Simultaneous Editing in SharePoint
Early versions of SharePoint allowed only single-user editing of a document while other users had read-only access until the document was checked in. SharePoint 2010, however, has taken document collaboration to the next level. No more waiting for a document to be checked in before you can begin editing. This new functionality is ideal in an environment where people must work collaboratively on a single work product, such as a proposal or agile development. This collaboration feature creates zones in a document so authors can work on different areas of the document concurrently. To start editing documents collaboratively in SharePoint, you must update configuration settings for permissions, versioning and check-in/checkout capabilities.
Update Document Library Permissions
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Permission settings in a document library grant users view, edit, design or even full control rights to items in the document library. To review or update permissions, access the document library where you want to add simultaneous editing. From the Library Tools menu in the ribbon, select “Library.” On the Document Library Settings page, click “Permission for this document library” under the Permissions and Management heading. Review permissions to ensure that collaborators have editing rights in the document library.
Enable Versioning
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In a document library, versioning allows users to create full versions of document artifacts to retain and create a history of document changes. By default, versioning is disabled in a SharePoint document library. To enable versioning, access the document library where you want to add simultaneous editing. From the Library Tools menu in the ribbon, select “Library.” On the Document Library Settings page, click “Versioning Settings” under the General Settings heading. On the Versioning Settings page, under the Document Version History heading, click the radio button for “Create major and minor (draft) versions.”
Disable Checkout
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The need to check out documents before editing is no longer necessary with simultaneous editing in SharePoint, since users can now edit documents without overwriting other users’ changes. You can disable checkout on the Versioning Settings page under the Require Check Out heading. Click the radio button next to “No.” Click the “OK” button to confirm the version settings.
Start Collaborating
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Once setup is complete on your document library, all you have to do is add the collaboration documents. You can do this in the Office application by selecting the “Save to SharePoint” option from the File menu, selecting the document library from the Shared Folders list and clicking “Save & Send.” Alternatively, you can use the upload option under Documents in the Library Tools menu on the ribbon and browse to the local copy of the document on your computer.
References
Writer Bio
Janice Uwujaren has been writing professionally since 1996. Her articles have been published on various websites. Her experience includes developing content for proposals, websites, training materials and technical documentation. Uwujaren has a Bachelor of Science in computer information systems from Strayer University.