Working with Files in Studio Offline

Generally speaking, Studio Projects and Sessions require an online connection to view and collaborate on documents, but it's not always possible to be online 100% of the time. Studio provides different strategies for dealing with being offline while working in Sessions or Projects.

ClosedOffline Mode in Studio Sessions

Studio Sessions benefit from a seamless transition between online and offline modes. While you are online, any changes made to a PDF in the Session (such as, adding markups or comments) are updated in real time. If you make changes to a Session document while offline, the changes are preserved (and shown on the Pending tab at the bottom of the Studio tab) and automatically synced with the Session once you reestablish your connection.

Note: Changes made to a Session PDF are entered in the Session Record as having been made when they are uploaded to the Session (that is, when you get back online), not when they were made while offline. The Creation Date column in the Markups list, however, it will show the actual date and time of creation.

ClosedOffline Mode in Studio Projects

You can synchronize all or part of a Studio Project's folder hierarchy locally onto a device so the files remain accessible without requiring an active Internet connection to Studio.

ClosedSynchronizing Project Files

In order to use a Project file while offline, the file must first be downloaded to your device as a locally cached copy that can be viewed when offline and, when you are online and reconnected to the Project, used to update the server copy if desired.

ClosedSynchronizing Project Files with Your Device

This process determines which files and folders are downloaded to your device and saves locally cached copies of Project files. It is device-specific. If you wish to download Project files to multiple devices, you will need to complete this process on each one.

To download Project files with your device:

  1. Connect to the Project. Files and folders that have the icon to the right of their name are already set to be synchronized.
    • For these purposes, synchronization only takes place in one direction, that is from the Project to your device. Updating a Project file with one from your device is covered below.
  2. To set a new file or folder to be included in the synchronization process, hover over its name click Sync Include.
    • If a folder is selected, all of its files and sub-folders will be automatically selected as well. If you do not want all of these files and folders to be synchronized, you can deselect them individually.
  3. Synchronize files using one of the following methods:
    1. To synchronize all files that are set to be included in the synchronization process, click Sync.
      • Only files that are being synchronized for the first time and files that have been changed since the last time they were synchronized are affected. When the Project file and your locally cached file are the same, no action is taken.
    2. To synchronize a specific file only, open it. This automatically caches a local copy.
ClosedSynchronizing Locally Cached Files with the Project

This process updates the Project's version of a file with the one on your device. The Project file must be checked out to you; if it is not, check out the Project file first.

To synchronize files on your device with the Project:

  1. Connect to the Project.
  2. Right-click the desired file and select one of the following:
    • Check In updates the Project file with the one on your device and checks it back in.
    • Update Server Copy updates the Project file with the one on your device but does not check it back in.
ClosedA Typical Studio Projects Offline Workflow

When using Studio Projects offline, the following is an example of a typical scenario:

You are about to go out to the field to inspect the progress of a project. The files for this project are stored in a shared Studio Project called "Project 101." The jobsite does not have Internet access and you know that you will be utilizing the PDFs related to the second and third floors of the project. The recommended workflow is to:

  1. Before leaving the office, Check Out the files you think you will need while you are offline.
    • Checking out the files not only saves a locally cached copy of the file to your device, it also lets other Project members know that you are using the files and prevents them from making changes to those files while you are offline.
  2. While in the field, make needed changes to the files that you have checked out.
  3. When you get back to the office, connect to Project 101 and Check In the files.
    • If you decide to not update the Project files with the changes you made while offline, you can also choose to Undo Check Out, which will discard your changes and release your check out.
ClosedEditing Offline Without Checking Out Files

Checking out the documents you need to edit prior to going offline is critical as it ensures other users cannot edit those documents while you are working offline. As such, it is a highly recommended best practice. However, an Edit Offline option is available for situations in which no Internet connect is available and a file that has not been checked out needs to be edited.

When choosing to use the Edit Offline function on documents that were not checked out prior to working offline, be aware that a conflict might occur if another user checks out and changes the file. Both scenarios are outlined below.

No Online Check Out - No Conflict

While offline, right-click a file and select Edit Offline. A warning dialog box will give notice that the file may be edited simultaneously by others.

The file will appear in the Pending Changes panel with the Edit Offline icon, which denotes that the file has not been checked out.

In this scenario, no other users have checked out the file and made changes to it.

The file can be used offline and checked in when reconnected to the server. To check the file into the Studio Project:

Right-click the file name in the Pending Changes panel or main Project list and select Check Out. If there are no other conflicts, the file will be checked out and appear in the Pending Changes panel with a red checkmark, which denotes that the file has been checked out. You can then Check In the file or Update Server Copy as desired.

No Online Check Out - Conflict

While offline, right-click and select Edit Offline. A warning dialog box will give notice that the file may be edited simultaneously by others.

The file will appear in the Pending Changes panel with the Edit Offline icon, which denotes that the file has not been checked out.

For this scenario, consider that another user has checked out the file and made changes to it while you were in Edit Offline mode.

When connected back to the Project server, the icon on the file in the Pending Changes panel is changed to Conflict State.

In this case, you should use Save As to save a copy of your changes locally on your computer.

Please consult with your Project administrator to determine if specific procedures have been established to address the integrating changes between project team members.
     

Related topics

Start a Studio Project

Join a Studio Project

Host a Studio Session

Attend a Studio Session

Working with Files in a Studio Project