all of the bandwidth you have.

Step by step

1. 1Measure the upload speed, not the download speed. Use a speed test while nothing else is running and read the upload figure. Many connections are slower in the upload direction, and that is the speed that governs sending footage.
2. 2Do the arithmetic for the file. Multiply the file size in gigabytes by 8 to get gigabits, then divide by the upload speed in gigabits per second. For example, a 50 GB file over a 100 Mbps (0.1 Gbps) upload needs at least about 4,000 seconds, which is roughly 67 minutes, before overhead. If the figure is far longer than you expected, the upload speed is the answer and no setting will beat it.
3. 3Use a cable. If you must use Wi-Fi, sit near the access point. See why Wi-Fi is the wrong tool for editing.
4. 4Pause other traffic on the network: cloud backups, sync clients, software updates, video calls and other uploads. A NAS backup to the cloud that runs in the afternoon can compete directly with an upload.
5. 5Try the browser test if you upload through the web app. Frame.io's help says some Chrome extensions have caused upload problems. Try a different browser such as Safari or Firefox, and if it works, disable extensions one at a time to find the cause.
6. 6Upload in batches. The older Frame.io article says a file is sliced into 20 MB chunks, five chunks upload at once, and the uploader starts the next chunk as soon as one finishes, even if it belongs to a different file. Uploading everything at once therefore slows any one file. If a file matters most, send it first, then the rest.
7. 7Check the web app limits if a large upload will not start. Frame.io's V4 help says the web app allows up to 500 assets at once, 250 folders and 10 folder levels, with 10 concurrent queued upload jobs, and that the Frame.io Transfer App v1.2.0 or higher avoids these limits.
8. 8Use the desktop app for big jobs. Frame.io's help says everything from the Transfer App is now part of Frame.io Drive. Its Transfers tab shows progress for each file and batch, verifies transfers and keeps logs, and Frame.io says an interrupted transfer resumes with no loss of progress. Check the Transfers tab and the log for failed or unverified files.
9. 9Do not compress first without a reason. Frame.io's help states that you do not need to compress media before uploading, and that assets up to 5 TB are supported. Send proxies for review if the originals are not needed in the cloud.
10. 10Verify the result. Open the uploaded asset and compare its size and duration with the source, and keep the log file for the transfer.

What causes slow uploads

• A modest upload speed on the internet plan.
• Wi-Fi, or a weak signal.
• Competing traffic from backups, sync tools or other people.
• A browser extension that interferes with the web uploader.
• Too many files sent at once, so each takes longer.
• A VPN that routes traffic through another site before it reaches the internet.
• Router or firewall limits set on upload bandwidth.

What not to do

• Do not keep restarting a failed upload without looking at the cause. Use the Drive app and its log.
• Do not upload camera originals for a review that only needs proxies.
• Do not run large uploads during a delivery or a live review on the same connection.
• Do not delete the local copy until you have verified the upload. Our DIT workflow guide explains verification.
• Do not expect a faster plan to fix a Wi-Fi problem inside the building.

When it is time to call someone

Ask for help if uploads stall only on certain computers or at certain times, if the studio sends large deliveries every week and the connection cannot handle it, if security rules limit what may leave the building, or if a client needs a secure review process. The problem often combines the internet plan, the router, backup schedules and security settings. Our guides to remote editing with Frame.io and cloud storage for video professionals cover the options.

Want a person to look at it?

This is the kind of problem our production consulting team handles: planning remote review, upload bandwidth and secure delivery so large files move without stalling the rest of the studio. See our remote collaboration service, or tell us what is happening in your edit bay and a real person on our team will reply.