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Chat files and context

Attach files, manage included context, and understand what exclusion and model usage mean.

Chat files and context

Attach files, manage included context, and understand what exclusion and model usage mean.

Where to find it

Open the file controls in the current chat or thread.

Attach files

Attach supporting files when they are the authoritative input. Do not upload secret files, raw credential exports, or unnecessary PII. Large or reusable files should be saved in the appropriate asset or source workflow instead of repeatedly attached to chats.

Manage files in chat context

Open Files in the chat header menu (the control is also named Chat files or Thread files, depending on the conversation). Context lists files shared with the conversation and files waiting in your draft. Outputs lists downloadable files created by Topline; outputs are not automatically added as input context.

  • Draft: the file is not yet available to Topline. Send the message to make the attachment available. You can remove an unsent file from the draft.
  • Included: Topline can inspect the file when needed for future responses.
  • Excluded: Topline cannot freshly inspect the file in future responses. The row remains visible with an Excluded label and muted, crossed-out filename. Choose Include in context to restore access without uploading it again. The header counts included, excluded, and draft files separately.

Exclusion is a saved setting for that conversation's attachment, not a personal display filter. The change is available to authorized file managers in an open conversation; shared readers may be able to download a file without being able to change its inclusion. Wait for the saved state before sending the next message. If an update fails, use the displayed recovery action and verify the state after refreshing.

Exclusion does not delete the stored file, its original message, or earlier answers. You can still open and download it. Text already quoted, extracted, or summarized in the conversation can remain in the model's history. A reply already in progress may still use content it received before exclusion. Exclusion is not a request to erase other copies, saved knowledge, or prior model processing.

What uses tokens, and what is cached?

The Context list is an inventory of available files, not a token meter or a list of documents fully loaded into the model. Storing a file does not by itself send its full contents to the model. For each reply, Topline supplies a short list of included files with their names, types, sizes, and source IDs. That list uses input tokens. Reading a document supplies extracted content as model input; visual PDF analysis supplies selected pages to a separate analysis call. Images attached to the current message are sent as visual input. Older included images can be opened when needed.

Caching depends on the provider and does not make included files free to read. Check recorded usage rather than assuming a cache hit. Exclusion stops future file access but does not erase earlier discussion or provider processing.

For example, including a 100-page PDF initially advertises the file. Reading or visually analyzing it incurs model input for the content actually supplied. Excluding it stops fresh access, but numbers already discussed can remain in the chat.