However, moving to PDF.js led to significant performance problems. We also built a consistent user interface across all the file formats we support. This change allowed us to build annotations on previews, and let browsers without PDF viewers-most notably Internet Explorer-see the preview. To address these shortcomings, we replaced the direct embedding method with a JavaScript open-source PDF renderer, PDF.js. More importantly, we had no ability to add collaborative features like comments, annotations or highlighting. This made it hard for us to achieve a consistent user experience across browsers. We had very little control over the look and feel of PDF viewers. PDF renderers in browsers tend to have very good performance and high fidelity. Thanks to their work, our task is reduced to figuring out how to display PDF documents in the browser as fast as possible.Įarly versions of Dropbox directly embedded the PDF on the web page and relied on the browser to render the file. Our sibling team, Previews Infra, manages a large fleet of servers that handles file format conversion for us. This preserves as much detail from original files as possible, while achieving compatibility on all clients. Over the last year, the Previews team has been on a journey to make our document preview experience the fastest in the industry, and we’re happy to share what we learned.Īt Dropbox, all documents are converted to PDFs before being previewed. Our users want to see their content as soon as possible, so we have to provide great performance. Unlike images, documents need to have a preview generated. Close to half of the previews we serve are documents (in formats including PDF, Microsoft Office, and Open Office). Office managers can review, comment, and annotate new office design proposals, regardless of the file format.įor many users, a preview is their first interaction with Dropbox. Designers can send work-in-progress to clients without worrying about whether they have the correct software installed. They allow architects to access their entire portfolios on while at the job site to show their work. Previews are part of the core Dropbox experience. This is the work of the Previews team at Dropbox.
Ever open a file on, or click a shared link your coworker sent you? Chances are you didn’t need to download the file to see it-you saw it right in the browser.
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