---
title: "Describe a file"
method: GET
path: "/files/{assistant_name}/{assistant_file_id}"
tags: ["Manage Assistants"]
---

# Describe a file

`GET /files/{assistant_name}/{assistant_file_id}`

[Get the current status and metadata of a file](https://docs.pinecone.io/guides/assistant/manage-files#get-the-status-of-a-file) uploaded to an assistant.

## Path parameters

- `assistant_name` string, required
- `assistant_file_id` string, required

## Query parameters

- `include_url` string

## Headers

- `X-Pinecone-Api-Version` string, required

## Response `200`

Poll request successful.

- AssistantDataAssistantFileModel — The response format for a successful file upload request.
  - `name` string, required — The name of the uploaded file.
  - `id` string, required — The unique identifier for the uploaded file. This may be a user-provided identifier or a system-generated ID.
  - `size` integer — The size of the uploaded file, in bytes.
  - `metadata` object, nullable — Optional metadata associated with the file. This metadata can be used to filter files when listing them or to restrict search results when querying the assistant.
  - `created_on` string, date-time — The timestamp when the file was uploaded, in ISO 8601 format (`YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SSZ`).
  - `updated_on` string, date-time — The timestamp of the most recent update to the file, in ISO 8601 format (`YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SSZ`).
  - `status` string — The current state of the uploaded file. Possible values: - `Processing`: File is being processed (parsed, chunked, embedded) - `Available`: Processing completed successfully; file is ready for use - `Deleting`: Deletion has been initiated but not yet completed - `ProcessingFailed`: Processing failed with an error Note: Once a file is deleted, the API returns 404 Not Found instead of a file object.
  - `signed_url` string, nullable — A [signed URL](https://cloud.google.com/storage/docs/access-control/signed-urls) that provides temporary, read-only access to the file. Anyone with the link can access the file, so treat it as sensitive data. Expires after a short time.
  - `multimodal` boolean — Indicates whether the file was processed as multimodal.

## Other responses

- `401` — Unauthorized. Possible causes: Invalid API key.
- `404` — File not found.
- `500` — Internal server error.

---

[API](https://skmtc.net/pinecone/apis/pinecone-api.md) · [All operations](https://skmtc.net/pinecone/apis/pinecone-api/llms.txt) · [OpenAPI document](https://skmtc-service-staging.skmtc.workers.dev/v1/apis/pinecone/pinecone-api/versions/35876583485d/schema)