What is Cloudflare R2 object storage?

What is Cloudflare R2 object storage?

Cloudflare R2 is an object-storage service for unstructured data such as images and other files. An application stores objects in buckets and identifies each object with a key. Cloudflare's R2 overview describes the service and its access options.

Separate file content from application records

A wedding gallery needs both image bytes and information about those images. R2 can hold the bytes, while the application database records the wedding, uploader, storage key, caption, and processing status.

For example, a gallery record can reference an opaque object key generated by the backend. The database supports questions such as which photos belong to a wedding, while storage retrieves the corresponding file. Avoid storing a temporary signed download URL as the permanent identity of the photo.

Choose an access pattern deliberately

The application can access R2 through supported APIs. A private gallery may authorize a viewer on the backend before allowing access to an image. A deliberately public gallery needs a different sharing policy and suitable public delivery configuration.

Uploading to a bucket does not automatically produce thumbnails, moderate content, or enforce wedding membership. Those behaviors belong to the application or additional processing services. Keep them explicit in the architecture and feature requirements.

Plan operations alongside implementation

Define size limits, accepted formats, cleanup for abandoned uploads, and how deletion affects both storage and database records. Keep development data separate from real user images.

Also estimate storage and request activity for the expected gallery usage. Test the complete path using representative photos: upload, verification, listing, viewing, and deletion. Object storage supplies a durable place for files, but a reliable gallery comes from connecting that storage to the product's permissions, metadata, processing, and user interface.