Multiple websites access uploaded files?

[RFH Reseller: alano999]

I'm going around in circles! Any suggestions for a solution to the challenge below?

I have a group of asp.net websites (CompanyA.com, CompanyB.com, etc.) where business customers can upload files to share with others in the group (e.g. technical specification documents). I want all websites in this group to be able to view the shared files easily (e.g. by clicking an html <a> tag), but the web page html must not give away the name of the company who uploaded the file.

The asp.net websites already exist, and are all very "unique" in their design and implementation - so cannot easily be hosted as a single .net application (file sharing would then be easy!). The only common thing is that they are all within a single Red Fox reseller user account.

I'm beginning to think the only sane way is to save uploaded files as blobs in a database. However, the database would become quite large and I have been led to believe MS-SQL is not really an appropriate mechanism for this sort of thing.

Ideas? Can Red Fox diskspace be shared between multiple domains (read and file upload/write)? Perhaps I could create a neutrally named domain/website as a "repository" (solves the problem of giving away name of company who uploaded the file), but file upload could be inefficient (upload file to company's own website, then send e.g. via SOAP to the neutrally named website... double the traffic and double the upload time).

Thanks in advance,
Alan

[Staff: Warren Ashcroft]

For security and infrastructure reasons it isn't possible for one domain to access another domains webspace, the only way of achieving this is with a separate "repository" domain as you suggested - but you could implement it so that uploads are posted to this domain and redirected back to the correct company domain, removing the need for any backend file copying.

[RFH Reseller: alano999]

Nice, thanks Warren.

I was almost there - but hadn't yet thought to redirect (or possibly IFRAME?) off to the "repository" domain to perform the upload.

I can now finalise the design and start coding!

Cheers,
Alan

[Staff: Warren Ashcroft]

No problem, a floating frame or popup would load an upload form on the repository domain to receive the file or something like that.