# Use a link to a file

> Add a PDF or images to a flipbook by pasting links to files hosted elsewhere, and fix links the app won't accept.

Source: https://docs.neoflipbook.com/files/paste-a-link/  
App: Neo Product Catalog Flipbook  
Last updated: 2026-10-01

If your PDF or images are already online, you can paste links to them instead of uploading. The files stay on your host, and the flipbook loads them from there.

## Paste a PDF link

1. On **Select a PDF**, click **Paste a link**.
2. Paste the link in **PDF link**.
3. Click **Add PDF**.

## Paste image links

1. On **Select images**, click **Paste links**.
2. Paste the links in **Image links**, one link per line, in page order.
3. Click **Add images**.

If you paste the same link twice, it’s added once. The app checks every link before it accepts it. Links that pass are added to **Your files** with a **Link** badge and selected for you.

## What a link needs

- It starts with `https://` and is no longer than 2,048 characters.
- It goes straight to the file, not to a page that shows the file. A share link from a cloud drive usually opens a preview page, so it won’t work.
- The host lets browsers load the file from other websites (hosts call this CORS). Shoppers’ browsers load the file straight from your host, so a host that blocks this gives a flipbook with blank pages.

## If the app won’t accept a link

| Message                                                                                             | What it means                                                                                      |
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| “Paste a link to a PDF.” or “Paste at least one image link.”                                        | The field is empty.                                                                                |
| “Enter a link starting with [https://.”](https://.%E2%80%9D)                                        | The link doesn’t start with `https://`, or isn’t a web address.                                    |
| “This link answered with 404. Check the address.”                                                   | The host sent back an error instead of the file. The number is the error code, such as 403 or 404. |
| “This link doesn’t lead to a PDF file. Use a direct link to the file, not a page that shows it.”    | The link opens a web page, not a PDF.                                                              |
| “This link doesn’t lead to an image file. Use a direct link to the file, not a page that shows it.” | The link opens a web page, not an image.                                                           |
| “This link can’t be loaded in a browser. Check the address, or upload the file instead.”            | The address is wrong, or the host doesn’t let browsers load the file from other websites.          |

With several image links, the app shows the first problem it finds. Fix or remove that link, then click **Add images** again.

> **A link that passes can still fail**
>
> The app checks links from your Shopify admin. Some hosts allow only certain websites, so a link can pass here and still show blank pages on your store. If that happens, upload the file instead. Also keep the file at the same address: if you move or delete it, the flipbook breaks.

## Related pages

- [Upload a file](https://docs.neoflipbook.com/files/upload-a-file/)
- [Upload and link problems](https://docs.neoflipbook.com/troubleshooting/upload-problems/)