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Download System

How Continuata's download system works from the user's perspective and the technical implementation details.

User Experience

Downloads work directly in Chrome and Edge — no installation required. Safari and Firefox users install the free Continuata Bridge for the same experience.

1

Click Download Link

Customer receives a download URL by email after purchase, or finds all their purchases at continuata.io/my by entering their email.

2

Choose Location

Browser prompts for download folder using native file picker.

3

Download with Progress

Real-time progress, speed indicators, and pause/resume controls.

4

Verification & Completion

Automatic integrity verification and completion summary.

Technical Architecture

Pack-Based Downloads

Files are grouped into ~8MB packs for transport. The downloader fetches packs sequentially, verifies each pack's SHA-256, then extracts and verifies each individual file before writing it to disk:

Benefits

  • Fewer HTTP requests (e.g. 150 packs vs 5,000 files)
  • Resume from last completed pack
  • Per-pack and per-file integrity verification
  • Automatic retry with backoff on failure

How It Works

  • Download pack → verify SHA-256
  • Extract files using segment offsets
  • Verify each file's SHA-256
  • Write verified files to disk

File System Integration

Different approaches based on browser capabilities:

File System Access API (Chrome, Edge)

Direct file system access allows writing files to user-selected folders in real-time during download.

Origin Private File System (OPFS)

For browsers without direct access, files are staged in OPFS then exported as a ZIP when complete.

Continuata Bridge

Free desktop app provides native file system access for Safari and Firefox. Download at continuata.io/bridge.

Progress Tracking

Real-time download progress with detailed metrics:

Overall Progress

Percentage complete, bytes downloaded, total size.

Current File

Active file name, file progress, circular indicator.

Performance

Download speed, ETA, active connections.

Browser Compatibility

Chrome

Full native support

Edge

Full native support

Firefox

Bridge required

Safari

Bridge required

Customer Portal

Every customer can find all their Continuata purchases — across every vendor they've bought from — at continuata.io/my. They enter the email they used at checkout and we send a secure, time-limited link to their purchase list. From there they can download any active product or register additional email addresses on the same account.

  • No password — verification is via emailed link
  • A single inbox can list purchases from multiple vendors
  • Customers can add and verify additional emails (handy when they purchased under different addresses)
  • Link this from your post-purchase emails so customers always know where to recover their downloads

Resume Downloads

Download progress is automatically persisted in the browser's IndexedDB. If the page is closed, refreshed, or the connection drops mid-download, a Resume Download button appears on the next visit. The download picks up from the last completed pack — no data needs to be re-downloaded.

  • Works across page refresh, tab close, and browser restart
  • Progress tracked at the pack level — completed packs are never re-fetched
  • The same download folder is re-used automatically (no folder picker prompt on resume)

Security Features

Data Integrity

  • SHA-256 verification per pack (after download)
  • SHA-256 verification per file (after extraction)
  • Automatic retry with backoff on pack failure
  • Cryptographically signed manifests

Access Control

  • Time-limited download tokens
  • IP-based restrictions (optional)
  • Download count limits
  • Token revocation capabilities

Next Steps: Learn how to create download tokens or explore download analytics to track usage.