These are two column types in Dataverse made specifically for storing actual files.
File column:
This lets you attach any kind of file directly to a record — PDFs, Word docs, Excel sheets, zip files, whatever. Think of it like adding an attachment to an email, but the attachment lives right there on the record itself. It’s useful when you want the file stored with the record instead of somewhere in SharePoint or your email.
Image column:
This one’s just for pictures — jpg, png, that kind of thing. And instead of just sitting there like a regular attachment, the image actually shows up visually on the form. So if you add a Photo column on an Employee table, the person’s photo appears right on their record when you open it, not just as a downloadable file.
Simple way to remember it:
- File column → any file type, shows as a downloadable attachment
- Image column → only pictures, and it actually displays on the screen
Interview tip: If they ask “where does the storage for these come from?” — remember, files and images use File capacity, which is tracked separately from your regular Database capacity in Dataverse.
