Template sharing in a team
PhraseExpander allows teams to share templates and autocorrect entries by linking to a shared glossary file.
This feature is available in the Professional edition and above.
In this tutorial, we demonstrate how to share a glossary using a shared Dropbox folder. The same process works with other cloud storage services like Google Drive or OneDrive, or with a shared network folder.
Your templates and data are not stored on PhraseExpander servers. All sharing happens through a shared folder accessible to all users.
This article discusses sharing glossaries among multiple users.
If you are a single user and want to share templates between your computers, please see: Share your templates between your home and office machines
In this article
Sharing a glossary
- Right-click the glossary you want to share (or click Share in the Home tab)
- Select Share > Dropbox (or another shared location)
- Choose where to save the glossary file
- Click Save
PhraseExpander will create a shared glossary file with the extension .peglo.
When sharing a glossary. PhraseExpander links the copy in the database to the one saved in the shared location.
The glossary will now display a green checkmark, indicating that it is shared and synchronized.
Hovering over the glossary displays additional information about the shared glossary.
Linking to a shared glossary
Once a glossary has been saved in a shared location, other users can access it by linking to the .peglo file.
To link to a shared glossary:
- Select the Home tab
- Select Link to glossary
- Browse to the shared .peglo file
- Select the file and click Open
A new glossary will appear in the glossary list.
A green checkmark icon indicates the glossary is successfully linked to the glossary file and up to date.
Each user who needs access to the glossary should repeat these steps.
Sending changes
When you edit a shared glossary, your changes are stored locally until you publish them.
So, you can make multiple changes before other people can see them.
When there are local changes, PhraseExpander shows the pending changes icon near the glossary.
To publish your changes:
- Select the glossary you modified
- Select the Home tab
- Click Send Changes
After the changes are sent, the glossary status icon returns to the green checkmark, indicating it is synchronized.
Changes made to a shared glossary are not visible to other users until you click Send Changes to publish them.
Receiving changes
When another user publishes updates to the glossary, PhraseExpander indicates that updates are available by changing the green checkmark icon to the cloud download icon.
To retrieve those updates:
- Select the glossary you want to update
- Select the Home tab
- Click Get changes
After retrieving the updates, the glossary status icon returns to the green checkmark.
Checking remote changes
Before synchronizing, you may want to review pending changes made by other users.
To view pending updates:
- Select the Home tab
- Click Check Remote Changes
PhraseExpander will display a list of changes made to the glossary since your last synchronization. This allows you to compare differences and then edit and merge any required changes.
Get all changes
We can get all changes to all glossaries updated by other users in one shot.
- Select the Home tab
- Click Get all changes
This operation applies only to glossaries that have not been modified both locally and remotely.
In that scenario, you'll have to review conflicts before updating.
Enabling autoupdate
You can enable Autoupdate to automatically retrieve changes.
This is a global setting that applies to all glossaries. When Autoupdate is enabled, synchronization occurs automatically when PhraseExpander is minimized.
- Select the Home tab
- Click the Autoupdate button
The Autoupdate button works as a toggle. When enabled, the button displays a blue background.
Autoupdate can automatically apply remote changes, only if the glossary has not been modified locally. If there are both local and remote changes, you’d need to manually get the remote changes.
Synchronization conflicts
If multiple users edit the same template between synchronizations, conflicts may occur.
When this happens, the glossary status icon changes to a red exclamation mark.
PhraseExpander uses RealSync technology to automatically resolve most synchronization issues.
For more information about how PhraseExpander manages synchronization, check Merge changes and resolve conflicts with RealSync
Unlinking Glossaries
You can unlink a glossary at any time. This will convert it to a local glossary, and you will no longer be able to send or receive updates. Unlinking the glossary just removes the connection but does not delete the glossary.
- Select the glossary you want to update
- Select the Home tab
- Click Unlink
- Click Make local
If you unlink by mistake, you can relink to a shared glossary at any time.
Missing connection
If the linked glossary file is not available (e.g. the shared folder is not available), the contents of the linked glossary will continue to be available.
The glossary status will reflect that showing a yellow alert icon.
Once the connection is restored, PhraseExpander will show the appropriate status again.
Managing Access Rights (Enterprise Edition)
In team environments, read/write permissions to shared glossaries can be controlled through the permissions of the shared file/folder.
You can assign different permissions to users:
- Full Access: have read and write access to the shared folder and can modify the glossary
- Read Only: have read-only access to the shared folder.
If a user only has read-only access, PhraseExpander will prevent them from modifying the glossary, and the glossary will show as locked.
In the Enterprise edition, PhraseExpander automatically detects these permissions and locks the editing interface for users without write access.
