# Workspace panel controls
A reference for every control across the Workspace tab's views.

## How to access this

1. Open the LottieFiles plugin in After Effects.
2. Click **Workspace** in the top tab bar.

<Image src="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/c6696079a5-640.webp" alt="Workspace panel landing view with search, workspace selector, and project and folder navigation highlighted" caption="Workspace starts with search, the active workspace selector, and project and folder navigation" zoom variant="default" srcSet="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/c6696079a5-640.webp 640w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/c6696079a5-1024.webp 1024w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/c6696079a5-1920.webp 1920w" width="1920" height="1080" loading="lazy" data-blur="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAgAAAAFCAYAAAB4ka1VAAAACXBIWXMAAAPoAAAD6AG1e1JrAAAAiElEQVR4nGNwD4z+7+wTjoI9QuL++0akgPA/BgN71/9Kesb/5bQN/stq6f2X0tb7bxYQDlPwn0Hd3vO/opH5fzkD0/9i6rr/xTX1/mtFZv+3zGuGKNBx8fuvamz1X8nYEqwAhPVCkv+bF7b994zN/s+g7+D+X03PCIwllVT/Syio/Df1CIK7AQCoekXfUlZTOQAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==" />

## Top header (all views)

- **Workspace selector** — choose between workspaces you have access to. Currently active workspace name displayed.
- **Search bar** — workspace-wide search. See [Browsing and searching](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/browsing-and-searching).
- **Breadcrumbs** — only shown when you've drilled into a project or folder. Click any segment to jump back to that level. {/* [needs review] confirm exact placement */}

## Workspace landing view

- **Project grid** — every project in the active workspace.
- **Project card** — name, last-modified date, file/folder count. {/* [needs review] confirm card metadata */}

## Project view

- **Folder cards** — folders at the project root.
- **File cards** — animations, images, and source files at the project root, not in a folder.
- **Sort / view options** (when present) — grid layout, sort by date or name. {/* [needs review] confirm */}

<Image src="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/81cf9c3208-640.webp" alt="After Effects plugin Workspace tab showing folders and file cards in a project" caption="Project and folder views combine folders, animations, images, and source files" zoom variant="default" srcSet="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/81cf9c3208-640.webp 640w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/81cf9c3208-1024.webp 1024w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/81cf9c3208-1920.webp 1920w" width="3840" height="2160" loading="lazy" data-blur="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAgAAAAFCAYAAAB4ka1VAAAACXBIWXMAAAPoAAAD6AG1e1JrAAAAdklEQVR4nFXKSQqDQBCFYc/RI2rZ0QbB2dhOIa6zzwFy/yu8YLkIWfxUwfuicTnQ3FfU4/K7YUOzPvF6fxAlMUFrDSEEJ6UEuRucL/+BMYY7/zjzMFRcIE0zKKV4tNaCiFA4D5f7C7TThqqbuLoPGMLO9fODwRe2XT5P1b6inQAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==" />

## Folder view

Same structure as Project view, one hierarchy level down. Folders can be nested up to 6 levels.

## Search results view

- **Mixed grid** — files and folders matching the query, intermixed.
- **No project results** — the current scope excludes projects.
- **Empty state** — message when no matches.

## Animation file detail view

The most action-dense view. The header, sidebar actions, and content sections all collaborate to make this the file's home for the entire team.

### Header (file-specific)

- **Breadcrumb** — path from workspace to the file.
- **Status dot** — five values (No status, In progress, Needs review, Approved, Shipped). Click to change. See [Tracking file status](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/tracking-file-status). Plan-gated.
- **Share button** — toggle public access and copy the share URL. See [Sharing an animation](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/sharing-an-animation).
- **Test on mobile** — generates a mobile preview link or QR. (Feature pending verification; may not be present in all builds.)

### Main file detail sections

- **Player** — playback with loop control. Hover the preview to reveal minus and plus zoom controls from 10% to 300%; drag the resize handle when available.
- **Pan when zoomed** — above 100%, drag the preview or use a two-finger trackpad gesture to move the enlarged animation within the preview boundaries. Preview clicks do not trigger playback or State Machine interactions at this zoom level. At 100% or below, the existing preview interactions remain available.
- **Background color** — backdrop options.
- **Insert to AE** — inserts the animation into the After Effects project with the currently previewed token and theme values.
- **Open in Creator** — opens the file in LottieFiles Creator (web).
- **Download accordion** — four-variant download (`.lottie` / `.JSON` × optimized). See [Download](/en/integrations/after-effects/07_download).
- **Feature checker accordion** — Lottie feature breakdown. See [Feature checker](/en/integrations/after-effects/08_feature-checker).
- **State Machines** (if present) — listed for reference.
- **Motion Tokens** (if present) — choose **Default** or a named theme, then edit color, gradient, scalar, vector, text, and keyframed token values with live preview.
- **Render graph** (if present) — bandwidth and size analysis. (Feature pending verification.)

For the complete token editing, theme management, and saving workflow, see [Managing themes and changes](/en/integrations/after-effects/03_motion-tokens/managing-themes-and-changes).

## AEP source file detail view

An AEP source file uses After Effects' native project handling rather than the Lottie animation importer:

- **Insert** — merges the AEP into the currently open After Effects project and opens its main composition.
- **Open as new project** — opens a native save dialog, saves the AEP locally, and opens it as a separate After Effects project.
- **Download** — downloads the source file without opening it in After Effects.

Open the select menu beside **Insert** to choose between **Insert** and **Open as new project**. **Download** remains available as the secondary action.

<Image src="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/bd7e19128f-640.webp" alt="After Effects with an AEP source file open in Workspace and the Insert menu showing Insert and Open as new project" caption="Use Insert to merge the source AEP into the current project, or open it as a separate project" zoom variant="default" srcSet="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/bd7e19128f-640.webp 640w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/bd7e19128f-1024.webp 1024w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/bd7e19128f-1920.webp 1920w" width="1920" height="1080" loading="lazy" data-blur="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAgAAAAFCAYAAAB4ka1VAAAACXBIWXMAAAPoAAAD6AG1e1JrAAAAgElEQVR4nEXOzQrCMBAE4LyERPIHaVh/Em2tbSlIDwpeVHpT8P0fxJFdBA8fs4eBWVWaDvu2B2euW7EbJ2yGE67z+6O892BaaxhjRFUacb4/oZxzUrDWgm/JdYan7b8QQgARIaWEGCOWpcOiWuHyeEHxJu/XxwGHfhR0m5F/P3wB8xg8K6sehggAAAAASUVORK5CYII=" />

<Image src="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/30ec3cc4e8-640.webp" alt="After Effects after inserting an AEP source file, with the imported composition open and a success message in the plugin" caption="After insertion, the AEP is added to the current project and its main composition opens" zoom variant="default" srcSet="https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/30ec3cc4e8-640.webp 640w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/30ec3cc4e8-1024.webp 1024w, https://assets.docs.lottiefiles.com/static/30ec3cc4e8-1920.webp 1920w" width="1920" height="1080" loading="lazy" data-blur="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAgAAAAFCAYAAAB4ka1VAAAACXBIWXMAAAPoAAAD6AG1e1JrAAAAkklEQVR4nCXOTQqCQACG4TmEQuj8NIrWZNOQpuBoRBTFuMpF2+gCQQfoBt25L5oWz+5dvGRV1mjsFnq9QWEqT9ctVNVi58YPETJFEFEE8QRhzMEYQ1IYrzs4EMoFjO1we73BtPUBzxdgmfoHEaOgSQaRz8GzGYSUCKep1x8HkLKx+Nm7O07jE+fLA8vhClU2/uELnN0+2VEXrcoAAAAASUVORK5CYII=" />

### Footer (file-specific)

- **Update from AE** — replace the current file's animation with a render of an AE composition. The file ID and share URL stay the same; the animation changes. See [Updating a version](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/updating-a-version). Plan-gated; locked button shows an icon when unavailable.

## Drag interactions

- **Drag a supported animation file card onto AE** — imports the animation as a new layer in the active composition. Open an AEP source file and use its **Insert** menu instead.
- **Drag-and-drop reorder** of files/folders — not currently supported in the plugin UI. Use the LottieFiles web app to reorganize.

## Related

- [Browsing and searching](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/browsing-and-searching) — using these controls in a navigation workflow.
- [Sharing an animation](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/sharing-an-animation) — the share button workflow.
- [Updating a version](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/updating-a-version) — the Update from AE workflow.
- [Tracking file status](/en/integrations/after-effects/10_workspace/tracking-file-status) — the status dot workflow.
- [Managing Motion Token themes and changes](/en/integrations/after-effects/03_motion-tokens/managing-themes-and-changes) — edit token values and save themes.