# Files and history

> Browse saved files, share an exact version, and find earlier work without changing the repository.

**Experimental · private access. Public signup is not open.**

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The **Code** tab opens the repository’s default saved version. A branch is a
named line of work; a commit or revision is one fixed saved version within
that history. Reading an earlier version does not restore or change anything.

## Read a saved file

1. Open the repository’s **Code** tab.
2. Use the branch selector if you need published proposal work instead of the
   shared default version.
3. Open folders and select a file. The README, when present, appears beneath
   the file list.
4. Check the displayed revision when comparing the file with another copy.

Depot renders safe README Markdown, displays ordinary text as source, and can
preview PNG, JPEG, GIF, and WebP images. Some files need **Download file** and a
compatible application. Depot does not run a repository’s HTML or scripts as
a website inside the file browser.

## Share the exact version

Use a file’s **Permalink** to keep the displayed version fixed. Line-number
links point to particular lines of that saved file. Copy the link into your
conversation with Kin when you want to discuss the same bytes.

A Depot link remains private. The recipient must have repository access; a
permalink does not grant it. A fixed version does not silently become the latest
one when a branch advances.

## Walk through history

Open **History** to see commit descriptions, authors, and saved revisions.
Choose an entry to browse that version. **Older commits** and **Newer commits** move within the
history snapshot you started with, so new work cannot reshuffle the pages while
you are reading. Reopen History from the current branch when you want the latest
snapshot.

**Branches** shows published branches and their latest saved revisions. Local
work that has not been published will not appear there.

## Download a file or recover a project

Use **Download file** for an individual file. Browser previews and raw file downloads
are bounded; files over 8 MiB need repository export or authenticated Git access
through your peer. An incomplete preview is not a complete file.

For the project and its history, use **Custody → Download repository**. See
[Custody and recovery](/docs/depot/custody/) for what the bundle includes and
how to recover it. To restore old content into current work, ask Kin to prepare
the intended restoration as a new Change, then review it.

Space can also open an exact saved file without creating a local workspace;
see [Open a saved file](/docs/space/depot/#open-a-saved-file-without-a-checkout).

_Source authority: Kinra Site (src/content/docs/depot/files-and-history.md)._