Managing User Locks

Locking can be set on both files and folders and signifies that a user is actively working that file or folder.

• Locking has to be enabled by the Administrator before the user has the option to lock a file or folder.
• FileCloud LOCKING is designed to prevent opening/accessing files between DIFFERENT USER ACCOUNTS.
• If you access a file whose lock is owned by you, then the file access will be ALLOWED.

When a file or folder is locked:

• A lock icon will be shown in the file listing
• The owner of the lock will also be shown in the details panel on the right hand side
• The owner of the lock has full access to that file or folder and can modify it
• Administrators can always override a lock in the Admin Portal
• A lock can be set up to prevent other users from reading the file or seeing the folder contents.
• If read permissions are not allowed, then other users cannot download or view the locked file or folder

The following table shows the behavior depending on the type of lock.

You can disable locking so that users are never given this option in the User Portal.

• This is a system-wide setting
• To release a lock on a single file or folder, see the topic for Releasing a Single Lock

To disable locking:

1. Log on to Admin Portal.
2. From the left navigation pane, click Settings.
3. On the Settings screen, click the Misc. tab.
4. On the Misc. screen, select the General sub-tab.
5. Under General System Settings, next to Disable Locking, select the checkbox.
6. Click Save.

Viewing a list of files and folders that are currently locked by FileCloud users helps you to manage locks.

To view a list of locked files and folders:

1. Log on to Admin Portal.
2. From the left navigation pane, click User Locks.
3. On the Manage File/Folder Locks screen, you can see a list of all files and folders currently locked.

You can use the Filter entry box to limit the list. To view only the locked files and folders, type in a string of characters. Only the files and folders that match the string will be displayed. To clear the filter, delete the string of characters from this box.

For example:

• You can filter the results by lock owner. To do this, type in the user account name.
• You can see all files that are locked in a particular folder. To do this, type in the name of the folder.

There are times when you may need to unlock a file for a user.

• A user no longer has a FileCloud account but has left a file locked
• A project folder can be used as a staging area that can be unlocked when the files are ready to be viewed
  
• Another user needs access to the file and the lock owner cannot be reached
• No one remembers why the file is locked
  

To release the lock on a single file or folder:

1. Log on to Admin Portal.
2. From the left navigation pane, click User Locks.
3. On the Manage File/Folder Locks screen, find the file or folder whose lock you want to remove.
4. In the row containing that file or folder name, under the Actions column, click the unlock button ().
5. On the Confirm Override screen, click OK.
   

To release the lock on all locked files and folders:

Beginning with Version 19.3, FileCloud supports clearing all user locks simultaneously.

1. Log on to Admin Portal.
2. From the left navigation pane, click User Locks.
3. In the upper-right of the Manage File/Folder Locks screen, click Clear All Locks.
   
   A confirmation dialog box opens.
4. Click OK.