Folders
How Library folders bring documents onto assets, asset types, and spaces.
Library folders
A Library folder holds documents, in Library, Folders. It is either:
- a Folder in Machine QR, where Machine QR stores the files you upload, or
- one folder of a connected provider: SharePoint, OneDrive, or Google Drive. See Connect SharePoint, OneDrive, or Google Drive.
Machine QR folders and provider folders
| Folder in Machine QR | Provider folder | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the files are | In Machine QR | At the provider |
| Upload files, create folders | Owners and admins, in Machine QR | SharePoint and OneDrive: owners and admins, in Machine QR; the files are saved at the provider. Google Drive: at the provider only |
| Rename, move, delete | Owners and admins, in Machine QR | At the provider only |
| Who can read | Members who can open the object it is linked to | The same; files are read through the workspace's connection |
| Updates | At once | Linked Microsoft folders with automatic folder matching use change notifications and a daily recovery check. Other provider folders refresh while shown; file names are indexed daily. |
A SharePoint or OneDrive folder allows uploads when you link it. To keep one read-only in Machine QR, owners and admins turn off Uploads on the folder in Library, Folders. Its files stay, and you can still add files at the provider.
Deleting a linked folder removes it from the Library only. The folder at the provider stays.
Document folders on assets
Owners and admins show a folder on an asset type, an asset, or a space with Link folder on its Documents tab. Unlink removes it again.
An asset's Documents tab lists its own folders first, then those of its asset types, then those of its spaces. Each folder shows where it comes from, such as "From type Presses". A folder shows once, even when it is linked at several levels or through overlapping Library folders. The closest accessible link decides its origin and Uploads setting. Asset types pass their folders down to their variants and assets.
To link many folders at once, match the folder levels of a Library folder.
Asset folders
Owners and admins can turn on Asset folders for one Folder in Machine QR. Every asset then gets its own folder below that folder's top level, named by its identifier, and it shows first on the asset's Documents tab.
- People who can edit the asset upload, create, rename, and delete inside it.
- The folder follows identifier changes. It cannot be renamed or deleted by hand.
- An existing folder with the same name is taken over.
- Only one Library folder can have asset folders. Turning the setting off keeps the folders and files.
Browsing and previewing files
Inside a folder you browse like in a file explorer. Select a PDF or image to preview it in a sheet. Other files open at their provider or download. Search files finds file names across the asset's folders.
If the provider cannot be reached, Machine QR shows the last known files and says why: the connection needs reconnecting, the provider is busy, or it can't be reached, with Try again where that helps. A preview that can't load says the same, and Open in SharePoint (or the folder's provider) stays available.
For automatically matched Microsoft folders, Sync now requests an incremental check. Notifications usually bring changes through within a few minutes, but provider delays, failed notifications, and work limits can take longer. The folder shows the last successful check, pending work, folders that conflict with their matched objects, and why sync stopped, if it did. Documents stay readable at their last state meanwhile. If notifications fail, daily incremental checks continue. Five failed attempts stop automatic retries. Correct the connection or folder contents, then select Sync now to start a fresh check. A folder that cannot be indexed stops only its own matching. A library limit stops all matching in that library; selecting a smaller folder does not reduce the library inventory.
Who can
| Action | Who |
|---|---|
| Connect providers and create folders | Owners and admins |
| Add files to SharePoint and OneDrive folders | Owners and admins |
| Link and unlink folders | Owners and admins |
| Match folder levels | Owners and admins |
| Browse, preview, and download | Members, on objects they can open |
| Change files in an asset folder | Members who can edit the asset |