Migrate from other apps to Fileflare
Migrating to Fileflare from Shopify's app is very easy. We have added features that allow you to bulk-import orders, bulk-upload files, and then bulk-attach them to your products. This helps cater to small and large stores with thousands of products and files.
There are some huge reasons why you would want to switch. Using other apps may not have the specific features you want, have too many bugs, developers don’t care, bad support and much more. We have come along to solve every issue you could be running into.
One of our main goals is to help store owners protect their digital downloads. See our comprehensive guide to preventing customers from sharing your digital products.
Please note: It's possible to use Fileflare alongside any other digital downloads app on Shopify. It won’t mess up your current application, and everything will run as normal. But please be aware if you have both enabled at the same time, you may see multiple download emails being delivered by both apps, and we have seen Shopify's Digital Downloads app hold fulfilments sometimes so that Fileflare cannot mark the product as fulfilled in some orders. Once migrated, ensure to disable the older app.
We’ve had a lot of stores migrate over to ours now. Here’s what they had to say.
Go to the Shopify app store and install Fileflare Digital Downloads.
If you have a store that has orders coming in, this is important to turn off email delivery while we set up the app.
Before we carry on, we need to disable automatic download emails that are sent by Fileflare so that we can set up the app in the meantime. This makes sure that your other Digital Downloads app can keep delivering files while we complete the new setup.
Go to the "Settings" page in Fileflare
Go to "Additional settings"
Enable the setting "Disable all order download emails sent from Fileflare"
Click "Save"
Ensure that you do not enable the Fileflare App Blocks in the Shopify theme customizer just yet. You can enable the Checkout and Customer Account App Blocks once we have migrated and are ready to deliver.
If you need to downloads your files from Shopify's Digital Downloads app, the only way to do this quickly is by placing an order for all of your digital products so that you get all of the downloads links in one email, create a folder on your device, then download the files into this folder. Then, you can upload them all to Fileflare in one simple click, and then perform a bulk-attach process, or do it quickly using our user interface.
You will need to upload your digital files to the Fileflare app.
You can connect your own S3 server if you are currently using one for your other application. Meaning you don't need to download and transfer, you can just connect the server and read the files.
Go to the "Upload" page
Upload all of your digital files. You can do this in one go, making it really simple. Just select all of your files and click upload.
All of your Shopify products are automatically synced to Fileflare’s "Products" page.
This is important because Fileflare doesn’t need you to create products twice. The process is as simplified as possible. Fileflare simply works alongside Shopify’s platform and delivers digital files alongside your Shopify products, making it super simple.
Go to the “Products” page in Fileflare
Click on a product that you want to attach files to
Then attach your files to the product using the search box/drop-down menu
Repeat this until all of your files are attached to the products
You can also do this from the Asset page and attach a single asset to multiple products at once.
Using Fileflare, you can go to the Orders page and click the "Import all orders" button to import all of your store's order history. This will allow you to easily deliver digital goods to all of your previous customers.
When using the customer accounts feature, any customer can easily log into their account and get access their digital files instantly.
Here you can build your settings to suit your business’s needs. Depending on your plan, you may have access to some extra features. Take a good look at the Settings page to make sure everything is in line and set up the way you want it.
View guides.
Add downloads to Shopify’s Order Confirmation email - Using Fileflare, you can add a method to deliver downloads using the Shopify Order confirmation email that gets sent by Shopify with every order.
The final step is to switch over the apps by disabling the old app, and enabling Fileflare.
Go to the Fileflare "Settings" page
Go to "Additional settings"
Disable the setting "Disable all order download emails sent from Fileflare". This will enable the download email delivery.
Now, you can enable the customer account downloads and the checkout page downloads if you want these enabled.
Go to "Checkout settings"
Follow the steps to enable the checkout App Blocks and customer account App Blocks if you want to deliver using these methods.
Go to your current digital downloads app and disable it. With Shopify's app, you may need to remove the file from the product to disable it.
Please note: once you remove your old digital downloads app, customers may request new access because the old downloads links will stop working. You can easily resend a download email to the customers with Fileflare, or automatically display the downloads in their customer account. This works for all of your store's order history automatically, making it super easy!
Why switch to Fileflare?
There are some huge reasons why you would want to switch. Using other apps may not have the specific features you want, have too many bugs, developers don’t care, bad support and much more. We have come along to solve every issue you could be running into.
One of our main goals is to help store owners protect their digital downloads. See our comprehensive guide to preventing customers from sharing your digital products.
| Shopify's Digital Downloads app | Fileflare Digital Downloads app |
|---|---|
| Can only attach 1 file to each product | Attach unlimited files per product and variant |
| Free (no upgrade scaling options) | Free plan available + upgrade options for when you grow |
| Doesn’t support customer account downloads | Display downloads links in customer accounts + fully customisable |
| Unlimited bandwidth | Unlimited bandwidth |
| 5GB total storage per file | No maximum file size limit |
| Issues with cookies in some browsers | No issues with cookies |
| Cannot attach files to an single order | Personalised digital products by attaching files to a single order |
| Cannot override global limitations for an order | Ability to override global limitations for an order |
| No upgrade options | Plenty of upgrade options (we listen to customer feedback) |
| Display links on Thank You page | Display links on Thank You page |
| Cannot use your own email (white label) | Set IP Address limitations |
| No store branding features | Customise branding completely |
| Cannot set release dates | Set pre-order release dates on files |
| Sell digital files alongside subscription apps | Sell digital files alongside subscription apps |
| No update/notify options | Update files & notify previous customers |
| No protection features | Protect downloads using IP and fraud protection |
| Cannot see email tracking | Email tracking showing opens and bounces |
| No PDF Stamping | PDF Stamping |
| Cannot deliver URLs to customers | Can deliver URLs to customers |
| Only add single type of download limit | Add many types of download limitations |
| Cannot control an orders download | Expire an order (block customer’s downloads) |
| Sends downloads from @shopify.com email | Use your own email to send downloads (white label) |
| Email customisation templates | Email customisation templates |
| No API | API |
| Cannot connect your own S3 | Connect your own S3 storage |
Please note: It's possible to use Fileflare alongside any other digital downloads app on Shopify. It won’t mess up your current application, and everything will run as normal. But please be aware if you have both enabled at the same time, you may see multiple download emails being delivered by both apps, and we have seen Shopify's Digital Downloads app hold fulfilments sometimes so that Fileflare cannot mark the product as fulfilled in some orders. Once migrated, ensure to disable the older app.
Migrated stores reviews
We’ve had a lot of stores migrate over to ours now. Here’s what they had to say.
1. Install Fileflare Digital Downloads
Go to the Shopify app store and install Fileflare Digital Downloads.
2. Disable automatic email delivery
If you have a store that has orders coming in, this is important to turn off email delivery while we set up the app.
Before we carry on, we need to disable automatic download emails that are sent by Fileflare so that we can set up the app in the meantime. This makes sure that your other Digital Downloads app can keep delivering files while we complete the new setup.
Go to the "Settings" page in Fileflare
Go to "Additional settings"
Enable the setting "Disable all order download emails sent from Fileflare"
Click "Save"
Ensure that you do not enable the Fileflare App Blocks in the Shopify theme customizer just yet. You can enable the Checkout and Customer Account App Blocks once we have migrated and are ready to deliver.
3. Upload your digital files to Fileflare
If you need to downloads your files from Shopify's Digital Downloads app, the only way to do this quickly is by placing an order for all of your digital products so that you get all of the downloads links in one email, create a folder on your device, then download the files into this folder. Then, you can upload them all to Fileflare in one simple click, and then perform a bulk-attach process, or do it quickly using our user interface.
You will need to upload your digital files to the Fileflare app.
You can connect your own S3 server if you are currently using one for your other application. Meaning you don't need to download and transfer, you can just connect the server and read the files.
Go to the "Upload" page
Upload all of your digital files. You can do this in one go, making it really simple. Just select all of your files and click upload.
4. Attach the files to your Shopify products
All of your Shopify products are automatically synced to Fileflare’s "Products" page.
This is important because Fileflare doesn’t need you to create products twice. The process is as simplified as possible. Fileflare simply works alongside Shopify’s platform and delivers digital files alongside your Shopify products, making it super simple.
Go to the “Products” page in Fileflare
Click on a product that you want to attach files to
Then attach your files to the product using the search box/drop-down menu
Repeat this until all of your files are attached to the products
You can also do this from the Asset page and attach a single asset to multiple products at once.
5. Import orders
Using Fileflare, you can go to the Orders page and click the "Import all orders" button to import all of your store's order history. This will allow you to easily deliver digital goods to all of your previous customers.
When using the customer accounts feature, any customer can easily log into their account and get access their digital files instantly.
6. Set up your settings
Here you can build your settings to suit your business’s needs. Depending on your plan, you may have access to some extra features. Take a good look at the Settings page to make sure everything is in line and set up the way you want it.
View guides.
Add downloads to Shopify’s Order Confirmation email - Using Fileflare, you can add a method to deliver downloads using the Shopify Order confirmation email that gets sent by Shopify with every order.
7. Disable your old digital downloads app & enable Fileflare
The final step is to switch over the apps by disabling the old app, and enabling Fileflare.
Go to the Fileflare "Settings" page
Go to "Additional settings"
Disable the setting "Disable all order download emails sent from Fileflare". This will enable the download email delivery.
Now, you can enable the customer account downloads and the checkout page downloads if you want these enabled.
Go to "Checkout settings"
Follow the steps to enable the checkout App Blocks and customer account App Blocks if you want to deliver using these methods.
Go to your current digital downloads app and disable it. With Shopify's app, you may need to remove the file from the product to disable it.
Please note: once you remove your old digital downloads app, customers may request new access because the old downloads links will stop working. You can easily resend a download email to the customers with Fileflare, or automatically display the downloads in their customer account. This works for all of your store's order history automatically, making it super easy!
Updated on: 15/01/2025
Thank you!