Edition: Professional, Business, Enterprise
User-level: All user levels.
Store all project-related documents (proposals, letters, emails, PDFs, images) in the Synergy project folders. These files are searchable within Synergy and can be shared on the project portal with selected contacts.
What are project documents and why use them?
Project Documents are all files related to a Synergy project, such as letters, emails, drawings, and other formats (Word, Excel, PDFs).
The layout is similar to Windows Explorer, with folders on the left and files on the right. Search by keyword to quickly find files.
You can share selected documents with project contacts via the Synergy portal or email.
Project documents allow you to centralise all project-related information in one place for easy access and tracking.
Adding a folder
The default folder structure is used each time you create a new project. The folder templates are setup by your Synergy Administrator.
Add extra folders to store your files in by:
Project menu > Project tabs > Documents
At the top of the Folder tree, click the + button
Type the folder name.
Choose its location: main folder or subfolder.
Select a security access level (e.g., System Administrator for restricted access, or User for all users).
Choose the preferred layout for the document screen.
Set the folder as the default for email, attachments, or correspondence files.
Save.
Tip: Add a folder into a set point in the existing structure by selecting the edit button > add sub folder option.
Editing the folder name
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.
Deleting a project folder
A folder can only be deleted if it contains no files or subfolders. Move any files to another location before deleting the folder.
Delete a folder by:
Find the folder that you want to delete and hover over it.
Click the Pencil > Delete.
Click 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 folder structure to match the template
Changes made to the Project folder template after the record is created are not automatically applied. To apply updates, reset the folders to match the template, which will update the folder structure to the latest version.
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 are added.
Uploading 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.
Downloading documents
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.
Moving file(s) between folders
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.
Adding 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.
Sending a document through email
Project navigation bar > Documents:
Find the file you want to send and 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. The email looks like the below, with your organisations' logo.
Re-Sending a Share Email for Project Documents
Re-send the share email for a file by:
Project menu > Project information > documents
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.
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 on the document properties page:
Actions available on the document properties page:
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
Rolling back to a previous version
If a user has checked in an 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.
From the Project menu > Project information > Document register
An edited file has been checked in as version #4. The file needs to be returned to an earlier version
Open the file details list by clicking the row action button > select the 'Details' option.
In the document history panel, click the row action button on the file that you will be rolling back to > select the 'Rollback to this version' option.
This creates version 5 for the file. Version 5 is a copy of the version 3 file, and will be opened when users click check-out or download the file.
Locking a project document
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.
Deleting a project document
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.
Adding 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.
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
When you need to update a file, just use the check-out feature. This locks the file and reserves it just for you, so you can make changes without anyone else interrupting. Other Synergy users won't be able to access the document until you check in the new version, making sure everything runs smoothly.
To check-out a file:
Go to the Project Overview page > Documents.
Navigate to the document you wish to check-out.
You can check out the document from the document register list here by clicking the ellipses on the right, and selecting 'Check-out for edit'.
Or you can open the document directly and then click the ellipses at the top right, and select 'Check-out for edit' from there.
Once a file has been checked out, a banner will display at the top of the document page:
And from the document register list, the icon on the right will show a red arrow to indicate that the file has been checked out:
Check-in a File
Once you have made the necessary modifications to the document or file, be sure to use the check-in feature. No one else will be able to make changes to the file until you check-in with your new version. Once you select the check-in option, you will be able to upload the current file as the latest edition.
Note: that this option is only available to those whose files are already checked-out.
To check-in a file:
Go to the Project Overview page > Documents.
Navigate to the document you wish to check-in.
You can check-in the document from the document register list here by clicking the ellipses on the right, and selecting 'Check-in'.
Or you can click on the file to open it. In the file you can either click on the ellipses menu and select 'Check-in', or you can click the 'Check-in new version' button in the banner at the top.
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 and click 'Open' to upload it. Enter any comments you want about the new file, and then click Save
The document history will show both the new version and the original version, with the latest at the top.
Cancelling Check-out
If you have a file checked out, you can use this feature to cancel your check-out of the file. By cancelling the check-out, the file returns to its original version, and it is once again available for members of your staff to check-out and make any changes.
To cancel a check-out:
Go to the Project Overview page > Documents.
Navigate to your checked-out document.
You can cancel the check-out from the document register list here by clicking the ellipses on the right, and selecting 'Cancel check-out'.
Or you can open the document. You can cancel the check-out using the option in the banner at the top of the screen, or from the ellipses menu:
Once the check-out has been cancelled, other users can check it out themselves.
Requesting Check-in from another Total Synergy User
If a file is already checked out by another user you cannot access or edit it. You can send a request asking them to check the file in so you can make changes.
This sends an email to the user who has the file checked out. The request option is only available for files checked out to another user.
To request a check-in:
Go to the Project Overview page > Documents.
Navigate to your checked out document.
Click the ellipse on the right and select 'Request check-in'
Uploading new versions of documents
Project Navigation Bar > Documents
Locate the file you want to upload a new version of
Select the '...' to the right of the file > Upload new version
Choose file & Add a comment
Click the 'save' button.
The list refreshes and the imported file is now the latest version of the document.
Rollback a document to previous version
If a user checks in an edited file by mistake you can use Roll back to this version to undo the changes and restore the previous file. The restored file becomes the latest version.
How the rollback process works
Open the document to view the Document History
Select the '...' to the right of the incorrect file version > Delete
The document will be restored back to the previous version.
Sharing project documents
Share a project file with selected project contacts or internal staff. Sharing sends an email with a link to download the file or view it in the project portal. Shared files can be viewed in the project portal where contacts and staff can comment on image files or download files to their device. This also allows large files to be shared without email attachment size limits.
Project documents can be shared with any contacts or staff listed on the project contacts tab and viewed in the project portal if portal access is 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.
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:
Contacts added to a share receive an email with instructions on how to access the files in the project portal.
The Shared with column in the document tab shows how many people a file is shared with. Select the number to see who it was shared with and when.
To add more people select the number in the Shared with column and choose Share to add their details.
Re-sending 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.
Open the folder that contains the shared file.
Select the '...' > 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
How to access the project invoices folder
From the project overview select 'documents'
At the bottom of the folder structure on the left, there will be an invoices folder
What is stored within the project invoices folder
A word document and PDF copy of each finalized invoice or credit note. This is automatically created using the default template when the invoice or credit note is finalised.
Previous versions of the file are available to download in the open invoice page.
Creating proposal documents using templates
On the Project Overview page, go to the Documents link in the top navigation bar.
Select the 'Create' button in the top right corner.
Select Proposal
Select the To field, Attention, Address, Word template and edit the document name if needed
Select the checkbox to the left of the stages you want to appear on the proposal
Select the 'Include Budget' check box if you want the budget to pull through to the proposal document
Select Generate in the bottom right
Creating Project Documents Using Templates
The steps below will take you through how to create a Project document in a project:
On the Project Overview page, go to the Documents link in the top navigation bar.
Select the 'Create' button in the top right corner.
This gives you the option of a Proposal document, Project document, and Project letter - choose which document type you'd like to create.
Fill in all required fields from the dropdown, choose the Sender, attention to, type in the subject, select the template, and choose the project folder.
Select 'Create'
You can open the project document and edit the output as required if in Word output.
Changing the project documents view
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
Views
Views
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
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
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 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.