Where do I put image files, css, js, etc. in Codeigniter?

I have a setup like this:

• application
• system
• assets
  • js
  • imgs
  • css

I then have a helper function that simply returns the full path to this depending on my setup, something similar to:

application/helpers/utility_helper.php:

function asset_url(){
   return base_url().'assets/';
}

I will usually keep common routines similar to this in the same file and autoload it with codeigniter's autoload configuration.

Note: autoload URL helper for base_url() access.

application/config/autoload.php:

$autoload['helper'] = array('url','utility');

You will then have access to asset_url() throughout your code.

No, inside the views folder is not good.

Look: You must have 3 basic folders on your project:

system // This is CI framework there are not much reasons to touch this files

application //this is where your logic goes, the files that makes the application,

public // this must be your documentroot

For security reasons its better to keep your framework and the application outside your documentroot,(public_html, htdocs, public, www... etc)

Inside your public folder, you should put your public info, what the browsers can see, its common to find the folders: images, js, css; so your structure will be:

|- system/
|- application/
|---- models/
|---- views/
|---- controllers/
|- public/
|---- images/
|---- js/
|---- css/
|---- index.php
|---- .htaccess