The owner of a PDF or Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint or Excel) document may choose to protect the document using the Syncplicity Secure Shared File feature. Once protected, only authorized users can open the document.
To view the document on your desktop, you must have the Syncplicity Viewer for Mac. You are prompted to install the Viewer the first time you attempt to open a secure shared file. For details, see the Syncplicity Secure Shared File article.
You cannot edit a secure shared file from the Mac desktop even with permission. However, you can copy content if you have the proper permission. For information on editing a secure shared file, see Syncplicity Secure Shared Files.
Downloading a secure shared file
When you open the web page of the secured shared link, you may be required to enter a password, which you would have received separately from the person who created the shared link. Afterwards, the download page opens. This page contains the file name, expiration time if any, any message written by the person who protected the file, and your permission. In the example below, the file expires in 3 days, and you have the permission to edit the file.
You can download the document whether or not you have the Viewer installed on your system. However, you need the Viewer to open the document. If you do not have the Viewer installed, you can click the link to download it. If you do not install the Viewer at this time, you are prompted again when you attempt to open the document.
Opening a secure shared file
You cannot open the protected file directly from Mac Finder; instead, you must open the protected file with the Syncplicity Viewer. To open a protected file on Mac, launch the Syncplicity Viewer then select File > Open and select the secure shared file.
When you attempt to open a secure shared file, you may encounter one of these situations:
- You do not have the Syncplicity Viewer for Mac installed on your system.
You are prompted to install the Viewer. - You are not authorized to view the document.
You are presented with a message and an option to contact the owner. If you believe that you should be authorized, use the contact owner option to provide information on why you require access. - You are authorized to view the document.
The document opens.
Using the Syncplicity menu
When you open a secure shared file, you can use the Syncplicity Viewer menu to view your permissions or contact the owner.
Select View Permissions to view the role and permissions, assigned to you for this document.
- Role: The role is either Editor or Reader.
- Print: If enabled, you are allowed to print the document.
- Copy: If enabled, you are allowed to copy content from the document.
- File Expiration: A protected document can be set to expire, after which the document is no longer accessible. This field displays when, if at all, the document is due to expire.
- Offline Access: In this case, offline means the Syncplicity client cannot connect to the Syncplicity shared folder. A secure shared file can be allowed or disallowed from being viewed while offline. Furthermore, the secure shared file may be allowed to be viewed for a limited time while offline. This field displays the total number of days that you can access the document while offline. If you see Disabled or Expired, the document cannot be viewed while offline.
- Location Access: This permission can restrict access depending on the country where you are located. If you see a list of countries and Allowed, you can open the document only when in these countries. If Disallowed, you can open the document only when not in one of the countries listed.
Click Contact Owner if you feel that you do not have the correct permissions for the protected document then enter the information required by the popup window. When completed, the request is sent to the document owner. Make sure you give an explanation for requesting additional permissions.