BIMcloud Public Links - Early Access

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Public links in BIMcloud are an effective way of sharing files with people outside your team or organization. BIMcloud users can create public links for files, folders, or BIMcloud Projects. Once you share the public link with someone, they can download the shared content - no account is required. For added security, a link password and expiration date can be set up.

Table of Contents

• Enable public links for your BIMcloud
• Create a public link
• Identify shared files
• Manage public links
• Public link guest interface

Notes:

• The public links feature is disabled by default
• Links shared from BIMcloud SaaS can be opened by anyone

Enable public links for your BIMcloud

The public links feature is disabled by default. To allow public link sharing on your BIMcloud:

1. Go to the BIMcloud Manager page. (In the on-premises version: Go to the Servers page and select BIMcloud Manager.)
2. Go to the Settings panel.
3. At General Settings, click Edit.
4. At Public links: click Disabled and switch to Enabled.
5. Click Save to confirm your choice.

If you later disable the public links feature, all existing public links will be deleted, and people outside your organization will immediately lose access to the shared links.

Create a public link

You can send a public link (for a file, folder, or BIMcloud Project) to an external collaborator. They can download the shared content without a BIMcloud user account. If the files are updated to a new version, those updates will be reflected on the link.

To enhance security, you can set a password or expiration date for the shared link. The recipient will need to enter this password to open the link. Once the link expires, the shared content becomes inaccessible.

Notes:

• To create a public link, you must have the Modify details permission on the item
• In folders or BIMcloud Projects, public links will only include items visible to the user creating the link

1. Go to the Projects page of BIMcloud Manager.
2. Select a single item in the Projects tree and click Create public link.
   
   
   

   Note: Public links cannot be created for Teamwork Projects and Libraries. If the public link is for a folder or BIMcloud Project that includes Teamwork Projects or Libraries, those items will not be included in the public link.

3. If you wish to protect the shared content, enable the Protect with password checkbox and provide a secure password. Password protection is optional.
   
4. To limit availability for a period of time, enable the Link expires function and fill the expiration date and time. Link expiration is optional.
5. Click Create link.
6. The created public link URL will be shown. Click Copy to clipboard to easily share the link.
   

You can create multiple public links for each item to share with different stakeholders. Each public link uses a unique randomized URL.

Identify shared files

In the Projects tree, items that have been shared via public link are shown with a link icon:

In list view, each listed item also displays the path of its parent folder(s) or BIMcloud Project. Such parent items, if they have been shared, also display the link icon.

No special permission is needed to see if an item is shared with a public link.

On a selected folder, BIMcloud Projects, or file, the “Shared with public link” text also indicates that the item has been shared via public link.

Filter for items shared with public links

Use the Shared with public link filter to display only those items accessible to people outside your BIMcloud.

Manage public links

In the Projects tree, select an item to view and delete its public links (if any).

Public links created by you

With the item selected, go to the Settings tab and review the Public links section.

To select a single public link: Click anywhere in the link row

To select multiple links: Enable the checkmark icon, then check the links you need

Available functions:

• Create: Create a new public link for the item selected in the Projects tree
• Copy link: Copy the URL to the clipboard
• Copy password: Copy the link password to the clipboard
• Edit: Change the link password or expiration
• Delete: Remove the public link - this action revokes access to third parties

Hover the link text or the password checkmark to display quick command buttons: use these commands to open the public link in a new browser tab, or copy the link URL or the password to the clipboard.

Note: You can have multiple public links for a single item - you can share an item with different people, each using a separate link and different settings. Deleting one link does not affect the other links.

All public links

On a selected item, find all public links created by any BIMcloud user on the Access tab under Public links.

Notes:

• To see the Access tab, you need View Access permission on the selected item
• To delete a public link or copy its password, you also need Manage Access permission
• Viewing other users' public links requires View permission on those users

Public links created for the selected item& appear in the top list. Public links created on parent folders appear in the list below.

The following data can be seen for each public link:

• Source: Name and path of a shared parent folder or BIMcloud Project - click to navigate to the parent folder. (Shown in the “Shared from folders” list.)
• Time: Time of public link creation
• Link: The URL that directs to the shared content
• Owner: Name of BIMcloud user who created the public link
• Password: Whether the public link is protected by a password
• Expiration: Time until the public link is accessible, or whether the link has already expired or is not expiring
• Visits: Number of times the public link has been accessed
• Downloads: Number of times a download has been started on the public link

By default, only the last 3 public links are shown. To view all links, click on Last 3 links and change it to All links.

To list the public links without a password or expiration, click All link types, then choose Links without password or Links without expiration.

Expired links can also be filtered for. After a public link has expired, it is inaccessible and is deleted after 30 days. Access to such links can be extended by clicking the link’s row and using the Edit function.

To filter public links by user: first change to show All links. Then click All users and select a particular user.

To select a single public link: Click anywhere in the link row

To select multiple links: Enable the checkmark icon, then check the links you need

Available functions:

• Copy: Copy the URL to the clipboard
• Copy password: Copy the link password to the clipboard
• Edit: Change the link passwordor expiration
• Delete: Remove the public link - this action revokes access to third parties

Click a link to open it in a new tab and preview the shared items.

Note: In folders or BIMcloud Projects, public links will only include items visible to the user creating the link. Therefore, the content visible in a particular shared folder might vary, depending on who shared it.

If the file is shared through a public link on its parent folder, you can delete the link on the parent.

Public link guest interface

When someone clicks a public link, they are taken to a guest interface. No account is required to access the shared items. In case of password-protected links, the shared content is not visible until the recipient enters the password.

The shared content’s name appears at the top, along with a download button.

Guests can see the following data for each item:

• Name: The content name and type icon
• Size: File size or total folder size
• Modified: Time of upload or last modification

If the public link contains multiple files/folders, they appear in a list.

Download all content as a .zip file using the Download all button.

Download a single item by clicking the Download icon on a single item.

Note: Empty folders are not included in the download.

If the public link is deleted, the link expires or the link owner loses access to the shared content, the link will no longer work. Only the BIMcloud instance name will be shown, and the content will not be accessible.