To upload course materials, open your Bloom, click the Knowledge Base tab, then drag files into the upload area or click Upload File. Once your files are listed under pending sources, click Ingest to process them. Bloom supports DOCX, DOC, PDF, PPTX, JSON, TXT, and Markdown files up to 32 MB each, and you can upload up to 50 files at a time.
Once ingested, your files become part of the Bloom’s retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) knowledge base. The AI can quote them, cite them, and ground answers in them instead of guessing.
Before you start
You need:
- A Bloom you have already created. See How to create your first Bloom.
- The Configure Bloom permission, granted to Space Owners, Bloom Managers, and Educators.
- Your files in a supported format and under 32 MB each. If you have a 200-page PDF, split it before uploading.
- Available knowledge-base slots on your plan. Free plans have a limit; Educator Plus, Growth, and Enterprise are unlimited.
Step 1: Open the Knowledge Base tab
From the Manage Blooms dashboard, click the Bloom you want to add materials to. On the configuration page, click the Knowledge Base tab. The icon is an open book.
If you do not see the tab, you do not have the Configure Bloom permission on this Bloom. Ask the Space Owner.
Step 2: Add files
You have three ways to add content:
Drag and drop
Drag files from your computer onto the dashed upload area. The area highlights when you hover.
File picker
Click Upload File and choose files from the dialog. Hold Ctrl (Windows) or Cmd (Mac) to select multiple.
Add a URL
Click Add URL to ingest content from a web page. Bloom fetches the page text and treats it like an uploaded document. Useful for syllabus pages, public reading lists, or open-access articles.
Supported file types
- Documents:
.docx,.doc,.pdf - Slides:
.pptx - Text:
.txt,.md,.markdown - Data:
.json
Not supported: .pages, .key, .xls, .xlsx, .csv, images, video, audio. Convert to PDF first if you need to upload these.
Limits
- Per-file size: 32 MB
- Per-batch: 50 files
- Filename: letters, numbers, spaces, hyphens, underscores, dots, and parentheses only. Filenames with
/,\,#,?,&, or emoji will be rejected.
Step 3: Review pending sources
After files upload to Bloom’s storage, they appear in an amber box labelled “{N} pending source(s)” above the saved-files table. Each row shows the filename, size, and a status badge: Pending, then Uploading, then Uploaded.
Files at this stage are stored but not yet searchable by the AI. You need to ingest them.
Step 4: Click Ingest
Click the Ingest {N} Source(s) button at the top right of the pending box. The number updates to match how many files are pending.
A progress bar appears showing:
- “Processing {current} of {total} files · {current operation}”
- A percentage from 0% to 100%
- The current step (for example, “Extracting text,” “Creating embeddings,” “Indexing”)
Ingestion typically takes 10 to 60 seconds per file, depending on length. A 200-page textbook PDF can take 5 minutes or more. The page polls every 3 seconds and will run for up to 10 minutes before timing out.
Step 5: Set access levels
After ingestion finishes, files move to the saved-resources table below. Click the pencil icon on a row to set its access level:
| Access level | What students see | What the AI uses it for |
|---|---|---|
| Hidden from Students | Nothing | The AI uses it to answer, but will not cite or share it. Good for marking guides and answer keys. |
| Reference Only | A citation if the AI quotes from it | Used in answers and citable, but students cannot open the file. |
| View Only | Filename and can open in viewer | Used in answers, students can read it but not download. |
| Full Access | Filename and can download | Used in answers, students can download and keep a copy. |
Common issues
“File exceeds 32MB”
Compress the PDF (Adobe, Smallpdf, or the gs command-line tool) or split it. Most 200-page PDFs are over the limit by default.
“Only DOCX, DOC, PDF, PPTX, JSON, TXT and Markdown files are supported”
You are trying to upload an unsupported type. Convert it. For Apple Pages → File → Export To → PDF. For Excel → Save As → PDF.
“Contains unsupported characters. Please rename...”
Special characters in the filename. Rename the file on your computer (for example, “Week 1: Cells.pdf” → “Week-1-Cells.pdf”) and re-upload.
“You can only upload up to {N} files”
Your plan’s knowledge-base limit is full. Either delete files you no longer need (trash icon on each row), or upgrade your plan.
Ingestion stalled and never finished
Wait the full 10 minutes before assuming failure. Large files genuinely take that long. If it still does not complete, refresh the page, partial progress is preserved. If the file is corrupted or password-protected, ingestion will fail with an error toast.
What’s next
- Test that the AI can find your content by opening a chat and asking a question that should require the file.
- Browse all setup guides → Getting Started
- Open the Knowledge Base now → Manage Blooms