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How to set up File flows

In this article, we will cover how to set up the 'File flows' feature in your Dalux project. File flows are closely tied to the File areas feature, which needs to be activated in the project before file flows can be set up.

File areas are based on ISO 19650 and are used for managing access to files, which may not be ready for everybody in the project yet. 

There are 3 file areas:

Files

Shared files

Published files

Files can be seen as a place for files that are a work-in-progress, while shared files can be seen as a place for files that are ready for review. The published file area is for files ready to be published to project participants.

File flows are processes and workflows that determine how files move between the different stages of filesharing and thus how they move between these 3 different file areas. The file flow process includes defining the flow triggers (which folder is the flow managing), the people responsible and the workflow of the files. Using file flows, you define how files are approved and published to their respective folders manually and automatically.

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Table of contents

  1. Video
  2. User permission requirements
  3. Activate file areas and file flows
  4. Set up file flows

Video

 User rights

You need to be a project administrator or project planning manager to perform this action.

Activate file areas and file flows

First, you need to activate the 'files areas' feature. To do so go to Settings Box 'File areas':

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Second, you need to activate the file flow feature. To do so, stay in Settings and click 'File Flow' and then 'Activate':

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Set up file flows

To set up a file flow, go to Settings  Box 'File flows':

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This will open up a new window where you can create and edit your file flows.

From this new window, click Add to create a flow. Here, you can choose to create a flow for either:

  • Approval to shared files or for
  • Authorization to published files:

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This will open up a new window where you set up the flow. From here you create the file flow by creating a workflow, deciding how the flow should be triggered, who should start it, and who is responsible for rejecting the files:

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  • Flow trigger condition: what is the trigger for starting the file flow 
    • You can select between a folder, a status, or both, where a file needs to be located in the chosen folder and/or have the chosen status to be able to enter the file flow
  • Flow starters: users that can submit files for approval/authorization, thereby starting the flow
  • Responsible for rejected files: users that handle files that were rejected (often the Project manager)
  • Add user(s) to approve shared files: This will be the person/people that can approve the file

Flow start

A file flow can be started in one of two ways. Either it can be started by the user set as the Flow starter or it can be started by the Flow trigger(s) set up in the flow.

  • Flow starter: The file will enter a file flow when the flow starter manually sends a file for approval/authorization. The flow starter can send a file from any folder they have access to, but can only send it in the defined file flows.
  • Flow trigger: The file will enter a file flow if the file is uploaded to the chosen folder and/or is given the chosen status. If only a folder is selected, any new file in the folder is sent for approval/authorization. If only a status is selected, all files with the status in all folders are sent in the file flow. If both are selected, a file must fulfill all criteria to be sent in the file flow.

Example

In this example, the file flow will start when a file is uploaded to the drawings and model folders and is given the 'Suitable for publishing' status:

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Workflow

Creating a workflow involves establishing the approval steps for the flow of files. For a file to be approved it needs to go through all of the steps added to the flow. The last step of the flow, called 'Approve to shared files', which is there by default, is an automatic approval per default but can be changed to be a manual approval. 

To add steps to the flow, click Add step:

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When adding a step you can choose between 3 types:

  • Approval step for a single role. A single person (role/user) needs to approve the file.
  • Approval step for multiple roles. Multiple people (roles/users) need to approve the file
  • Branching step. Branches out into two paths where the user decides which path the file needs to take, i.e.. who needs to approve it

You can add as many steps and users as you want to the workflow.

Deadlines

You can set a number of days for each step in an approval- or authorization workflow:

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When a deadline is set, the approver/authorizer will see this deadline in the approval-/authorization process.

 Technical information

If a participant is added to the last workflow step, you can also set a deadline for that.

This is shown in the e-mail notification, in the dashboard, and also in the list view for approvals/authorization:

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One day before a deadline is due, the responsible user(s) for the approval-/authorization step are notified. The creator of an approval/authorization will also receive a notification when the deadline is overdue.

 Technical information

A file flow will not automatically approve a file if the deadline has been exceeded.

The deadline will automatically be set to 23:59 local time for the project and will also consider non-working days, if this feature is used on the project:

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Status

To use statuses in file flows, they first need to be set up. To learn how to do that, you can read our article on how to set them up: Status metadata for files.

If the status feature has been set up in the project, you need to set a status output for the file flow.

When one or more statuses have been created, you can use them in your file flows. They can be used as flow triggers, as described above, and the status can also be changed as an outcome of a file flow.

To change the status of a file during a file flow, simply deactivate the flow to be able to edit it and set the 'Status in shared files when approved/Status in published files when authorized' to your desired status:

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When a file is approved using the file flow, the status will automatically change as part of the process.

Activating the file flow

When you are done customizing the file flow, you need to activate the file flow to use it in the project, do this by clicking 'Activate' in the top right corner of the file flow editor window:

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Duplicate file flow templates

You can duplicate file flow templates. When you are creating a file flow that is almost identical to an already existing one, this feature will save you a lot of clicks.

The duplicated file flow template will copy all settings from the existing file flow but will by default be deactivated. To duplicate a file flow, go to:

Settings  Box 'File flows' Select file flow template to duplicate Duplicate:

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 Learn how to use file flows

To learn how users approve files using the file flows, read this article: How to use File flows.

Set up communication channels for comments

When a file is in a file flow, the current user (who is the approver) can have the ability to make comments. These comments can be created when approving or rejecting a file. For example, a comment can be made for the person responsible for handling rejected files. When creating a comment, the user can select from available communication channels and comment types.

The most common use case is to create a communication channel between the flow starter or rejected files responsible and the users in the approval steps. This way the users, who are part of a step, can create comments that flesh out the reason for a rejection.

To learn more about comments, communication channels, and how to set them up, read this article: How to set up Comments.

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