How to Complete a Collaborative Editing Session for Documents Using Microsoft for the Web as the Collaborative Initiator

Authors, Document Category Editors (of the category that the document is assigned to) and Administration: Account Super Users will be able to initiate document editing sessions on "draft", "draft reviewed" and/or "reviewed" documents by clicking the collaborative editing symbol "" from the document management review window:

Once the collaborate icon "" is selected, a pop up will appear. The file name that will be opened for editing will be displayed, as well as, the button to enter the collaborative editing session. Click the grey button to start the editing session:

NOTE: Users can use the collaborative editing tool on files that are in Excel, PowerPoint, or Word Document format. Whenever a file is edited during the editing session it may take up to 5 minutes for the changes to be visible in ZenQMS.

The collaborative editor will open in a new tab. You can share this Microsoft for the Web link with any other users that are active in your ZenQMS account to join the editing session. Once this link is shared, the session can be started by any user that has the link at a later time, even if they are a general user:

Once the invited user enters the editing session, you will see their initials at the top of the screen:

Any edits that the invited user makes on the file can be seen in real-time during the session. If there are multiple users in the editing session at the same time, all edits will be visible in real-time as well:

All comments added by users will be visible on the right-hand side:

All editing session activity will be visible in the Audit Trail at the document level:

All document edits from all users that were invited into the editing session will automatically be saved in ZenQMS as the "current revision". You can switch back to the original document (the non-edited version) by selecting "Revert to this Version":

NOTE: When all the users that are editing the file close the editing session frame/window, after a minute, the session is "ended". This means that, past this moment, whenever someone else tries to access the editing session link again, a new session and a new revision will be created

Once the Microsoft for the Web initiator or the invited collaborators log out of ZenQMS and try to re-enter the editing session, users will receive an error if they try to open the URL link: 

NOTE: If, and when, a user re-opens the collaborative editing session on the same document, the editing session URL to share with other users will not change. Users will receive an error when opening the editing session with the URL link if the document has moved out of a "draft", "draft reviewed" and/or "reviewed" state.