When you use the File Manager’s Live Editing feature, Activ will automatically create a virtual draft of the file you have chosen to edit and save your Live Editing changes directly to that draft. This is done to ensure that:
- you can make your edits at your leisure, and across multiple sessions if required;
- you can discard your changes at any time should you make an error or be dissatisfied with your work;
- the existing live version will not in any way be compromised by your work; and
- the existing live version will not be replaced until your new version has been completed and formally ‘uploaded’ to the system.
In addition, your virtual draft will not be accessible to anyone but yourself and System Administrators (see Admins: Manage Another User’s Live Editing Checkouts) until you are ready to submit it as a new version.
Once you have finished working on the file, you will need to Check In (i.e. Publish) your virtual draft. This process will convert the draft into a ‘real’ file (i.e. a word file, excel file, etc) and allow you to upload that file to the parent file as a new version. Once this Check In has been completed, your Live Editing version will behave as a normal MS Office file, enabling it to be viewed by other users of your system, and downloaded and managed as normal.
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To check in a Live Edited file, open the File Manager module and locate the blue banner that will be displayed above the main file register (note that this banner will only be available if you have at least one file Checked Out for Live Editing). Click on the Manage Checked Out Files button displayed within the banner.
Activ will take you to a dedicated Files Pending Check In page, which will display a list of your current Live Editing drafts, and corresponding management options for each file. Locate the appropriate file within the list, and click on the Publish This Draft button displayed to its right.
Activ will take you to the Check In Your Changes form, which will contain up to eight fields for you to complete:
Comments* – use this to enter a summary of the changes you have made to the file. This will be displayed within the parent file’s version register, allowing you to maintain a comprehensive audit trail as new versions replace previous ones. By default version comments are required, but this requirement can be turned off for individual files within the file’s Properties if necessary (see Edit a File’s Properties).
To Be Reviewed?* – defaults to ‘No’ unless a Review has been scheduled against the existing live version. Use this field to specify whether the file is to be scheduled for Review, and whether the Review is to occur ‘Once’ or ‘Regularly’.
Next Reviewer* – only available if To Be Reviewed is set to ‘Once’ or ‘Regularly’. Use the dropdown to select the person who will be responsible for the next file review.
Next Review Date* – if ‘Once’ is selected in To Be Reviewed, select the next review date using the calendar icon to the right of this field. If ‘Regularly’ is selected in To Be Reviewed, this field will be automatically populated based on the selections you make in the Review Every and Schedule fields.
Review Every* – only available if ‘Regularly’ is selected in To Be Reviewed, and consists of two paired dropdown menus. Enter the desired Review frequency by selecting a numeric and either ‘Weeks’, ‘Months’, or ‘Years’.
Schedule* – only available if ‘Regularly’ is selected in To Be Reviewed. Select ‘Flexible’ or ‘Fixed’. If ‘Flexible’ is selected, the Next Review Date will be calculated using the interval given in the Review Every field and the date on which the previous review was completed. For example, if Review Every was set to 3 months and the file was reviewed on June 3rd, then Activ will automatically set the Next Review Date for September 3rd. If ‘Fixed’ is selected, the next review will be scheduled at fixed intervals regardless of when the last review actually took place.
Unlock* – automatically set to ‘Yes’ to ensure that the file lock is removed from the parent file once your new version has been uploaded. If required, use the dropdown to change this to ‘No’ if you wish to keep the file locked after uploading your new version.
Apply ADS to this File* – this field will be available if the parent file is in the Controlled Documents Library, you have Automatic Document Stamping enabled within your system, and the new version is of a file type that can be stamped and has been configured to be stamped (i.e. if you specify that Excel files should not be stamped and are uploading an Excel spreadsheet, the field won’t appear). By default, this field will inherit from the parent file’s properties, but you can choose to turn stamping on or off whilst uploading your new version.
Enter the necessary details, and then click Save.
You will be taken back to the main Library Register, and your virtual draft will have been uploaded to its parent file as a new version.
