Edition: Professional, Business, Enterprise
User-level: All user levels.
Previous steps: Creating a project
This article covers everything you need to know about project documents, folders and the actions that can be performed within a Synergy project.
Store in a central location all the documents that relate to the project. Save files into the Synergy project folders like created proposal and project documents, letters, emails, PDF's, and images. Files stored within the project folder are search-able in Synergy, and can be shared to the project portal to allow access by selected project contacts.
What are project documents?
Project documents are all the files that are created or related to the Synergy project. E.g. letters, emails, drawings, and other documents (word, excel, PDF's). Store all the project documents in a centralized location to keep track of what information has been sent to the client, or sent as internal communications.
The style of project documents is similar to Windows Explorer, with a folder panel on the left panel and the files on the right. Select a folder to view the contents in the list. Search the project folder for a keyword to quickly find the file you require.
Share selected project documents with the project contacts, and the files will be posted to the Synergy portal area where your clients can download the shared files. Or send the file to a project contact as an email attachment, when they need to review a specific file.
Why use project documents?
Keep all the information that relates to your Synergy project in a central location.
Folder actions
Add folder
The default folder structure is used each time you create a new project, contact or staff record from the folder templates. The folder templates are setup by your Synergy Administrator.
Add extra folders to store your files in by:
Project menu > Project information > Document Register
Or click xx Project Documents on the Stats Bar.
At the top of the Folder tree, click the + button
Type the folder name.
Choose where you want this folder to exist - either a main folder in the main directory, or a subfolder under one of the existing folders.
Choose a Security access level (ie. if you only want System Admins to view this folder, choose System Administrator, if you want ALL users to access, choose User).
Preferred layout selection
This will determine what the document screen looks like in the way it displays information to you.
You can choose whether you want this new folder to be the Default email, attachments, or correspondance folder.
This will determine where these specific file types go when uploaded.
Save.
Tip: Add a folder into a set point in the existing structure by selecting the edit button > add sub folder option.
Edit folder name
Update the folder names.
Edit the folder by:
Find the folder that you want to update and hover over it.
Click on the Pencil > Edit.
Type a new folder 'name' as required.
Save and close.
Delete a folder
A folder can be deleted if it does not contain and files or sub folders. If files exist in the folder then move the items to an alternate location before trying to delete the folder.
Delete a folder by:
Find the folder that you want to delete and hover over it.
Click the Pencil > Delete.
Confirm you want to delete this folder by clicking Delete, or Cancel if you've changed your mind or made a mistake.
The list of folders is refreshed and the item has been deleted.
Reset folders
After the record has been created any changes made to the Project folder template are not automatically applied. If your administrator has changed the Project folder template, and you want to apply the changes you will need to Reset the folders to match the template, which will update your folder structure to use the latest version of the Project folder template.
To update to the latest template:
Go to Project menu > Project information > Document Register.
Select the page action button in the top right and select 'Reset the folders to match the template"
The page is refreshed and any missing folders from the template have been added.
File actions
Upload files
You can drag and drop files directly into the document folder, or you can manually find and upload files.
Upload files using drag and drop
Open the folder that you want to save the files to in Synergy.
In File Explorer on your computer locate the files you want to upload to Synergy.
Highlight the files in the File Explorer window and drag and drop them onto Synergy open in a web browser.
Note: You can drop the files anywhere on the file details screen.The file upload starts automatically.
The page refreshes once compete to show the newly added files within the open document folder.
Tip: This method is only available when using a desktop computer. When using a tablet or phone, please see the alternate method below.
Upload by searching your computer:
Open the document you want to upload files to in Synergy.
Click the 'Add files' button in the top right corner.
Locate the files your want to upload on your device. Select one or multiple files to be uploaded from the folder, once selected click Open.
The documents list opens to shows the new files in the project after the upload is complete.
Editing files
You can edit files once uploaded, if you need to change the document number or title, security access level, folder, add a description or tags.
Click on the file you want to edit - this will bring you to the file details.
Make any changes you'd like to make.
You can add a comment here that will be included in the revision of the document.
Click save and close.
If you go back into the document, you'll now see a new revision, that it was made by you, and any comments you made.
Download the file
Save a copy of the current file version (most recent) by:
Go to the Document register.
Go to the file you want to download.
Select the row action button > and choose the 'download' option.
The current file version is downloaded.
Tips!
Use the document properties (view) page to download copies of any previous file versions.
You can bulk download files as a zipped package by ticking the box to the left of each file, then clicking on the arrow at the bottom of the page > Download as zip.
Move file(s)
Move a file between folders by one of the following methods:
Go to the Document register.
Go to the document folder that contains the files you want to move.
Check the box on the left of the file for each one you want to move (you don't have to check any boxes if you are only moving ONE file).
Now drag over to the new folder, ensuring you drag from the 3 horizontal lines that appear when you hover over the file.
The page will refresh and show you the remaining files in the folder you're in.
You can also bulk-move (ie. if you're not on a Desktop computer) by checking the files you want to move, then clicking the arrow at the bottom of the page and choosing Move. You'll then select the new folder you want them to be moved to.
Add bulk tags
Use tags to store extra searchable information against file(s) in stored in Synergy. For example you can use tags to label where photos were taken, add a client name to a set of documents, add the project site address or location to a file and much more. Add tags to documents by:
Go to the Document register.
Go to the folder that contains the files you want to tag.
Check the box next to each of the files that will have the same set of tags applied.
Click arrow at the bottom of the page and choose "Add bulk tags"
In the tags box type each required tag into the box. Separate each new tag entered with a comma, or click the enter key to start typing the next tag. If the tag already exists then it is shown in a list, and you can choose to use the existing tag instead of creating a new tag.
Save.
Tip: Add tags to a single file by selecting the row to open the file, and adding the tags in the view document properties page.
Send a file via email
The current version of a file can be sent to a Synergy contact via email as an attachment. The send process allows you to select multiple contacts to send the email TO, and add a custom message to be included in the email sent for your client. Project documents can be 'sent' to any contact listed on the project contacts tab. Staff documents can be emailed to other staff within your Synergy organisation. Contact documents can be emailed to any staff or contact record.
Send a file via email by:
Go to the Document register.
Select the folder that the file resides within in the folder list.
For the file you want to send, select the row action button > 'send' option.
In the 'To' box select the contact(s) that the file will be emailed to.
(Optional) Add a message that will be included in the email for all the entered contacts.
Click the 'send' button.
The email has been sent and you will be returned to the documents list. The selected contacts (or staff) will receive an email from Synergy with the file included as an attachment.
Document properties (view)
Use the view document details page to view the previous file versions, review the document audit history, or change the file details. For any image file types a small thumbnail image is shown to let you preview the current version of the image file.
Click on a file name in the list view to open the document details page, or select the row action button > and choose the 'details' option.
Actions available
Download and open a previous version - In the document history panel locate the version you want to view, and click the row action button and select 'download'.
Folder move - Select the new location for the file in the 'folder' drop down list and save.
Add notes in the description - Use the description field to store any extra notes about the file, the current version, or why the rollback to previous version feature has been used.
Rollback to a previous version - Use this feature when more than one file version exists. This is used when a user has updated a file in error, or uploaded the wrong file to Synergy. Rollback to a previous version by: Locate the file that should be the current version in the document history table. i.e. Version 2 should be the current file not the file showing as Version 3. On the row for version 2, select the row action button and choose the 'rollback to this version' option. The history table is updated and version 2 has now been copied and it shown as the 'new' file version 5.
Add tags - Tags allow you to store extra searchable information against the file or image. Click into the tags box and the recently used tags in Synergy are shown, click on one of these items to use that tag. Or type a word or phrase into the tag box to create a new tag for this file. When multiple tags are required use a comma (,) to separate the tags, or press the enter key when typing and the form knows you are starting to type a new tag.
Lock
The 'lock' file feature is available to stop users from uploading any further file versions. Use this to stop your staff from making any further changes to files when the document is final and has been sent to the client. Locked files also cannot be deleted by staff.
Lock a file by:
Opening the folder that the file is located within.
Locate the file in the list and select the row action button > choose the 'lock' option.
The list is refreshed and the file row now shows the 'locked' symbol.
The locked file (and previous versions) can be downloaded, but no further future versions can be uploaded.
Tips:
If the file was locked by mistake then use the 'unlock' option found in the row action button to reverse this process.
Only the administrator or higher access levels can use the 'lock' or 'unlock' file feature.
Delete a file
Delete a file when it has been uploaded in error, or is no longer required. The file cannot be deleted if it is currently checked-out for edit, or if the file has been locked.
Open the Documents folder and use one of the following methods:
Single row - Click the row action button and select 'delete'.
Open file - Click on a row to open the document edit page. Click the page action button and selected the 'delete' option.
Multi row - Select the check box(es) on the row left for each item you want to delete. Then click the arrow at the bottom of the page and choose 'delete'.
The documents list refreshes and the file(s) have been removed.
Add to Project images to the Project summary page
Images within the Project folder can be added to the image carousel gallery. This image panel can be found in the Project > Details > Summary tab.
Add an image file to the Project images gallery by:
Open the Project > Documents register.
Open the folder that contains the image.
On the image file to be used click the row action button > select 'add on carousel' option. Or, open the image, click the ellipsis > Add on carousel
The document row will be updated with the symbol to show it is now part of the Project images gallery for this project.
Repeat for each other image you want to be included on the dashboard for the project.
Tip: Remove an image from the Project images dashboard by selecting the row action button > 'remove from dashboard' option.
Version control actions
File versions overview
Each document that is uploaded to Synergy automatically includes version control. Version control on files allows you to:
Link newer versions of an updated file to the current file stored in the document library.
Work on a document as a team, using the 'check-out' feature to make sure only one staff member can edit the file at a time.
Check-in a file when changes are finished and this process lets you upload the new file version.
Request another staff member finish working on a file using 'request check-in'.
Undo a new version upload using the 'rollback to this version' option.
Check-out a file (to edit the file)
Use the check-out feature when you want to start to update a file. Checking out a file locks the file to only be available to be edited or updated by you. Checked out files are locked to you to allow you to update the file contents. Other Synergy users will only be able to download copies of the current file version until you have finished making changes to the file and have checked-in the new version of document.
Go to: Document register.
Locate the folder that contains the file that you want to update.
Click the row action button > and select 'check-out for edit'.
The file is locked to you for edit, and is updated to show the checked out symbol in the list view.
Update the file as required, then save the updated file to your local device.
Next steps:
Check-in the updated file to create a new file version in Synergy.
Or cancel the file check-out to allow other users access to edit the file and upload new versions.
Check-in a file (creates a version)
Use the check-in option after you have finished updating the document or file and have made all the required changes. Other Synergy users cannot update the file until you have checked-in of your new version of the document. This option is only shown for files that are currently checked-out. When you check-in a file it will lets you select the file to be uploaded as the new version.
Go to: Documents tab.
Switch to the 'checked out documents' view.
Locate the file in the list that you want to check-in.
Click the row action button > and select 'check-in'.
Click the 'choose file' button and browse to the location where you have saved the new version of this document. The document that is to be imported can be saved with any file name.
Highlight the file to import and click the 'Open' button on the 'Choose a file' window.
Click the 'save' button.
The list refreshes and the imported file is now the latest version of the document.
The original document version can still be found in the document properties window.
The edited and checked-in document will appear as the latest version of the file.
Tip!: When a file has been checked-out accidentally, use the cancel check-out option to reverse the check-out and return to using the previous file version.
Upload a new version
Use the upload a version feature to create a new file version. This allows you to create the new version when the file is not checked out to you, or when the file has been saved locally to a computer using a different file name. The previous version of the file is still available to view or download in the document properties window.
The file can be saved on your PC, device or network with any file name applied, and the file can be selected and imported as the new version of the file.
Import a new file version by:
Go to: Document register.
Locate the document for which the imported file will be the current version.
Click the row action button > select the 'upload new version' option.
Click the 'choose file' button and browse to the location where you have saved the new version of this document. The document that is to be imported can be saved with any file name.
Highlight the file to import and click the 'Open' button on the 'choose a file' window.
Click the 'save' button.
The list refreshes and the imported file is now the latest version of the document.
Tip: Use the rollback feature in the documents properties window to return to a previous file version.
Cancel check-out
If the file is checked out then this option is available to let you remove or cancel the checkout of the file. When the check-out is can canceled the file returns to the previous version of the file. Checking in the file using this feature allows other staff to be able to check-out the file and make any required changes.
Cancel a file check-out by:
Switch to the 'checked out documents' view.
Locate the document that you have checked out.
Select the row action button and select the 'cancel check-out' option.
The document has been checked in.
Tip!: The cancel check-out feature can only be used on documents checked out to you (not checked-out by other staff).
Request check-in (by another Synergy staff member)
If the file is being edited by another user, then you cannot check-out the file to make any changes. Request the user to check-in the controlled file so that you can then open the file for edit.
This option will send an email message to the user that has this file checked out. The automatic email created will be addressed to that user, and request that they check-in the file so that you can make changes. This option is only when the file is checked out to another user.
Request a check-in of a file by:
Go to: Documents register.
Navigate to the folder that contains the file that you want to edit. If it is being edited by another user the checked out symbol is shown against the row.
Select the row action button and select the 'request check-in ' option.
An email message is automatically sent to the user that has this file checked out. That email will ask the user to check-in the file so you can make your required changes.
Check back in the document library later on to see if the user has now finished their work on the file.
Rollback to previous version
When a user has checked in and edited file in error, you can use the ' rollback to this version' feature to undo the changes and restore the previous file. The restored file is added as the latest version number, and the old version with the incorrect change remains.
How the rollback process works
A user has checked in an edited file as version #5.
After checking in the file the user realizes that the changes made were incorrect, and they need to return to version #4.
The user opens the file properties by clicking the row action button and choosing the 'view' option.
In the document history panel the user clicks the row action button on the file version number row (like version 4) that they want to return to > and they select the 'rollback to this version' option.
This creates version 6 for the file. Version 6 is a copy of the version 4 file, and will be opened when users click check-out or download the file.
Tip!: Download the file version first to check the details, and make sure that the fie is the one you need to rollback to.
File sharing actions
Share
Share a project file (document or image) with selected project contacts or internal staff. Sharing a file send the selected people and email with a link to download the file or to view the file in the project portal.
Sharing project files allows the contacts or staff to be able to view the files in the project portal. Within the portal the team can comment on image files to add their thoughts on a project task, or download a set of shared files to their device. Sharing files also allows the contacts to download large sized files without having to worry about email attachment file size limits that are often enforced by corporate email servers.
Project documents can be shared with any of the contacts or staff who are listed on the project contacts tab via email, and can be viewed in the project portal if they have portal access enabled.
Share project documents by:
Go to: Project > Document register.
Locate the folder with the project files you want to share.
Check the box next to each of the files to share.
At the end of the file panel click the multi select actions button > select the 'share' option.
The file sharing panel is shown on the right with the current files included.
Browse to any other folders you need to include files from and repeat the above steps 3- 5.
Click the 'share with' button when all required files have been added.
In the 'select contact' field type part of the contact name you want to share the files with, to select the contact name from the list. You can type multiple names into this field to share the files with multiple contacts if required.
Type a message to appear in the email to explain to the contacts why you have shared the files with them.
Click the share button.
Tips:
The contacts added to the share will receive an email explaining how to access the shared files in the project portal.
The 'shared with' column in the document tabs shows how many people the project files have been shared with to the portal. Click on the number of contacts to see the details (with who it was shared and when).
Add extra people to a share by selecting the number of contacts in the 'shared with' column, and click the 'share' button to add their details.
Re-send share email
If the contact did not receive the share email, then resend the email for a selected file. The re-send email will point the contact to the project portal which will contain all the files they have been shared for the project to view or download. Re-send the share email for a file by:
Go to: Project > Documents register.
Locate the folder that contains the shared file.
Select the row action button > choose the 're-send share email' option.
Type a message to send to all the contacts (and internal staff) that the file is currently shared with.
Click send.
Project invoices folder
Each project has a folder location that is automatically created called 'Invoices'. This folder is shown with a locked symbol to reflect that this folder cannot be edited or deleted, as it is the fixed location that invoice and credit note documents are saved within.
Within the 'invoices folder' you will find:
A word document copy of each finalised invoice or credit note. This is automatically created using the default template when the invoice or credit note is finalised.
A PDF file for each finalized invoice or credit note. This is automatically created each time a new file version for the matching word document is uploaded.
Both the word document and the PDF file are named the 'invoice number' or the 'credit note number'.
Previous versions of the file are available to download in the open invoice page.
Invoice and credit note documents have a cut down list of actions available.
Click the row action button against any invoice row, and these options are shown:
Share: Share the invoice document to the project portal to be viewed by the cc'd contacts. The person marked as the attention to contact on the invoice will be automatically included in the invoice share.
Download: A copy of the current file version will be downloaded to your device.
Open invoice: The invoice or credit note shown will open. Use that page to download previous document versions, view the full invoice / credit details on screen, and more.
Manage shares: Use this option to see who the invoice document has already been shared with, and cancel any existing shares if required.
Create a proposal document
Create a Word document that outlines the proposal project details, and project or stage level agreed fees. For Synergy Business and Enterprise product the budget details can also be shown. Proposal documents are created for projects at proposal or active status.
Change the list view (columns)
Use the list views to alter which columns are shown in the list for project documents. Select the button 'File details' in the top left corner to see the available views.
The document file name is shown in all the views. The alternate views add extra columns such as:
Default: the default view for the project documents, shows the project folder structure along with the file name, size, sharing details, and the date the file was last updated.
Search: use this view to look for a project file by typing part of the file name using the search options that open automatically. The file details are shown in this view, and the folder structure is hidden.
Email details: when viewing a folder that contains saved email messages, use this view to see who the email was from or sent to. The subject of the email and if any attachments are included can also been viewed.
Recently updated: this option sorts all the files for the project based on the last updated date. This is a file name only view, the folder panel is hidden.
Downloaded shared documents: view a list of all the shared documents that have been downloaded in the project portal. This view shows the date and time that the file was last downloaded, and who the file was shared with.
Not downloaded: view a list of all the shared documents that have not yet been downloaded in the project portal. This view shows the date and time that the files were shared, and who the files were shared with.
Checked out documents: view a list of all the files that are currently checked out for edit by another staff member at your organisation. This view shows who has the file checked out, and when they checked-out the file.
Search and filtering options
Search
Use the search or filter options to limit the number of documents shown.
Click the search button and type a keyword into the search box. To return to seeing all items by clicking the clear button.
Tip: Learn more about searching with the global search.
Filter
Filter the list by selecting the search button . Select a filter, or type the required filter text and click the 'search' button to apply the filter. The filter options are:
Tags - Search for documents or files that have tags applied. Tags are a way to add extra search information to any file. Type the tag name then click the 'enter' key or type a comma (,) separate and end the first tag and to start typing the next tag. Multiple tags can be search for together, and the results are shown with an OR rule. Meaning it looks for all items that have 'tag 1' applied or 'tag 2' applied, and both tag 1 and tag 2 results are shown in the list.
File type - Select a file extension from the list to see all the matching files of that type. e.g. See all the files that are .PDF type.
Start and end date - Click the 'advanced search' to find this option. The modified date of the document is searched. This is the date that the file uploaded to Synergy, or a new file version was created. Use this filter to find all the files you updated this month or last month etc.
Comments - Click the 'advanced search' to find this option. Comments can be added to image files in the project portal, and in the project images tab. Use this filter to view only the files that have comments entered. This allows the project manager to reply to any comments added by the team.
Tip: Return to the default view by choosing the clear button in the search bar.
Columns available
Folder and file panel columns
Folder files indicator: The folder image changes to show when the folder contains files or not. Folder without files , folder with files . The folder panel is shown in the default and email details views.
Folder name: The name of the folder is shown. Click the folder to view the contents. Click the edit button to change the folder name or the access level required to be able to view the folder contents. The default folders shown are setup in folder templates, which can be configured for project folders, contact folders, and staff folders. Delete or rename the folders added from the default template as required. The folder panel is shown in the default and email details views. The folder name can also be seen as a column in the files panel in the other search views.
File type: An image is shown to show the file type. The color of the image varies based on the file type, e.g. green for images, red for pdf's, blue for word, and white for unknown types. This column is included in all the file view options.
Name: File name of the item uploaded and saved into the Synergy document library. This column is included in all the file view options.
Size: The file size is shown as KB, MB, or GB. This column is included in the default, search, recently updated, downloaded and not downloaded shared documents, and the checked out documents views.
Shared with: Blank if the file has not been shared. This column tracks how many people have access to the file in the project portal. If shared then the email address is shown when shared with 1 person, or if shared with multiple people then the number of people the file has been shared with is shown. Click the shared text shown to open the sharing history page to see the details of the share (when, who with, have they opened the file etc). This column is included in the default, search, recently updated, and the downloaded and not downloaded shared documents.
Versions: The number for the latest / current version for the file. This is the version that will open by default when the view or download options are used. Check this column to see if previous versions of the file exist to roll-back to, or open to review previous versions of the file by selecting the row and using the 'document history' panel. This column is included in the default, search, recently updated, downloaded and not downloaded shared documents, and the checked out documents views.
Last updated date: The last modified date of the file or the date of the most recently uploaded version of this file. This column is included in the default view. This column is included in the default, search, and recently updated views.
Tag: View the tags that have been assigned to the files in the search and recently updated views. Click a tag in the list and the search filter for all files with the same set of tags is automatically applied to the list of documents.
Downloaded: This downloaded image is shown if the file has been shared, and at least one of the contacts that you have shared the file with have downloaded the file from the project portal. Click on the text in the shared with column to see more details on the file shared and which of the contacts have viewed the file.
Dashboard: When the dashboard image is shown file type shown is a supported image type for the dashboard gallery, and a user has selected the image to be included in the dashboard gallery. The dashboard images can be seen in the gallery panel on the project details page (read only view), and in the organisation dashboard in the project images gallery panel.
Checked in / checked out: locked Check if the file is checked in and available for you to update, or if another user has already checked out the file to edit, or if another staff member has locked the file to prevent further edits. This column is shown in all views.
From: Who sent the email is shown. This is the name or full from email address. Shown in email view only.
To: Who was included in the email to field. The multiple addresses the email was sent to are comma separated. Shown in email view only.
Subject: The subject of the email. Shown in email view only.
Attachments: The number of file attachment that were included in the sent email. Shown in email view only.
Shared on: The date and time that the share was created. This is shown in the downloaded and not downloaded views.
Checked-out by: View the Synergy staff member that has the file checked out. Shown in the checked-out documents view only.
Checked-out date: View the date and time that the file was checked out to the Synergy staff member shown in the checked-out by column. Shown in the checked-out documents view only.
Tips:
Columns change in the 'files panel' based on the view selected in the top right corner.
Click on a column name to sort the list by the contents of that column in either ascending or descending order.
After reviewing this article, you should have a sound understanding of the types of documents Synergy can create, where they are stored and how to access them, as well as file sharing.
Where to next?
What other features does this relate to?