Visitor Permissions

A Share Link grants a defined set of capabilities to anyone who visits it. The capabilities form a ladder, from preview only at the bottom to full file management at the top. Where you sit on the ladder defines what a visitor can do with the files you've shared, and it shapes which other features make sense to enable on the link.

The Allowed Actions Ladder

By default, each link allows visitors to download the contents. Each Share Link can be configured to allow different levels of access.

For live Share Links, you can select among five options for the allowed actions, ranging from previews only to full file management. You can only assign allowed actions that are permitted by your own privileges. For example, if you have download access but not upload access, you cannot create a Share Link that allows visitors to upload.

A Share Link that allows only uploads functions much like an Inbox. The visitor can upload items but cannot view any of the files that have been uploaded. To allow uploads, you must include at least one folder path in your Share Link, and you cannot include any file paths. When a visitor to an uploads-only Share Link tries to upload items with duplicated names, the duplicates are automatically renamed, even when your site's settings allow overwrites from logged-in users.

Rather than using the Allowed Actions of a Share Link to enable both downloads and uploads, associate an Inbox with the Share Link. This gives visitors restricted access (previews or downloads) to the items you are sharing while also permitting uploads through the Inbox.

For snapshot Share Links, you can select between previews only and downloads.

User Permissions Limit Allowed Actions

Users can never create a Share Link that gives more access than they have. For example, if a user account does not have permission to upload to a folder, that user cannot create a Share Link that allows visitors to upload.

If a user is assigned non-recursive sharing permissions on a folder, subfolders are not included when the folder is shared. Similarly, if a permission fence is placed on a folder below a folder the user has permission to share, the fenced folder cannot be shared.

Online Editor Integration

Share Link visitors can edit business documents directly in the browser when your site's Online Editor Integration is enabled. Edits go straight back to your site, so collaborators work on the same current version of each file.

Enabling the Online Editor Integration

If your site is using either the Files.com Editor or Microsoft Office for the Web, you can allow Share Link visitors to edit standard business files directly within a Share Link. To enable this behavior, a site administrator must enable the Use Online Editor for Full Access Share Links setting.

The setting applies to all Share Links that allow Full access, including download, upload, modify, and delete.

Full Access Is Required

The Share Link must be set to Full access, including download, upload, modify, and delete for the online editor to work. This level of access is required because of how the editor moves files. When you begin editing a file within an online editor, your selected Online Editor Integration transfers the file from your site's storage to its own editing system, whether that is the Files.com Editor hosted within the Files.com infrastructure or the Office for the Web servers controlled by Microsoft. As you make changes to files within the editor application, updated versions of the documents are uploaded to your site. To replace the old version of your document with the updated file, the old version is deleted from your storage so that the new version can take its place.

Supported File Types

Only certain business document types (.xlsx, .docx, and .pptx) are compatible with the online editor in a Share Link.

Files with formats that require conversion cannot be viewed or edited online by Share Link visitors. To collaborate on a document in one of these formats, first edit it in the File Manager and then include the converted file in the Share Link.

Watermarks During Previews

You can add a watermark to any preview generated in a Share Link. The automatic watermark is only displayed when previewing the file on the Share Link page. A downloaded file does not contain the automatic watermark. Watermarks discourage screenshots when your link supports previews only, which is the typical configuration for sharing confidential images or documents that should not leave the browser.