Cloud Storage

Pixeltable supports storing media files (images, videos, audio, documents) in external cloud storage providers instead of local disk. This is essential for production deployments, enabling scalable storage, team collaboration, and integration with existing data infrastructure.

Supported providers

Pixeltable Cloud

Managed storage, no bucket setup required

Amazon S3

Native S3 storage with full feature support

Google Cloud Storage

GCS buckets with gs:// URI scheme

Azure Blob Storage

Azure containers with wasb:// or abfs:// schemes

Cloudflare R2

S3-compatible storage with zero egress fees

Backblaze B2

Cost-effective S3-compatible storage

Tigris

Globally distributed S3-compatible storage

How it works

When you configure a storage destination, Pixeltable automatically:

Uploads computed media: AI-generated images, extracted video frames, and other computed media files are stored in your bucket
Copies input media: Optionally persists referenced media files for durability
Manages file lifecycle: Cleans up files when table data is deleted
Handles caching: Downloads files on-demand with intelligent local caching

Which destination do you need?

Where the tables run	What to set
Hosted Cloud tables and services	Nothing. The database already writes to `pxtfs://org:db/home`.
Local Pixeltable against that Cloud home bucket	`PIXELTABLE_API_KEY` (API Keys, then export) plus `PIXELTABLE_INPUT_MEDIA_DEST` / `PIXELTABLE_OUTPUT_MEDIA_DEST` pointing at the `pxtfs://` URI.
Your own S3 / GCS / Azure bucket	Provider keys in Secrets or `pxt secret`, and those dest env vars pointing at `s3://`, `gs://`, or `wasbs://`.

Do not put PIXELTABLE_API_KEY in config.toml as api_key. Use the env name. Hosted pods get their own worker key from the platform; you do not set it.

Configuration

There are two ways to configure cloud storage destinations. These apply to local Pixeltable and to bring-your-own buckets. Hosted Cloud tables skip this section.

Global default destinations

Set default destinations for all media columns with environment variables (see Configuration):

export PIXELTABLE_INPUT_MEDIA_DEST="s3://my-bucket/input/"
export PIXELTABLE_OUTPUT_MEDIA_DEST="s3://my-bucket/output/"

Or the same dest keys in ~/.pixeltable/config.toml (not the API key):

[pixeltable]
input_media_dest = "s3://my-bucket/input/"
output_media_dest = "s3://my-bucket/output/"

Configure these before creating tables. All media columns will automatically use the configured destinations.

Per-column destination (computed columns only)

For computed columns, you can override the default with a specific destination:

import pixeltable as pxt

TableModel = pxt.model_base()


class Images(TableModel, name='images'):
    image: pxt.Image                       # uses input_media_dest if configured
    thumbnail = pxt.Column(
        value=image.resize((128, 128)),
        destination='s3://my-bucket/thumbnails/',
    )

Then pxt schema update app.py my_app. In a notebook or a test, the same column is t.add_computed_column(thumbnail=t.image.resize((128, 128)), destination=...).

The destination parameter only applies to stored computed columns. For input columns, use the global input_media_dest configuration.

Precedence rules

Destinations are resolved in this order:

Explicit column destination: highest priority (computed columns only)
Global default: PIXELTABLE_INPUT_MEDIA_DEST / PIXELTABLE_OUTPUT_MEDIA_DEST (or the matching config.toml dest keys)
Hosted Cloud process: pxtfs://org:db/home when the database is running in Cloud
Local process: local disk

Provider configuration

Pixeltable Cloud (home bucket)

A Pixeltable Cloud database comes with a managed Media Store at pxtfs://org:db/home. Hosted tables and services write there automatically. No destination, no provider account, no credentials file. Cloud is in Limited Beta: email [email protected] to get an account. Use dest + PIXELTABLE_API_KEY only when a local Pixeltable process should write into that same bucket:

export PIXELTABLE_API_KEY='your-key'
export PIXELTABLE_INPUT_MEDIA_DEST='pxtfs://org:db/home'
export PIXELTABLE_OUTPUT_MEDIA_DEST='pxtfs://org:db/home'

Create the key under API Keys in the dashboard and export it. Pixeltable reads the process environment only, so a .env file has to be sourced first. Provider keys (AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID, OPENAI_API_KEY, …) go under Secrets or pxt secret set.

URI Format
Local auth

pxtfs://org-slug:db-slug/home

Replace org-slug and db-slug with your Pixeltable Cloud organization and database names.

export PIXELTABLE_API_KEY='your-key'

Pixeltable fetches temporary home-bucket credentials from the Cloud API. Hosted pods already have a worker key; do not copy that into your laptop config.toml.

On Cloud, open Storage in the database sidebar and browse home. Nothing to configure for hosted tables.

https://www.pixeltable.com/dashboard/{org-slug}/{db-slug}/storage/home/browse

Amazon S3

URI Format
Authentication

s3://bucket-name/optional/prefix/

Uses standard AWS credential chain:

Environment variables (AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID, AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY)
On Pixeltable Cloud, store those names under Secrets (or pxt secret), not in PIXELTABLE_API_KEY
AWS credentials file (~/.aws/credentials)
IAM role (when running on AWS)

Optionally specify a profile in config.toml:

[pixeltable]
s3_profile = "my-aws-profile"

Google Cloud Storage

URI Format
Authentication
Requirements

gs://bucket-name/optional/prefix/

Uses Google Cloud Application Default Credentials:

Service account key file (GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS)
gcloud CLI authentication
GCE metadata service (when running on GCP)

pip install google-cloud-storage

Azure Blob Storage

URI Formats
Authentication
Requirements

Azure supports multiple URI schemes:

wasbs://[email protected]/prefix/
abfss://[email protected]/prefix/

Configure in config.toml:

[azure]
storage_account_name = "myaccount"
storage_account_key = "your-key-here"

Or via environment variables:

export AZURE_STORAGE_ACCOUNT_NAME="myaccount"
export AZURE_STORAGE_ACCOUNT_KEY="your-key-here"

pip install azure-storage-blob

Cloudflare R2

URI Format
Authentication

https://account-id.r2.cloudflarestorage.com/bucket-name/prefix/

Create an R2 API token and configure AWS-style credentials.In ~/.aws/credentials:

[r2]
aws_access_key_id = your-r2-access-key
aws_secret_access_key = your-r2-secret-key

In config.toml:

[pixeltable]
r2_profile = "r2"

Backblaze B2

URI Format
Authentication

https://s3.region.backblazeb2.com/bucket-name/prefix/

Create B2 application keys and configure AWS-style credentials.In ~/.aws/credentials:

[b2]
aws_access_key_id = your-b2-key-id
aws_secret_access_key = your-b2-application-key

In config.toml:

[pixeltable]
b2_profile = "b2"

Tigris

URI Format
Authentication

https://t3.storage.dev/bucket-name/prefix/

Configure AWS-style credentials for Tigris.In ~/.aws/credentials:

[tigris]
aws_access_key_id = your-tigris-access-key
aws_secret_access_key = your-tigris-secret-key

In config.toml:

[pixeltable]
tigris_profile = "tigris"

Complete example

Here’s a full example using S3 for both input and computed media. First, configure your global destinations in ~/.pixeltable/config.toml:

[pixeltable]
input_media_dest = "s3://my-app-bucket/uploads/"
output_media_dest = "s3://my-app-bucket/generated/"

s3_profile = "my-aws-profile"  # optional, uses default credentials if not set

Then declare the columns in your application file:

import pixeltable as pxt
from pixeltable.functions import openai

TableModel = pxt.model_base()


class Photos(TableModel, name='photos'):
    photo: pxt.Image                        # input media goes to input_media_dest
    thumbnail = pxt.Column(
        value=photo.resize((256, 256)),
        destination='s3://my-app-bucket/thumbnails/',   # overrides output_media_dest
    )
    description = openai.chat_completions(
        [
            {
                'role': 'user',
                'content': [
                    {'type': 'text', 'text': 'Describe this image briefly.'},
                    {'type': 'image_url', 'image_url': photo},
                ],
            }
        ],
        model='gpt-4o-mini',
    )

pxt schema update app.py production creates the table. Insert and Pixeltable handles the uploads:

import pixeltable as pxt

t = pxt.get_table('production.photos')
t.insert([
    {'photo': 'https://example.com/image1.jpg'},
    {'photo': '/local/path/to/image2.png'},
])

# Query as usual: files are streamed/cached as needed
t.select(t.photo, t.thumbnail, t.description).collect()

Best practices

Use prefixes to organize data

Structure your bucket with prefixes that reflect your application:

s3://my-bucket/
  ├── production/
  │   ├── uploads/
  │   └── generated/
  └── staging/
      ├── uploads/
      └── generated/

Separate input and output destinations

Use different prefixes or buckets for input vs computed media:

Easier to set different retention policies
Clearer cost attribution
Simpler backup strategies

Configure lifecycle policies

Set up bucket lifecycle policies to automatically:

Transition old data to cheaper storage tiers
Delete temporary/staging data after a period
Enable versioning for critical data

Use IAM roles in production

When running on cloud infrastructure, use IAM roles instead of access keys:

More secure (no key rotation needed)
Automatic credential refresh
Better audit trails

Troubleshooting

Access Denied errors

Verify your credentials have the necessary permissions:

s3:GetObject, s3:PutObject, s3:DeleteObject
s3:ListBucket for the bucket

For GCS: storage.objects.create, storage.objects.get, storage.objects.delete

Bucket not found

Ensure the bucket exists and the name is spelled correctly
Check the region matches your credential configuration
For S3-compatible providers, verify the endpoint URL is correct

Slow uploads

Pixeltable uses connection pooling and parallel uploads automatically
Consider using a bucket in the same region as your compute
Check your network bandwidth and latency

Configuration Reference

See the complete list of storage configuration options including profiles for S3, R2, B2, Tigris, and Azure.

Built-in Integrations

Infrastructure

Bring Your Own

Providers

Supported providers

Pixeltable Cloud

Amazon S3

Google Cloud Storage

Azure Blob Storage

Cloudflare R2

Backblaze B2

Tigris

How it works

Which destination do you need?

Configuration

Global default destinations

Per-column destination (computed columns only)

Precedence rules

Provider configuration

Pixeltable Cloud (home bucket)

Amazon S3

Google Cloud Storage

Azure Blob Storage

Cloudflare R2

Backblaze B2

Tigris

Complete example

Best practices

Troubleshooting

Configuration Reference

​Supported providers

Pixeltable Cloud

Amazon S3

Google Cloud Storage

Azure Blob Storage

Cloudflare R2

Backblaze B2

Tigris

​How it works

​Which destination do you need?

​Configuration

​Global default destinations

​Per-column destination (computed columns only)

​Precedence rules

​Provider configuration

​Pixeltable Cloud (home bucket)

​Amazon S3

​Google Cloud Storage

​Azure Blob Storage

​Cloudflare R2

​Backblaze B2

​Tigris

​Complete example

​Best practices

​Troubleshooting

Configuration Reference

Supported providers

How it works

Which destination do you need?

Configuration

Global default destinations

Per-column destination (computed columns only)

Precedence rules

Provider configuration

Pixeltable Cloud (home bucket)

Amazon S3

Google Cloud Storage

Azure Blob Storage

Cloudflare R2

Backblaze B2

Tigris

Complete example

Best practices

Troubleshooting