Phials documentation
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AI Image

Phials can preview AI-generated images for common raster files (PNG, JPEG, WebP). It uses the same image viewer as other photos, with the toolbar, fullscreen, and thumbnails, and it also reads generation metadata when your file embeds a ComfyUI-style workflow. That workflow is often written into PNG metadata by ComfyUI or compatible tools, and some JPEGs store similar JSON under UserComment.

Prerequisites

  • A supported file: .png, .jpg / .jpeg, or .webp.
  • Optional: Embedded workflow or prompt data. If nothing is embedded, you still get the image preview, and only the extra generation fields are missing.

For how previews fit into the window, see File previews.

How to open the preview

  1. Select a PNG, JPEG, or WebP file in a file pane.
  2. Open the Preview area, for example the collapsible Preview section in the preview sidebar, or open a preview tab if you use that workflow.

The on-screen preview behaves like the image preview: you see the picture and can use fullscreen and double-click behavior the same way as for other images.

Where generation details appear

Phials fills in details when it can parse embedded ComfyUI-style workflow or prompt data from the file’s metadata.

Metadata (preview sidebar)

When parsing succeeds, the Metadata section lists the values Phials extracted, for example:

  • Prompt
  • Negative prompt
  • Model
  • Sampler, Scheduler
  • Steps, CFG, Seed

These are plain, readable fields, and long prompts wrap in the panel.

Raw Metadata

If you expand Raw Metadata, you can inspect the underlying keys and values Phials read from the file, including long prompt or workflow blobs in collapsible details. Use this when you want to verify what is actually stored on disk.

Richer “Generation Info” (some layouts)

In some contexts, such as a preview tab when the optional file-info strip beside the image is active, Phials may show a dedicated Generation Info block (sparkles heading). It includes copy to clipboard for the prompt, LoRA chips with strengths, separate VAE and CLIP lines, sampling chips, and dimensions inferred from the workflow. What you see depends on the file and on which layout is open.

What if you do not see generation fields?

  • The file may have no embedded workflow (exported without metadata, stripped, or from a tool that does not write ComfyUI-style data).
  • JPEG handling depends on how metadata was written, and UserComment and similar keys are common.
  • Other image types such as GIF, SVG, HEIC, and AVIF use the general image preview, not this AI-specific preview. Only PNG, JPEG, and WebP use the AI image preview.

If Phials has no matching preview at all, you may see the default preview instead.

Tips

  • Prefer the Metadata section for a quick read of prompt and sampling, and use Raw Metadata when you need the untouched embedded text.
  • If Model or Sampler look empty, the workflow may use custom nodes Phials does not map yet. Raw Metadata still shows the source payload when present.