Files & revisions
Upload, organize and share information with a recorded history.
9 min read · 14 sections
The route from WIP to Shared
A rejected decision returns the file to Not submitted. Publishing is a separate authorized action.
Submit
Submit the WIP revision for check when its content is ready. New versions and restores are refused while a decision is pending.
Uploading files
On a project's Files page, open the Add menu and choose Add file, or drag files from your computer onto the page. Add folder uploads a whole folder.
An IFC file is converted once on the server so that it opens in the viewer in your browser. You can watch its progress in the upload list. Other files are stored as uploaded. Supported documents, images, audio and video open in an in-app preview. HTML is sandboxed with scripts blocked and requires a separate processing origin. Formats without a viewer, including Word and DWG, open a metadata preview with explicit Download and Version history buttons. Browser support determines whether a supported media file can play.
If an upload fails, its entry in the upload list offers Dismiss, and Retry where trying again can succeed. An upload that would only be refused again, such as a file identical to the current version, offers Dismiss alone. Owners and editors can upload. A viewer cannot.
Folders and moving files
To make a folder, open the Add menu, choose New folder, type a folder name and press Create. Open a folder to work inside it.
To move one file, open its actions menu and choose Move to. Pick the destination folder, or Project root for the top level, and press Move. To act on several files, tick their checkboxes. The bar offers Copy, Move, Download and Delete; unsupported actions stay visible but disabled. Shift-click a checkbox to select a range, and press Escape or Clear selection to clear it. Copy uses the same destination picker as Move and creates new WIP P01 containers while leaving the originals unchanged.
Finding a file
Use Search files at the top of the list to search by name. Use All schemas and All states to filter the list, the sort control to change its order, and the grid or list buttons to change its layout. On a narrow screen, these controls are grouped under Filters.
File states
Every file is in one of four states, shown as a badge on its row: WIP, Shared, Published or Archived. WIP is work in progress, visible as unfinished work. Shared has been checked and approved for others to use. Published has been authorised. Archived is kept for the record and is no longer in use.
A file can move from WIP to Shared or Archived; from Shared back to WIP, on to Published, or to Archived; from Published back to WIP or to Archived; and from Archived back to WIP. No other move is possible. Which of these moves you may make depends on your workflow roles: moving a file into or out of Published or Archived needs the authorizer role, and moving a Shared file back to WIP needs the approver role. A project owner holds both unless their workflow roles have been changed.
Changing a file's status
To move a file by a single step outside the check and approval route, use Change status on the file and choose the new state. A move to Published or Archived asks you to confirm first; other moves happen as soon as you choose them. Only the moves your workflow roles allow are offered.
Versions
To add a new version of a file, open its actions menu and choose Upload new version. The new version becomes the current one and the earlier one is kept as Superseded. Uploading a new version of an approved file starts a new cycle: the file returns to WIP.
To see a file's versions, choose History in its actions menu. The File history dialog has four tabs: Versions, Activity, Conformance and Insights. On Versions, each version is marked Current or Superseded and can be opened or downloaded. Restoring an earlier version does not rewind the file: it brings that content back as a new revision.
The file panel
Single-click a file to focus it and see its details beside the list: its full name, revision, number of versions, size, modification time, last editor and uploader. Clicking the row does not tick its checkbox or open bulk actions. Double-click a file or folder, or focus it and press Enter, to open it. Open shows an IFC model in the 3D viewer and other files in an in-app preview. Download is a separate explicit action. Version history opens the File history dialog.
The actions menu on a file also offers Details, Download IFC and Download GLB for a model, and Download for any other file. ISO metadata shows the file's metadata. Where your role permits changes, press Save metadata to keep them; revision codes are system-composed.
Marking up a PDF
Open a PDF from the Files list to see it in the in-app viewer. The Markups list beside the pages shows the marks made on the revision you are looking at, with the page, who made it, when, and whether it is Open or Resolved. Click a markup in the list to jump to its page.
Every project member can mark up a PDF, including a viewer. Pick a tool in the toolbar above the pages: Rectangle, Cloud, Arrow, Pen or Note. Drag on a page to draw, or click to place a note. Type why you are marking it and press Save markup. Markups stay on the same spot of the sheet at every zoom level.
To close a markup, press Resolve on it, say how it was addressed, and press Confirm resolve. The author can resolve their own markup; an editor or owner can resolve anyone's. A resolved markup stays in the list, marked Resolved with its note: markups are never deleted, and every markup and resolution is recorded in the project's activity.
Markups belong to one revision. When a new revision is uploaded it starts with no markups, and the list shows how many were made on earlier revisions, such as "2 markups on P01". A PDF inside a ZIP or an email attachment opens without markup. Markups are not written into the PDF file itself, so a downloaded copy does not include them.
Activity
The Activity tab of the File history dialog lists what has happened to a file: uploads, state changes, and each check and approval with who did it and when. The record is append-only: entries are added and never edited or removed.
Removing a file
Open the file's actions menu, choose the remove action and confirm in the Remove from project dialog. The file leaves this project; the converted model itself is not deleted. Owners and editors can remove files, and the action is not offered to a viewer.
Deleting a folder does not delete what is in it: files inside a deleted folder move back to the project root.
Workflow: prepare a revision for sharing
Before you begin, confirm that you are in the right project and that you can upload files. Uploading needs an owner or editor role; checking, approving and authorizing use the project's separate workflow roles. Ask the project owner to confirm who will perform each decision.
- Upload the IFC, or choose Upload new version on its existing file. Wait for conversion to finish, then open the model and check that it is the revision you intended. A successful conversion means the model can be viewed; it is not an approval of its information.
- Review the model in Assure and, where your team has requirements, in IDS Ruler. Check the revision and run date before using the results. Resolve problems in the authoring tool and upload a new version when needed.
- Submit the WIP file for check. The check, review and approval decisions happen in sequence. Do not start this sequence while you still need to replace the file: content changes are refused while a decision is pending.
- After approval, confirm that the file is Shared. Open History and read Activity to see the recorded decisions. Shared is the outcome of this approval route; publishing is a separate authorized action.
Workflow: publish with a recorded decision
Start with the intended revision and use Change status to choose Published where your roles permit it. The confirmation checks for open critical findings recorded for that revision.
If critical findings remain, read the warning and enter the reason for proceeding before choosing Acknowledge and publish. The acknowledgement is recorded in the audit journal. A count of zero means no open critical findings were recorded for this revision; it is not a validation pass.
If the revision or findings change while you review the warning, review the updated information and confirm again. If the check cannot load, retry it before publishing. After a successful change, verify the Published badge and the Activity record.
When a file workflow is blocked
If an action is missing, check both project membership and workflow roles with the project owner. Being able to upload does not automatically permit approval or publication.
If a new version is refused during review, finish the pending decision first. A rejection returns the file to Not submitted and carries the reviewer's comment; use that comment to prepare the next submission.
If a restored file looks like an extra revision, that is expected. Restore creates a new revision using earlier content, so the intervening history remains visible.