Supported file types and upload limits
Student submissions can include documents, source code, images and ZIP files. Files the marker cannot read are still listed by name, so it knows they were handed in.
What the marker reads
| Kind | File types | What the marker gets |
|---|---|---|
| Documents | PDF, DOCX, DOC, TXT, MD | The text |
| Source code | Common languages and config files, such as PY, JAVA, KT, JS, TS, HTML, CSS, SQL, C, CPP, CS, SWIFT, DART, JSON, XML, YAML | The code as written |
| Images | PNG, JPG, JPEG, WEBP, GIF, BMP, SVG, TIFF | The image itself, up to 5 MB each |
| Archives | ZIP | Unpacked, including ZIPs inside ZIPs up to 6 levels deep |
What is listed by name only
- Video and audio files.
- Spreadsheets and CSV files inside a student's submission.
- RTF and ODT documents.
- Images larger than 5 MB.
- Any other file type the marker cannot open.
When a criterion depends on one of these, the marker cannot see its contents, so it flags that criterion for you to check.
A scanned PDF with no text layer gives no text. If a student hands in scanned pages, ask for images or a PDF with selectable text.
What is skipped
System and build clutter is ignored: __MACOSX folders, .DS_Store, Thumbs.db, hidden files, .git, node_modules, and build folders such as dist, build and .next.
Upload limits
- Up to 2,000 files in one upload or one archive.
- Up to 250 MB in total once everything is unzipped.
- A PDF or Word document larger than 20 MB cannot be read.
Going over the first two limits stops the upload with a message such as "Too many files" or "Upload is too large". Split the class into smaller batches and add them one at a time.
How much the marker reads per student
The marker reads up to 220,000 characters of text and 24 images from each submission. Anything beyond that is not seen.
Specs and rubrics
The spec can be PDF, DOCX, TXT or MD, up to 20 MB, or pasted as text. For rubric formats, see Add a marking rubric.
Check what was read
After marking, choose Uploaded files then View on the project card. Files and extracted text shows the text each student was marked from.
Common questions
- Are my students' original files uploaded to DeepMarking?
- No. Files are opened in your browser. DeepMarking receives the extracted text, the images the marker can read and a list of file names, and keeps the text each submission was marked from.
- Can the marker read a student's Excel workbook?
- Not at present. A spreadsheet in a submission is listed by name only, and criteria that depend on it are flagged for you to review.
Related articles
- Upload a ZIP from your LMSDownload all submissions from Moodle, Canvas, Blackboard or Brightspace as a ZIP and drop it in. How DeepMarking works out which files belong to which student.
- How student work is sent to the AIFiles are opened in your browser. The extracted text, readable images and the student name and ID go to Google Gemini for marking. Here is the full path.
- Supported devicesDeepMarking works on desktops, laptops and tablets, including iPads. Phones cannot sign in or mark, but public pages like Help and Pricing open on phones.
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