Getting Started with React File Manager Component

22 Jul 20267 minutes to read

This section explains how to create and configure the File Manager component in a React application.

To get started quickly with the React File Manager, refer to the video below:

Prerequisites

Requirement Version
React 15.5.4 or higher
Node.js 14.0.0 or above
Yarn (optional) 0.25 or above

React supported versions

React version Minimum Syncfusion React File Manager version
React v19 29.1.33 and above
React v18 20.2.36 and above
React v17 18.3.50 and above
React v16 16.2.45 and above

Browser Support

Browser Supported versions
Chrome Latest
Firefox Latest
Opera Latest
Edge 13+
Internet Explorer (IE) 11+
Safari 9+
iOS Safari 9+
Android Browser / Chrome for Android 4.4+
Windows Mobile IE 11+

Setup for local development

Easily set up a React application using create-vite-app, which provides a faster development environment, smaller bundle sizes, and optimized builds compared to traditional tools like create-react-app. For detailed steps, refer to the Vite installation instructions. Vite sets up your environment using JavaScript and optimizes your application for production.

Note: To create a React application using create-react-app, refer to this documentation for more details.

To create a new React application, run one of the following commands based on your preferred language:

React with JavaScript

npx create-vite@latest my-app -- --template react

React with TypeScript

npx create-vite@latest my-app -- --template react-ts

During the setup process, the CLI will prompt you for a few configuration options. Select the following:

  • Which linter to use? → ESLint
  • Install with npm and start now? → Yes

Selecting Yes automatically installs the project dependencies and starts the development server.

After verifying that the application starts successfully, terminate the development server in the terminal and proceed to the next step.

Then, navigate to the project directory:

cd my-app

Adding React File Manager packages

To install the File Manager component, use the following command:

npm i @syncfusion/ej2-react-filemanager

Adding CSS reference

Themes for Syncfusion® File Manager component can be applied using CSS files provided through npm theme packages. For available themes, refer to the Themes documentation.

Install the Tailwind 3 theme package using the following command:

npm install @syncfusion/ej2-tailwind3-theme --save

Then add the following CSS reference to the src/App.css file:

@import "../node_modules/@syncfusion/ej2-tailwind3-theme/styles/file-manager/index.css";

Note: If you want to use combined component styles, make use of the Custom Resource Generator (CRG) in your application.

Adding File Manager component

The File Manager component code should be placed in the src/App.tsx file.

To enable file operation functionality in the File Manager, configure the url property within the ajaxSettings. This URL handles the file operation requests from the server.

import { FileManagerComponent } from '@syncfusion/ej2-react-filemanager';
import './App.css';

function App() {
  let hostUrl: string = "https://physical-service.syncfusion.com/";
  let ajaxSettings: object = {
    url: hostUrl + "api/FileManager/FileOperations"
  };
  let height: string = "375px";

  return (
    <FileManagerComponent id="file" height={height} ajaxSettings={ajaxSettings} />
  );
}
export default App;
import { FileManagerComponent } from '@syncfusion/ej2-react-filemanager';
import './App.css';

function App() {
    let hostUrl = "https://physical-service.syncfusion.com/";
    let ajaxSettings = {
        url: hostUrl + "api/FileManager/FileOperations"
    };
    let height = "375px";

    return (
        <FileManagerComponent id="file" height={height} ajaxSettings={ajaxSettings} />
    );
}
export default App;
@import "../node_modules/@syncfusion/ej2-tailwind3-theme/styles/file-manager/index.css";

Server-side setup

The sample uses https://physical-service.syncfusion.com/ as the url endpoint in ajaxSettings.

To use your own files, host a File Manager service and replace the url value with your service endpoint. See the File System Provider documentation for setup details.

Registering Your Syncfusion License

Generate a license key from the Syncfusion License Dashboard and register it before rendering your React application:

import { registerLicense } from '@syncfusion/ej2-base';

registerLicense('YOUR_LICENSE_KEY');

Note: A valid Syncfusion license is required for production use. Without a valid license, a trial license warning message will be displayed.

Run the application

npm run dev

Production build

To create an optimized production build:

npm run build

Preview the production build locally:

npm run preview

Troubleshooting

  • File Manager not rendering styles: Ensure the theme CSS is imported in App.css and that you removed the default Vite CSS in index.css.
  • Trial license warning banner: Register a license key via registerLicense() from @syncfusion/ej2-base.
  • Port 5173 already in use: Stop the conflicting process or run Vite on a different port with npm run dev -- --port 3000.

See also