# Assets > The `/assets` endpoint can be used to stream or retrieve the actual file contents from assets managed within Directus. ## Accessing an Original File The location of your actual file originals is based on the project's configuration, but you can consistently access them via the API using the following URL. ``` example.com/assets/ example.com/assets/1ac73658-8b62-4dea-b6da-529fbc9d01a4 ``` ![Original File](../../assets/original.jpg) _Original File Used — 602KB and 1800x1200_ ::: warning Direct File Access While you may _technically_ be able to expose your storage adapters root filesystem and access your raw files through there, it is recommended that you always use the Directus API. This is the only way that you can take advantage of file permissions and other built-in features. ::: ## Requesting a Thumbnail Fetching thumbnails is as easy as adding query parameters to the original file's URL. If a requested thumbnail doesn't yet exist, it is dynamically generated and immediately returned. When requesting a thumbnail, the following parameters are all required. - **`fit`** — The **fit** of the thumbnail while always preserving the aspect ratio, can be any of the following options: - `cover` — Covers both width/height by cropping/clipping to fit - `contain` — Contain within both width/height using "letterboxing" as needed - `inside` — Resize to be as large as possible, ensuring dimensions are less than or equal to the requested width and height - `outside` — Resize to be as small as possible, ensuring dimensions are greater than or equal to the requested width and height - **`width`** — The **width** of the thumbnail in pixels - **`height`** — The **height** of the thumbnail in pixels - **`quality`** — The **quality** of the thumbnail (`0` to `100`) - **`withoutEnlargement`** — Disable image up-scaling - **`download`** — Add `Content-Disposition` header and force browser to download file ``` example.com/assets/?fit=&width=&height=&quality= example.com/assets/1ac73658-8b62-4dea-b6da-529fbc9d01a4?fit=cover&width=200&height=200&quality=80 ``` Alternatively, you can reference a specific thumbnail by its preset key. - **`key`** — This **key** of the [Storage Asset Preset](/guides/files#creating-thumbnail-presets), a shortcut for the above parameters ``` example.com/assets/?key= example.com/assets/1ac73658-8b62-4dea-b6da-529fbc9d01a4?key=card ``` ### Cover vs Contain For easier comparison, both of the examples below were requested at `200` width, `200` height, and `75` quality. The `cover` thumbnail forces the dimensions, trimming the outside edges as needed. The `contain` thumbnail always maintains its aspect ratio, shrinking the image to fit _within_ the dimensions and adding "letterboxing" as needed. | Cover | Contain | | -------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | ![Cover](../../assets/200-200-cover-75.jpg)
_8KB • 200x200_ | ![Contain](../../assets/200-200-contain-75.jpg)
_6KB • 200x133_ | ::: tip Aspect Ratio Images are never stretched or distorted even when changing the aspect ratio. ::: ### Quality vs Filesize The quality parameter can be any integer from `0-100`. Qualities closer to `0` have lower filesizes, but also poor image quality due to compression artifacts. Values closer to `100` have larger filesizes, but better image quality. Below are four possible qualities (200x200 cover) to visually compare the balance between compression and filesize. | 25% | 50% | 75% | 100% | | -------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- | | ![25%](../../assets/200-200-cover-25.jpg)
_4KB_ | ![50%](../../assets/200-200-cover-50.jpg)
_6KB_ | ![75%](../../assets/200-200-cover-75.jpg)
_8KB_ | ![100%](../../assets/200-200-cover-100.jpg)
_38KB_ | ## Downloading a File To download an asset with the correct filename, you need to add the `?download` query parameter to the request and the `download` attribute to your anchor tag. This will ensure the appropriate [Content-Disposition](https://www.w3.org/Protocols/rfc2616/rfc2616-sec19.html) headers are added. Without this, the download will work on the _same_ domain, however it will have the file's "id" as the filename for cross-origin requests. Example: ```html Download ```