All methods to get content files in copilot studio are not working.

Question

All methods to get content files in copilot studio are not working.

Nha Tran Huu 5

I'm creating an agent in Copilot Studio and need to retrieve both the file content and file name when a user uploads a .txt file through the chat, then send it to a Flow for processing.

Previously, I used:

Text(First(System.Activity.ChannelData.OriginalAttachments).name) to get the file name

Text(First(System.Activity.ChannelData.OriginalAttachments).ContentUrl) to get the file content

However, Microsoft has now deprecated this structure, and I can no longer retrieve the information as before. I also tried using the File data type, but it didn’t work either.

I have tried many different ways but none of them work.

User's image

Is there any new method or workaround to achieve this?

Karan Shewale 1,040 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-07-21T10:10:14.4533333+00:00

Thanks for bringing this issue to our attention. We will check and update you soon.

3 answers

Your answer

Karan Shewale 1,040 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-07-21T10:10:14.4533333+00:00

Thanks for bringing this issue to our attention. We will check and update you soon.

Answer 1

Karan Shewale 1,040 Microsoft External Staff

Hi Nha Tran Huu,

You're correct that Microsoft has deprecated the System.Activity.ChannelData.OriginalAttachments structure. Here's the current approach to handle file uploads in Copilot Studio:

Solution: Using the File Variable Type

Configure File Upload in Your Topic

In your topic, when you receive a user message with a file:

The system should automatically detect the file upload
Use the "Save user response as" option and select File as the variable type

Access File Properties

Once you have the file stored in a variable (e.g., VarFile), you can access:

File name: VarFile.name
File content URL: VarFile.contentUrl
File size: VarFile.size
File type: VarFile.contentType

Pass to Power Automate

In your Power Automate flow:

Add inputs for the file data:

Add a text input for the file name
- Add a text input for the content URL
In Copilot Studio, when calling the flow:
```
- Pass `VarFile.name` to the file name input

   - Pass `VarFile.contentUrl` to the content URL input
```

In Power Automate, retrieve the file content: HTTP Action: - Method: GET - URI: {contentUrl from input} - Authentication: Use appropriate auth based on your environment

Alternative: Direct File Handling in Power Automate

If the above doesn't work, try this approach:

In Copilot Studio, pass the entire activity context to Power Automate
In Power Automate, parse the activity JSON:{  "attachments": [    {      "contentType": "application/octet-stream",      "contentUrl": "https://...",      "name": "filename.txt"    }  ]}

Important Notes:

Ensure your Copilot Studio environment is updated to the latest version
The File variable type should automatically capture uploads
If files aren't being detected, check your channel configuration (Teams, Web Chat, etc.)

If you're still having issues, please share:

Which channel you're using (Teams, Web Chat, etc.)
The exact error or behavior you're seeing
A screenshot of your topic configuration

Hope this helps!

Thanks,

Karan Shewale.

*************************************************************************

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Lai, Charles 5 Reputation points

2025-07-21T20:09:40.9366667+00:00

Hi Karan, I am dealing with the same issue, however I do not see a ContentUrl property in my file variable, only Content and ContentType.
Karan Shewale 1,040 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-07-22T05:20:39.87+00:00
Hi Lai.

I can see from your screenshot that you're working with file upload variables in Copilot Studio, and you're right - the structure has changed from the earlier versions.

Based on your screenshot showing Upload1.Content, Upload1.ContentType, and Upload1.Name, here's how to handle file uploads with the current structure:

Current File Variable Properties

From your screenshot, the available properties are:

Upload1.Content - The actual file content (base64 encoded)

Upload1.ContentType - The MIME type of the file (e.g., "text/plain")

Upload1.Name - The original filename

How to Use These Properties

To Get File Name:

Upload1.Name

To Get File Content:

Upload1.Content

Note: This will be base64 encoded content, not a URL

To Get File Type:

Upload1.ContentType

Passing to Power Automate

When sending to your Power Automate flow, you'll need to handle base64 content instead of URLs:

In Copilot Studio (when calling the flow):

File Name: Upload1.Name

File Content: Upload1.Content

Content Type: Upload1.ContentType

In Power Automate:

Use "Compose" action with base64ToBinary() function to convert the content:

base64ToBinary(triggerBody()['fileContent'])

Key Difference from Legacy Approach

Old way (deprecated):

ContentUrl provided a direct URL to download the file

New way (current):

Content provides the file content directly as base64

No separate HTTP call needed to fetch content

More secure but requires base64 handling

This change was made for better security and to eliminate the need for separate HTTP calls to retrieve file content.

Does this help resolve your file handling issue?
Lai, Charles 5 Reputation points

2025-07-22T17:41:46.6533333+00:00

Thank you for your response Karan, unfortunately, the FileContent property seems to be a blob object that I cannot really interact with in CPS. It appears to contain a reference to a cloud storage location for the file data and not the base64 content.

It appears I would have to pass the cloud reference to Power Automate, and use an HTTP Get action to retrieve the data. However, since the location reference is stored in the blob object, it is a real hassle to extract it dynamically.

I have used a workaround to upload the files to a temporary sharepoint folder, and then pass the sharepoint location reference to the flow instead, but it is not the most ideal solution and requires extra steps.

Hopefully there will be a way to easily access the base64 data as there was in the past.
Karan Shewale 1,040 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-07-23T09:58:05.3933333+00:00
Hi Charles,

Thank you for the detailed feedback about the file handling changes in Copilot Studio. You're absolutely right - this is a significant regression from the previous ContentUrl approach, and many developers are facing similar challenges.

Current State & Your Analysis

You've correctly identified that:

FileContent is now a blob reference, not direct base64 content

Cloud storage reference is embedded in the blob object

Extraction is complex and not developer-friendly

SharePoint workaround adds unnecessary complexity

Potential Solutions to Extract Blob Content

Power Fx Expression Approach

Try accessing the blob URL directly with:

Text(Upload1.Content)

Or:

JSON(Upload1.Content, JSONFormat.IgnoreBinaryData)

Parse Blob Object in Power Automate

If you can pass the blob object to Power Automate: {   "contentUrl": "@{triggerBody()['fileContent']['contentUrl']}",   "headers": {     "Authorization": "@{triggerBody()['fileContent']['authToken']}"   } }

Alternative: Direct Base64 Access

Some users report success with:

Upload1.Content.Value

Recommended Escalation Path

Since this affects many developers, I recommend:

Submit Product Feedback

Copilot Studio Feedback: Request restoration of simple base64 access

Microsoft Learn Documentation: Report the gap in file handling docs

Community Advocacy

Power Platform Community: Share your experience

Microsoft Tech Community: Tag Microsoft product team members

Feature Request

Request a Upload1.ContentBase64 property that provides direct access to base64 content without blob complexity.

Your SharePoint Workaround

Your SharePoint approach is actually quite clever:

Pros: Reliable, well-documented, secure

Cons: Extra steps, storage overhead

Consider this a temporary best practice until Microsoft addresses the file handling regression.

What Microsoft Should Provide

The ideal solution would be:

Upload1.Name          // Already exists

Upload1.ContentType   //   Already exists

Upload1.ContentBase64 // Missing - should be added

Upload1.ContentUrl    // Deprecated - but was useful

Community Impact

You're not alone - this change has affected:

Bot developers migrating from Bot Framework

Power Automate integrations expecting simple file handling

Enterprise solutions requiring reliable file processing

Next Steps

Document your SharePoint pattern - it might help others

Consider it a temporary architecture until Microsoft improves this

Submit feedback through official channels

Track Microsoft 365 roadmap for file handling improvements

Your feedback is valuable - the more developers report this regression, the more likely Microsoft is to prioritize a fix.
Lai, Charles 5 Reputation points

2025-07-23T17:41:38.21+00:00
Thank you Karan,

I have tried most of these suggestions before already,

In Power FX, the text(Upload1.Content) function just returns null.

The JSON will return the properties of the Upload1.Content, but isn't always consistent, it may be possible to extract the cloud reference from here by parsing the JSON.

I was unable to successfully access the Upload1.Content.Value property, as CPS cannot interact with the blob object.

Passing the whole blob object to Power Automate does not work either as it only accepts text, Boolean, or numbers as inputs into a flow.

Thank you for the suggestion of a feature request to directly access the base64 data, that would be a huge improvement over the current process. I will look into that and continue to use the current process for now.

Answer 2

Anne Admin 6

Yeah this sucks, I found the same thing - Microsoft why

Answer 3

Morten 0

Hey guys, I found a way that might help you (at least for my .js file):

Upload the file via the agent and store it as variable.

pass the entire file to a flow, no need to do any steps before that.

Now inside the flow:
do a compose like so:

{
  "type": "Compose",
  "inputs": "@base64ToString(triggerBody()?['file']?['contentBytes'])",
  "runAfter": {
    "Verfassen": [ <-- This might be different in your studio language
      "Succeeded"
    ]
  }
}

and then read the output, you'll see the content of the file. You can also store that in a variable or do what ever you need to do afterwards

Morten 0 Reputation points

2025-07-28T08:33:33.09+00:00
I also found a way for PDF's now.

Create a „Extract text from PDF" step, as input use "@triggerBody()?['file']?['contentBytes']"

Create another step "initialize a variable" where we get the actual content of the PDF file, ('YOUR FIRST STEP NAME')?['body/responsev2/predictionOutput/fullText']"

Hope this helps
Anne Admin 6 Reputation points

2025-07-29T00:33:34.2833333+00:00

Can you post screenshots of this? I attempted base64 encoding and it didn't contain a binary file content eg word document
Hoang Cao 5 Reputation points

2025-08-02T04:52:22.43+00:00

Can you be more specific how to pass the File variable to Flow? I tried but the variable is in the form "Record" instead of "File"
Hohman, Angela H 0 Reputation points

2025-08-07T14:06:41.7633333+00:00

I agree with Hoang's comment. How are you passing that? It's a mismatched type.

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All methods to get content files in copilot studio are not working.

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