Selection grants a starting point, not a completion receipt
A website's file chooser lets the user select a local file. The page can then read it for a preview or upload it through a separate action. Seeing the filename next to the control therefore proves selection, not a finished server transfer. A local preview can also work before any upload completes. Keep these stages separate when a submission appears to vanish.
The file input may expose a value prefixed with C:\fakepath\ rather than the actual local path. MDN explains that this protects the user's file structure. That text is not a directory the viewer must create, and it is not a server destination. Do not move a video into a folder named fakepath to fix an upload.
A hypothetical lesson submission
Suppose a creator selects their authorised lesson video and sees its first frame in the browser. They close the tab before pressing the site's upload control. Returning later shows no server-side video. The earlier preview was real, but it did not establish a completed transfer. The useful question is which confirmation, if any, the site displayed after selection.
Follow the site's documented sequence and observe separate transfer and processing states. A site may need to receive the file before it prepares playable versions. Upload complete and ready to view need not be the same event. Preserve the final status or job reference rather than relying on the file's local name as proof of server acceptance.
Check the actual file you selected
When several exports share a similar name, compare size, modification date and the intended source folder before submitting. A browser may show only the filename, so the user's own preparation matters. If the file is online-only in cloud storage, allow its local access or download to complete through the storage application's normal workflow. A visible placeholder can add another stage before the website receives usable bytes.
Keep credentials and unrelated client data out of the video and filename before uploading. Confirm that the destination is the intended publisher and that you are authorised to submit the material. A drag-and-drop area on a lookalike site is not made trustworthy by displaying a correct local thumbnail. Verify the actual site and task first.
Use the server's result to validate the submission
Wait for the documented completion or processing result, then open the uploaded item through the site's normal content view. Check picture, audio, duration and required captions. A transfer progress bar reaching its end may still be followed by a processing error, so preserve the final message. Do not repeatedly submit duplicate large files without checking whether a job is already running.
A useful report names the selected file version, action taken, last displayed state and any server reference. It can then distinguish a selection problem, interrupted transfer, rejected format or later processing failure. This is more useful than saying the upload button did nothing while omitting the stage at which progress actually stopped.
Questions answered
Must I create the C:\fakepath folder shown by a browser?
No. It is a privacy-preserving representation of the selected file value, not a real destination you need to create.
Does a playable preview mean the server has my file?
No. A website can preview a selected local file before upload. Check the transfer and final server-processing confirmation.
Sources & further reading
Official references for the subjects discussed. Service terms and device software can change.