Update an asset
Edits the user-editable metadata for a single asset — description, GPS coordinates, and original capture datetime. Only fields included in the request body are changed; others are left untouched. Passing null for a field removes a previously-set value; the effective response may still contain a value from another metadata source. latitude and longitude must be set together (both written or both cleared).
Setting or clearing GPS coordinates schedules an asynchronous refresh of derived location names.
For editing multiple assets in one round trip, prefer bulk_update_assets.
Authorizations
Gumnut API key (apikey_...) sent as a Bearer token in the Authorization header. Create and manage keys in the Gumnut app, or with the API key endpoints while signed in to it.
Path Parameters
Asset ID (with asset_ prefix) of the asset to update.
Body
User-editable metadata for a single asset.
User-set description for the asset. Pass null to remove a previously-set value; the effective response may still contain a description from another metadata source. Omit to leave unchanged. Distinct from the AI-generated description field on the response — this writes to metadata.description.
GPS latitude in decimal degrees, [-90, 90]. Must be set together with longitude. Pass null (along with longitude=null) to remove a previously-set value; omit to leave unchanged.
GPS longitude in decimal degrees, [-180, 180]. Must be set together with latitude. Pass null (along with latitude=null) to remove a previously-set value; omit to leave unchanged.
When the asset was originally captured. Timezone-aware values preserve their UTC offset; timezone-naive values have no offset. Pass null to remove a previously-set value; the effective response may still contain a datetime from another metadata source. Omit to leave unchanged.
Response
Successful Response
Represents a photo or video asset with metadata and access URLs.
Top-level fields describe the asset's current rendering (the version
identified by current_version_id) unless they explicitly name the
original upload, like original_file_name and the file_data group.
Unique asset identifier with 'asset_' prefix
MIME type of the current rendering (e.g., 'image/jpeg', 'video/mp4').
Filename the asset was uploaded under.
When the photo/video was taken, in the device's local timezone
When this asset record was created in the database
When this asset record was last updated
What produced the current rendering: original (the upload), edit (a client-baked edit), or external:<service>. The namespace is open — derive edited-ness as kind != "original".
ID (asset_version_ prefix) of the current version, which the top-level rendering fields describe. Pass it as the expected current version on version writes so a racing write is rejected.
File/provenance scalars (device IDs, file timestamps, checksums, file size) grouped into one nested object. null when not requested via include=file_data; when present, every field is populated (checksum_sha1 may still be null for legacy rows).
Asset metadata — camera/EXIF fields, GPS, and location names. null when not requested via include=metadata.
ML-generated quality scores and other metrics. null when not requested via include=metrics.
Named asset variants. Images: 'original', 'thumbnail', 'small', 'preview', 'fullsize'. Videos: 'original', plus 'thumbnail_image', 'small_image', 'preview_image', 'fullsize_image' pointing at the extracted still. 'original' is served with a Content-Disposition attachment header (signed 'dl' filename param) so a top-level navigation saves it to disk, while inline subresource loads (, fetch) still render it. Variant URLs are stable: a derived variant may briefly 404 until its artifact is generated, then serve from the same URL.
AI-generated description of the asset's content, quality, and composition. null means description generation has not yet run; empty string means the model refused to describe the asset. Distinct from metadata.description (camera-embedded EXIF metadata).
Base64-encoded ThumbHash placeholder (~28 chars). Clients decode with the thumbhash library (JS / Swift / Kotlin) to render an instant blurred preview before the CDN thumbnail arrives. null while generation is pending.
All faces detected in this asset. null when not requested via include=faces; [] when requested but the asset has no faces.
All unique people identified in this asset (deduplicated from faces). null when not requested via include=people; [] when requested but none are identified.
Width of the current rendering in pixels.
Height of the current rendering in pixels.
Video length in seconds. null for images and for videos whose duration has not been extracted yet.
When this asset was moved to trash (ISO 8601, UTC). null for live assets. Trashed assets are excluded from default list/search results and are purged after the configured retention window.
ID of the stack this asset belongs to (asset_stack_ prefix), or null when the asset is not part of a stack. Group assets by this value to collapse a stack into a single tile; the stack's own cover and member count are not carried on the asset. Distinct from metadata.auto_stack_id, which is the camera's in-EXIF MakerNotes:AutoStackID string — this is the server-assigned foreign key to the asset's stack.