Download all attachments from a Confluence Cloud space

Summary

Confluence Cloud does not currently have a native feature to download all attachments from a space into a single folder. This article provides workarounds using space exports or the Confluence REST API to retrieve space attachments for archival or review.

Solution

While there is no single-click button to download all attachments, you can use the following methods to extract them from your space.

Option 1: Extract attachments from a space export

When you perform a space export to HTML or XML, Confluence includes all attachments within the resulting zip file. The HTML export is generally preferred for archival purposes as it preserves the original filenames.

1. Go to Space Settings, then select Export space from the Manage space card.

2. Select HTML or XML, then choose Next.

3. Select Full Export (or Custom Export if you only need specific pages), then choose Export.

4. Once the export process completes, download and unzip the file on your local machine.

5. Navigate to the attachment directory within the unzipped folder:

6. HTML export: Attachments are located in the download/attachments/<pageId>/ directory.

7. XML export: Attachments are located in the attachments/<pageId>/<attachmentId>/<version> directory.

Note: In the XML export, files are organized by ID rather than filename. The HTML export preserves original filenames but organizes them into subfolders based on the Page ID.

Option 2: Use the Confluence REST API

For a more automated or tailored approach, you can use the Confluence REST API to programmatically download attachments. This method allows you to control the final folder structure and naming conventions.

1. Retrieve a list of all pages in the space using the GET /wiki/rest/api/content?spaceKey=<SPACE_KEY> endpoint.

2. For each page ID retrieved, list the attachments using the GET /wiki/rest/api/content/<pageId>/child/attachment endpoint.

3. Download each file using the _links.download URL provided in the API response.

You will need an Atlassian API token and the appropriate space permissions to perform these actions.