Sharing a file on Mac

You can share your files with others using the shared link feature. A shared link is a URL that users can click to download a shared file from their web browser.

You can create a public shared link, which is accessible to anyone who has the URL, or you can create a secured shared link where you can restrict who accesses the file. With a secured shared link, you can track who downloaded your files and when. If you have the Syncplicity Public Edition, you can create public shared links only.

Shared links are kept up-to-date, so if your file changes later, people who download the file via the shared link will get the latest version.

Creating a public shared link

To create a public shared link, simply do not apply protection. Depending on your configuration, you may not see the option to apply protection. In other cases, your administrator may require you to apply protection.

To create a public shared link:

1. Navigate to the file in your Finder window.
2. Control-click or right-click on the file. 
3. Click Share Link.
4. Select Email link or Copy Link. This link allows the receiver to easily retrieve your file.

• • Email link - Requires you to enter a recipients' email addresses and optionally, add a message.
  • Copy link- The URL is copied to your clipboard. From there, you can paste it into an email, instant message, web page, etc.

Creating a secured shared link

To create a secured shared link, you must require users to log in to their Syncplicity account, enter a password (or both) to access the file. You can also set an expiration date, after which the link is invalid and users cannot access the file. Your administrator may require one or more of these settings.

To create a secured shared link, perform the following:

1. Navigate to the file in your Finder window.
2. Control-click on the file.
3. In the menu, click Share Link.
4. Expand Apply protection.
   
   
5. If requiring users to log in, check Require recipients to login then enter or select email addresses and enter text for the email that will be sent to recipients. When done, your text and the shared link are sent to those users. Only users with the email addresses you specified can log in and download the file. 
   NOTE: Additional rights protection capabilities may be available if you are licensed for Syncplicity Rights Management. 
6. If requiring users to enter a password, check Require recipients to enter a password then click the password generator icon to create a password. You can then communicate this password to the users you want to access the file. The password generated is not sent with the email; therefore, you need to send it separately to the recipients.
7. To set an expiration time, check Set expiration then enter the number of days that the recipients can access the file using the shared link. After that time, the link will become invalid.
   NOTE: If your administrator has set an expiration date for shared links, you can set a shorter expiration date but not a longer one.
8. To email the link, click Email link. This action prompts you to enter a recipients' email addresses. You can also enter text for the email, which is then sent to those users along with the generated link.
9. To generate a link, click Copy Link. This action generates a URL, which you can paste into an e-mail, instant message, web page, or any other place where you can place a text web link.

NOTE: If your administrator had set an expiration date for shared links, the link becomes invalid after that time.

TIP: If you never use the apply protection settings, you can turn them off so they do not show, as described in the Configuring client settings article. The result is that you are not prompted for those options when sharing files and folders. However, your administrator may override those settings.

Allow editing of Microsoft Office files

For Microsoft Office documents, you have an additional option to allow users to edit the file using Office Online directly from the shared link. This helps with collaboration, as it does not require recipients to download the file locally to edit it.

The prerequisites to create an editable shared link are:

• The file owner needs to be a Syncplicity Enterprise or Business Edition user.
• If files are stored on-premise, a WOPI connector needs to be deployed.
• The creator of the shared link needs to have Edit and Share rights over the data/folder, where the file is located.
• The file format needs to be supported by Office 365.

Supported file formats are:

• Microsoft Word - .DOCX, .DOCM
• Microsoft Excel - .XLSX, .XLSB, .XLSM
• Microsoft PowerPoint - .PPTX, .PPSX
• Microsoft Visio - .VSDX
• OpenDocument - .ODT, .ODS, .ODP

To create a secured shared link with edit permissions, perform the following:

1. Open Finder and navigate to the file you want to share.
2. Control-click on the file.
3. In the menu, click Share Link.
   
4. Expand Apply protection.
5. All links with editing permissions are secured shared links, so you need to enter the email addresses of the recipients. Optionally, click Add a message and type a message to the recipients.
6. In the dialog window click Apply protection and check the Allow editing option.
7. Set a password and expiration date for the link, if needed.
8. Click Email Link to send the link via email message or Copy Link to copy the link to your clipboard. 

When a recipient accesses the link, they have the option to Open in Office Online. Once the file is opened, click Edit in browser to begin the editing process.
If a file is locked by a different user (see File locking for more details), the Edit in browser button will not be available. Once the lock expires or is disabled, the Edit option is displayed again.