Collaborate via Shared Drive

Documentation / Collaborate

If you store a Project Folder on a shared drive, then more editors can edit different documents exclusively at the same time. For instance, one editor can edit a system requirements specification document while another editor is editing a system verification document.

Local Network Drive

The easiest option is to set up a file share service using Server Message Block (SMB) file-sharing protocol on a Windows or Linux server in your local network. This configuration will result in the best performance and the highest security when the server is behind a firewall.

Cloud Drive

If a local network is not an option, you can set up a file share cloud service using SMB protocol, such as Azure Files or Amazon FSx for Windows File Server.

We do not recommend mapping a network drive connected using WebDAV protocol (such as SharePoint or OneDrive) because of very poor performance.

Edit Documents Exclusively

When you open a Project Folder, all documents are open in the Read Only Mode, indicated by icon. To switch a document into Exclusive Edit Mode, which allows an editor to modify the document, click Document and select Start Editing Document, or press CtrlShiftE.

Save your changes to the Project Folder after modifying the document so that another user can refresh the project. To switch back to Read Only Mode when you finish editing the document, click Document and select Finish Editing Document, or press CtrlShiftE.

Note: Project documents are unlocked as soon as you close the project or save it into a different Project File or Project Folder. The shared Project Folder must be connected to close the project and release all locks.

To see changes from other team members, click Project and select Refresh Project, or press CtrlR. To refresh projects opened from a folder automatically on app startup, enable the Edit > Preferences > Refresh project on startup and open option.

Updated for version 2.18.2